NYU Tisch Graduate Film Degrees and How to Apply for 2026 Entry
NYU Tisch offers several highly selective degree programs for aspiring filmmakers, producers, and writers. Take a look at the requirements below, procedures for international applicants, and how to request an application fee waiver.
The most popular three-year graduate film program at NYU Tisch offers hands-on courses and two optional matriculation semesters. Graduate students write, direct, and edit their work in a highly collaborative laboratory environment that redefines the limits of their creativity and nurtures innovative thinking.
In addition to four mandatory short films, graduate students must complete the thesis film at the end of the program or at the end of the final matriculation semester. Many graduate students stay in the Writer/Director track, but they can also specialize in Cinematography, Producing, and Editing. Matriculated graduate students attend NYU Tisch tuition-free, but must pay all departmental lab, matriculation, and registration fees.
Year 1 has four core objectives:
The OSC project takes place over inter-term break. Filmmakers shift into using digital film, color, sound, and 1-2 person film crews. This documentary exercise explores their subject's character by shooting their mannerisms, features, and interactions with their environment. By filming a non-interrupted series of real-life events, graduate filmmakers learn how to direct emotionally compelling narrative fiction and non-fiction.
The Spring Narrative project is a 7-minute long digital film that incorporates other key filmmaking elements: written dialogue, music, and cinematic lighting, in addition to shooting in color. Each class in the spring semester revolves around preparing for the Spring Narrative film. The scope is limited to three scenes and three-person film crews to help graduate filmmakers learn masterful storytelling.
The end of the first year of study, graduate students complete the First Year Marathon where family members, instructors, and classmates attend film screenings at an NYU Tisch venue.
Year 2 has four core objectives:
Graduate students learn to write longer materials, from feature-length scripts to longer shorts. This film project challenges graduate students to double their total run time. Each week, they must attend Master Classes to edit and refine their work. Group workshops led by Directing instructors help students improve their craft and prepare the final cut by the middle of the semester.
Beginning in week 9, graduate students enter a production period that spans the rest of the semester. Each student receives one week of production time and chooses their film crews; up to five film crews go out each week and shoot on 16mm celluloid film or digital cameras. The project can take place nationwide or worldwide. In addition, all graduate students receive a small cash stipend that varies year to year.
Year 2 concludes with a widely-celebrated off-campus film showcase.
In years 3-4, graduate students have greater flexibility with a self-designed, thesis-driven curriculum rather than focusing on universal core objectives.
The thesis film must demonstrate mastery of essential techniques, exceptional creativity, and a passion for the craft. Many graduate students elect to complete the thesis in an additional year of study; visiting faculty provide high-level guidance and insight into enhancing the project.
Writing and Directing students can choose from the following formats to fulfill the thesis:
Graduate students in all specializations collaborate with award-winning visiting faculty, along with NYU Tisch students in Design, Acting, and Dramatic Writing degrees. Electives help students hone the skills they learned in their second year of study.
@notthatguypal was a first-time applicant to NYU Tisch Kanbar FTV Graduate Film received these interview questions:
NYU's two-year Graduate Dramatic Writing MFA trains graduate students to write outstanding films, plays, and televison series. Graduate students take a range of courses in screenwriting, text analysis, pre-production, and post-production, in addition to pre-professional training courses.
Aspiring writers can take advantage of departmental awards, such as the Goldberg Playwriting Award and Goldberg Prize (open to MFA and BFA students). Graduate students are also encouraged to attend the monthly Tisch Alumni Script Script Critique and Networking Group.
Dramatic Writing MFA students take introductory writing courses. By the end of year 1, students will have two original, full-length works that reflect two of these core mediums. Additional courses cover text analysis, production, and professional training.
Year 2 includes seminars, master classes, and colloquia with prolific guest speakers in film and entertainment that support thesis preparation (one full-length dramatic work). Graduate students can also complete a second full-length dramatic work in a different medium.
High-level electives prepare graduate writing students to experiment with writing comedy, children’s TV shows and films, graphic novels, and more. There is also an optional internship for credit.
@tylergenet got into the Dramatic Writing program by planning ahead:
“I worked on my TV pilot the summer before and worked on it through early October while making the finishing touches on my personal statements. I also workshopped my pilot to get feedback about what beats landed well and what I could've done without. My personal advice is backtrack from that final [deadline], apply at least 2 weeks beforehand, and give yourself [milestones] to complete the necessary supplements and writing sample.”
