Columbia University: How to Apply for 2025, Acceptance Rate, and What To Expect as a Columbia SOA Film Student

As the newest graduate film program at Columbia University School of the Arts, the Writing for Film & Television MFA prepares talented storytellers to develop their voice, understand the broad impact of the stories they tell, and prepare for a career in screenwriting and teleplay writing. The program welcomes writers across all backgrounds, but looks for a strong passion for the craft in the portfolio.

Students spend three years learning how to construct character-based narratives in long-form scripts under talented faculty, including screenwriter Andy Bienen (Boys Don’t Cry), Peabody Award-winning screenwriter Trey Ellis (The Tuskegee Airmen, Good Fences), and Academy Award nominated screenwriter and concentration head Christina Lazaridi (One Day Crossing, Nobody’s Watching). Students graduate with a mastery of all the must-have elements for exceptional storytelling and a portfolio of ready-to-pitch content.

The program is ideal for students solely interested in writing for television, film, and emerging digital media. Students who are equally interested in how stories are translated into films can also apply to the Screenwriting & Directing MFA.

Take a look at the year-over-year program breakdown:

Year 1​

Spring—Fall​

In the fall, students begin chipping away at Columbia’s Core Curriculum. These courses are taken by all film MFA program students and explore the essential elements of directing, narrative storytelling, and production:

• Directing I
• Directing Actors I
• Elements of Dramatic Narrative
• Ethics & Inclusive Storytelling
• Fundamentals of Directing
• Practical Production I
• Screenwriting I

The spring curriculum builds upon filmmaking and storytelling principles mastered in the fall semester in the following courses:

• Directing II
• Directing Actors II
• Practical Production II
• Role of the Producer
• Screenwriting II
• Script to Screen
• Secrets of the Short
• Analysis of Film Language (recommended)
  Intro to Pilot

Summer​

Students complete an 8-12 minute film production.

Film & Media Studies (FMS) requirement​

All students must take at least one course in Film & Media Studies (“FMS”) that count toward the 60 credits required for graduation. To get a teaching assistantship, film students should take more than one FMS course for graduate students:

• Analysis of Film Language
• Black Film & Media
• Blockbuster Cinema
• Cinema History 1: beginnings to 1930
• Cinema History 2: 1930 - 60
• Cinema History 3: 1960 - 90
• Cinema History 4: after 1990
• Cinephilia: Theory and Practice of the Moving Image
• Cult Cinema
• Documentary Tradition
• Film and Media Theory
• Film Comedy
• Media Archaeology
• The Mind Game Film
• The Moving Image in the Museum
• New Media Art
• Queer Film Theory
• Reality Television
• Seeing Narrative
• Sound and Image Theory
• The Western
• Topics in World Cinema (Latin America, China, Arab and African)

Year 2​

Students must take two required courses:

• Screenwriting III*
• Screenwriting IV*

(*Note: Screenwriting III/IV is a year-long course taught by the same instructor.)

Students also have priority for the following courses, which are required for those who plan to do television writing for their thesis:

• Thesis Workshop
• TV Writing: Pilot

Students may also take elective courses in directing and producing, such as:

• Adaptation
• Advanced Pilot
• Business of Television
• Digital Storytelling I: History and Theory of Interactivity
• Digital Storytelling II: Building Storyworlds
• Intro to Cinematography
• First Features
• Fundamentals of Editing
• Playwriting
• Story Structure
• Visual Experiences

In preparation of the Research Arts years, students must declare their concentration toward the end of the second year and complete the 60 credits required to graduate.

Unlike the Creative Producing MFA and Screenwriting & Directing MFA, the Writing for Film & Television MFA does not participate in the year 2 summer core curriculum, which focuses on the D4 short film project.

Years 3-5 (Research Arts)​

Years 3-5 are devoted to the thesis, also known as the Research Arts years. Writing for Film & Television MFA students must take two required courses:

• Script Revision
• TV Revision

Students are also encouraged to attend thesis development and preparation workshops and master classes led by guest filmmakers and other industry experts. Master classes discuss directing for television, directing your first feature, writing and directing comedies, strengthening your pitches, advanced editing techniques, film scoring, and more.

How to apply​

All applicants must submit the following in 12-point Courier font:

1. Autobiographical Essay: Three to four double-spaced pages. Please tell the Admissions Comittee the story of one or two experiences in your life that affected you strongly and shaped you as a writer. How did these experiences inspire you to become a visual storyteller? Be sure to use specific details.
2. Dramatic Writing Sample: Please submit a short sample of your original screenplay or teleplay writing up to ten pages in length. The University prefers that you submit a 'complete' short script that has action and dialogue, more than one character, and a beginning, middle and end. However, you are also welcome to submit up to ten pages from a longer script that you have written as long as you also provide us with a logline and brief synopsis.
3. Film Prompt: Read the following openings, choose one and imagine the scene that might follow it. The scene you write must include both dialogue and description. It should be no less than two and no more than three pages long. You may change the gender of any character in these prompts, but do not change ages or relationships. Must be in screenplay format. (The prompts listed below correspond to the Fall 2025 application):
   • EXT. CITY STREET - DAY
     On a bustling city street, the MAN stops, begins setting up a tall metal stand, then places a MICROPHONE atop it. Tapping it, he produces a loud sound that gets everyone's attention— including the PERSON in an adjacent office window. Then he makes his announcement.
   • INT. APARTMENT - MIDNIGHT
     While everybody at the party counts down the seconds to the approaching New Year, the WOMAN watches one particular GUEST sneaking out of the apartment unnoticed. Suddenly panicked, she grabs her coat, exits and races downstairs to the street - practically toppling over the person she’d intended to follow.
   • INT. TRAIN - NIGHT
     With her parents sound asleep in their seats, the young GIRL has a chance to look around the darkened train car. While most everybody is asleep, she spots a WOMAN whispering softly to something inside of an old fashioned HAT BOX. Curious, the child goes over to her.
4. Feature Film Treatment: On one double-spaced page for a film you might wish to write, direct or produce based on your application concentration. The treatment must concisely relate a complete dramatic story sufficient to sustain a feature-length film, including major characters and plot developments and a clear statement of the resolution. The story cannot be the same as the one in your dramatic writing sample or your optional video submission. You must state the genre of your treatment and a log line. On a separate page, please state the genre, major characters and a log line for the film. A log line is one or two sentences that describe the protagonist(s) and the story of the film.
5. Visual Submission (optional): You are welcome to upload a visual sample (10 minutes or less) if you feel it showcases your ability as a writer.

Filmschool.org admitted student perspective​

Filmschool.org member @AlexJoseph says:

"Overall, I had fun with the writing prompts. They want to see your demonstration of your creativity and your own voice, so my advice is to not hold back and have as much fun as you can with your essays and short scripts. You have nothing to lose."

Read more about their application, including their thoughts about the interview.

Ready to apply?​

Click here to start your application.