Film Studies (B.A.)
The Film Studies program strives to instill in its students an understanding of a critical appreciation for the aesthetic qualities intrinsic to moving image media, the technical skills to express their ideas, and a solid work ethic to guide them in the workplace. Through a blending of Critical Studies and Production coursework, the Film Studies major will develop and expand upon the student’s skills and talents as a scholar and filmmaker.
The Film Studies major provides Critical Studies and Film Production students alike with a strong visual, analytical, and aesthetic background as a common basis for each specialization. The Critical Studies option offers students an extensive range of courses in film history and theory, treating film as a liberal arts discipline, a mass medium, a technique of expression, and an art form. The Film Production option provides students with intensive hands-on instruction in motion picture production. Courses emphasize technical and aesthetic aspects of narrative, documentary, and experimental filmmaking, including scriptwriting, directing, cinematography, editing, and sound.
Integrative Studies Requirements
40 credits minimum
Film Studies: Critical Studies Option
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Major Requirements (40 credits) | ||
| Core Courses | ||
| FILM-250 | Video Production | 4 |
| FILM-270/IHFILM-260 | Introduction to Film Analysis | 4 |
| FILM-271/IHFILM-261 | Introduction to Film History | 4 |
| FILM-353 | Cinema and Diversity | 4 |
| FILM-355 | Film Theory | 4 |
| FILM-495 | Seminar I | 4 |
| Critical Studies Courses | ||
| Take 8 credits from: | 8 | |
| Topics in Film Studies | ||
| Topics & Genres | ||
| FILM-495 | Seminar I | 4 |
| FILM-499 | Senior Research Project | 4 |
| Total Credits | 40 | |
Film Studies: Film Production Option
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Major Requirements (52 credits) | ||
| Core Courses | ||
| FILM-250 | Video Production | 4 |
| FILM-270/IHFILM-260 | Introduction to Film Analysis | 4 |
| FILM-271/IHFILM-261 | Introduction to Film History | 4 |
| FILM-353 | Cinema and Diversity | 4 |
| FILM-355 | Film Theory | 4 |
| FILM-495 | Seminar I | 4 |
| Film Production Courses | ||
| FILM-280 | Topics in Production I | 4 |
| FILM-350 | 16mm Film Production | 4 |
| FILM-351 | Sound | 4 |
| FILM-400 | Collaborative Production | 4 |
| FILM-480 | Topics in Production II | 4 |
| FILM-485 | Production Capstone I | 4 |
| FILM-486 | Production Capstone II | 4 |
| Total Credits | 52 | |
Admissions Criteria
Any student may declare Film Studies as their major by formalizing a Film Faculty member as their advisor and then filling out a formal Declaration of Major form with the Registrar's Office.
Progression Criteria
To progress within the Film Studies major, a student must achieve an average grade of C (or 2.0) or higher in each of the required freshmen classes - FILM-250 Video Production, FILM-270 Introduction to Film Analysis, and FILM-271 Introduction to Film History.
Graduation Criteria
Once declared a Film Studies major, students must maintain a GPA within the program curriculum that is a C (or 2.0) or higher, with a minimum grade of C in any required FILM course (those fulfilling either a Core or Option requirement). Please see Course Retake Policy regarding courses with FILM courses with a grade earned lower than a C.
https://www.keene.edu/administration/policy/detail/course-retake-policy/
Transfers and Lateral Option Moves
Students transferring to Keene State College and wishing to declare Film Studies as their major, and students already matriculated at Keene State College and wishing to change their major to Film Studies, must follow all previously listed criteria and guidelines. Any student wishing to change options within the program must redeclare and formally resubmit per the established application guidelines
Electives
Select courses to reach a total of 120 credits for the degree.
Degree Requirements
120 credits
40 credits at the upper-level
Upon completion of the Film Studies major students will:
- know the basic terminology of analysis: e.g., mise-en-scene, wide angle, jump cut, continuity editing, auteurism, and so forth.
- know major events in world film history, which include: the birth of cinema, German Expressionism, Russian montage theory, Classical Hollywood period, Italian neorealism, French New Wave, American Independent and avant-garde, and so forth.
- have a knowledge of the major analytical frameworks of cinema studies, such as auteur theory, genre theory, ideological analysis, historical/biographical analysis, feminist theory, to mention some.
- have a knowledge of the major developments in film theory, which include theories of filmic realism and formalism, semiotics and structuralism, psychoanalytic film theory.
- understand the paradigms of the above developments and frameworks, well enough to be able to produce critical writings in these sub-fields of cinema studies.
- know the concepts of basic production techniques—syntax, techniques of lighting and editing, principles of sound, integration of thematic structure and logical outcomes of narrative/dramatic structure. They will know the difference between plot and theme, and form's relationship to these two.
Specifically of Critical Studies Option students will:
- have a deep understanding of, and intellectual engagement in, particular theoretical models, as exhibited by work in seminars and the senior research project. These will be manifested by their participation in theoretical discourse in the seminar forum.
Specifically of Production Option students will:
- know the necessity of proper documentation and pre-production and script preparation, the principles and practices of working with a crew, managing a budget, mastering the techniques of camera