Read the full overview of their application.
The three-year MBA in General Management offered through the Stern School of Business and MFA in Film & Television Production from the Tisch School of the Arts dual degree prepares graduate students to compete for high-level film industry careers. Many graduate film students go on to work for major television and film studios and independent production companies in New York and Los Angeles.
In year 1, Kanbar students use Stern's Ignite program to complete required and optional workshops, panel discussions, mini-courses, Q&A sessions, mock interviews, resume critiques, and functionally-specific strategy groups.
In year 2, graduate students take advantage of on-campus recruiting sessions. MBA/MFA students are not required to complete a summer internship; the program requires two consecutive semesters of summer coursework.
In the final year, graduate students split courses equally between both schools and prepare to graduate with career counseling services and online tools.
@Sw121 had "two years [of] entertainment business experience [but] virtually no set experience." Take a look at their academic profile:
Before you apply, NYU Tisch specifies that candidates will only be considered for the MBA/MFA dual degree program if they first receive an invitation to interview from Kanbar.
Launched in 2025, NYU Tisch’s MA in Media Producing is an immersive online program designed for working professionals that blends creative development with the business mechanics behind film, television, and digital media. During the 15-month program, graduate students worldwide learn how to identify promising stories, package and pitch them effectively, and assemble the right team to bring them to life. Instructors also dive into essentials of fundraising, casting, production management, post-production, and marketing, gaining the practical fluency producers rely on every day.
By the end of the program, graduate students have the tools, industry knowledge, and discipline to become producers who understand how to create films that are seen and remembered. The program also offers an exciting optional curated experience at Sundance.
The program only admits for the fall semester. Applicants must hold a bachelor’s degree in any background and show enthusiasm for storytelling in any visual medium. No entrance examination is required, but international students must take the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) English exam, the IELTS, or the Duolingo exam.
Fall
Graduate students start the program by diving into Producing Essentials, a foundational course that frames the producer’s creative and managerial role across film, television, and digital media. This term builds the vocabulary, workflow awareness, and practical instincts needed to evaluate stories, collaborate effectively, and understand how producers guide a project from concept to execution.
In the second fall session, graduate students advance to Production Management, where they examine scheduling, budgeting, crew structures, and daily logistical operations. In addition, they take Entertainment Business Law to explore contracts, rights, intellectual property, liability, and the legal frameworks that shape deals and protect creative work.
Spring
Graduate students start the spring semester by taking Script Analysis, learning to break down story architecture, evaluate narrative potential, and determine what a project requires artistically and financially before it enters development.
In the second spring session, Creative Fundraising and Deal Making outlines the fundamentals of packaging projects, pitching effectively, securing financing, and navigating the business realities of producing film and television series. Post-Production / Marketing and Distribution covers editorial workflows, finishing processes, festival strategy, audience targeting, and release planning.
Summer
In Summer I, students must choose two electives from the following:
In the second summer session, students learn creative and business fundamentals start refining their thesis film in Thesis I, outlining its creative positioning, financing approach, and production plan under faculty mentorship.
Fall
Graduate students complete the program with Thesis II, where they finalize and present their culminating producing project. The thesis must reflect their ability to evaluate, package, plan, and position a professional-grade film.
Read the application requirements taken directly from NYU Tisch's website:
To receive an application fee waiver, send a request via email to the Director of Graduate Admissions, Joe Miserendino (jm7@nyu.edu).
Briefly summarize the nature of your request and provide supporting evidence. For additional questions about the admissions process and application waivers, please contact the Office of Graduate Admissions at admissions.gradfilm@nyu.edu.
If you previously attended NYU Tisch as a graduate student, you can apply for readmission. Most students reapply after their approved leave of absence has lapsed, or if they failed to maintain matriculation. Fill out the application here.
Start the General Graduate Admissions Application and begin the creative portfolio via SlideRoom.
NYU Tisch Kanbar Institute of Film & Television MFA
The most popular three-year graduate film program at NYU Tisch offers hands-on courses and two optional matriculation semesters. Graduate students write, direct, and edit their work in a highly collaborative laboratory environment that redefines the limits of their creativity and nurtures innovative thinking.
In addition to four mandatory short films, graduate students must complete the thesis film at the end of the program or at the end of the final matriculation semester. Many graduate students stay in the Writer/Director track, but they can also specialize in Cinematography, Producing, and Editing. Matriculated graduate students attend NYU Tisch tuition-free, but must pay all departmental lab, matriculation, and registration fees.
Year 1
Year 1 has four core objectives:
- Shoot 3 short films over two semesters
- Complete the MOS Project, a black and white silent film shot on 16mm celluloid
- Complete the Observational Character Study (OCS), a 5-minute digital film
- Complete the Spring Narrative, a sync-sound, 7-minute digital film
The OSC project takes place over inter-term break. Filmmakers shift into using digital film, color, sound, and 1-2 person film crews. This documentary exercise explores their subject's character by shooting their mannerisms, features, and interactions with their environment. By filming a non-interrupted series of real-life events, graduate filmmakers learn how to direct emotionally compelling narrative fiction and non-fiction.
The Spring Narrative project is a 7-minute long digital film that incorporates other key filmmaking elements: written dialogue, music, and cinematic lighting, in addition to shooting in color. Each class in the spring semester revolves around preparing for the Spring Narrative film. The scope is limited to three scenes and three-person film crews to help graduate filmmakers learn masterful storytelling.
The end of the first year of study, graduate students complete the First Year Marathon where family members, instructors, and classmates attend film screenings at an NYU Tisch venue.
Year 2
Year 2 has four core objectives:
- Take primary electives
- Stay in writing/directing or specialize
- Prepare to design year 3 thesis film
- Complete the Second Year Film, a 10-minute, sync-sound film (digital or celluloid)
Graduate students learn to write longer materials, from feature-length scripts to longer shorts. This film project challenges graduate students to double their total run time. Each week, they must attend Master Classes to edit and refine their work. Group workshops led by Directing instructors help students improve their craft and prepare the final cut by the middle of the semester.
Beginning in week 9, graduate students enter a production period that spans the rest of the semester. Each student receives one week of production time and chooses their film crews; up to five film crews go out each week and shoot on 16mm celluloid film or digital cameras. The project can take place nationwide or worldwide. In addition, all graduate students receive a small cash stipend that varies year to year.
Year 2 concludes with a widely-celebrated off-campus film showcase.
Year 3-4
In years 3-4, graduate students have greater flexibility with a self-designed, thesis-driven curriculum rather than focusing on universal core objectives.
The thesis film must demonstrate mastery of essential techniques, exceptional creativity, and a passion for the craft. Many graduate students elect to complete the thesis in an additional year of study; visiting faculty provide high-level guidance and insight into enhancing the project.
Writing and Directing students can choose from the following formats to fulfill the thesis:
- Short film
- Short or feature-length documentary
- Web series
- Feature script
- Television pilot
- Micro-budget feature film (less common)
Graduate students in all specializations collaborate with award-winning visiting faculty, along with NYU Tisch students in Design, Acting, and Dramatic Writing degrees. Electives help students hone the skills they learned in their second year of study.
FIlmSchool.org admitted student perspective
@notthatguypal was a first-time applicant to NYU Tisch Kanbar FTV Graduate Film received these interview questions:
- What would you have done differently about your visual sample?
- What would you do with your life if film (and all jobs/hobbies related to it) suddenly ceased to exist? ("I said - assuming I had lots of money - I would travel the world.")
- Tell us a personal story and explain every beat, all your emotions, and how it resolved?
How to apply
- Fill out the General Application: Learn more about the General Graduate Application requirements by reading "NYU Tisch General Admissions Requirements for Graduates for 2026 Entry."
- Make a Free SlideRoom Account: Upload all portfolio materials before the deadline by creating a free SlideRoom account. Applicants can return an unlimited number of times; remember to save your progress.
- Creative Portfolio:Upload these materials to SlideRoom:
- Visual Submission: Provide the best samples of your creative work. Co-created materials that feature you as the principal creator are permitted. Choose from either the video or photography category:
- Video – Must be either narrative fiction or documentary and have a total run time of no longer than 15 minutes; upload videos longer than 10 minutes to YouTube or Vimeo with an accessible link. Foreign films must be subtitled in English.
- Photography – Submit 10 photographs (stills) in black and white or color, with or without commentary. All subjects are welcome, but photos must be a minimum of 72 dpi.
- 3 Written Submissions: Respond to ALL of the following prompts:
- Dramatic Story – 1 short narrative writing exercise, up to two pages in length. Format double-spaced, 12-point font, prose style, and save a PDF. Build dramatic tension by ending with one of these lines:
- Dialogue Scene – Write an interesting conversation between two people that reveals something about the characters. Give a one-sentence description of each character, but include only essential details. Format as a screenplay, 12-point font, and save as a PDF. No cover page is necessary.
- Concept – In only one page, write about the concept for a feature-length script, narrative film, or documentary that you would like to develop. Format double-spaced, 12-point font, and save it as a PDF.
- Photograph: Add your self-portrait to SlideRoom.
- Visual Submission: Provide the best samples of your creative work. Co-created materials that feature you as the principal creator are permitted. Choose from either the video or photography category:
Rita and Burton Goldberg Department of Dramatic Writing MFA
NYU's two-year Graduate Dramatic Writing MFA trains graduate students to write outstanding films, plays, and televison series. Graduate students take a range of courses in screenwriting, text analysis, pre-production, and post-production, in addition to pre-professional training courses.
Aspiring writers can take advantage of departmental awards, such as the Goldberg Playwriting Award and Goldberg Prize (open to MFA and BFA students). Graduate students are also encouraged to attend the monthly Tisch Alumni Script Script Critique and Networking Group.
Year 1
Dramatic Writing MFA students take introductory writing courses. By the end of year 1, students will have two original, full-length works that reflect two of these core mediums. Additional courses cover text analysis, production, and professional training.
Year 2
Year 2 includes seminars, master classes, and colloquia with prolific guest speakers in film and entertainment that support thesis preparation (one full-length dramatic work). Graduate students can also complete a second full-length dramatic work in a different medium.
High-level electives prepare graduate writing students to experiment with writing comedy, children’s TV shows and films, graphic novels, and more. There is also an optional internship for credit.
FilmSchool.org admitted student perspective
@tylergenet got into the Dramatic Writing program by planning ahead:
“I worked on my TV pilot the summer before and worked on it through early October while making the finishing touches on my personal statements. I also workshopped my pilot to get feedback about what beats landed well and what I could've done without. My personal advice is backtrack from that final [deadline], apply at least 2 weeks beforehand, and give yourself [milestones] to complete the necessary supplements and writing sample.”
Read the full overview of their application.
How to apply
- Fill out the General Application: Learn more about the General Graduate Application requirements by reading "NYU Tisch General Admissions Requirements for Graduates for 2026 Entry."
- Set up a SlideRoom account: Upload all portfolio materials to SlideRoom by the deadline. Applicants can return an unlimited number of times (but remember to save your progress).
- Creative Portfolio: Identify the medium of your portfolio (not equated to your concentration). Next, provide a single, complete work that reflects your best dramatic writing and tells a complete story. You must also be the sole creator. If your sample falls outside of the following major categories, address how it relates to dramatic writing in a short addendum:
- Full-length screenplay (up to 120 pages)
- Screenplay (90-120 pages)
- Original episodic pilot (25-60 pages
NYU Tisch Kanbar Institute of Film & Television/Stern School of Business MBA/MFA Dual Degree
The three-year MBA in General Management offered through the Stern School of Business and MFA in Film & Television Production from the Tisch School of the Arts dual degree prepares graduate students to compete for high-level film industry careers. Many graduate film students go on to work for major television and film studios and independent production companies in New York and Los Angeles.
Year 1
In year 1, Kanbar students use Stern's Ignite program to complete required and optional workshops, panel discussions, mini-courses, Q&A sessions, mock interviews, resume critiques, and functionally-specific strategy groups.
Year 2
In year 2, graduate students take advantage of on-campus recruiting sessions. MBA/MFA students are not required to complete a summer internship; the program requires two consecutive semesters of summer coursework.
Year 3
In the final year, graduate students split courses equally between both schools and prepare to graduate with career counseling services and online tools.
FilmSchool.org admitted student perspective
@Sw121 had "two years [of] entertainment business experience [but] virtually no set experience." Take a look at their academic profile:
- GPA: 3.58
- GMAT: 700
How to apply
Before you apply, NYU Tisch specifies that candidates will only be considered for the MBA/MFA dual degree program if they first receive an invitation to interview from Kanbar.
- Submit the Dual Degree program application: Applicants must complete one application for Kanbar and Stern. In addition, Stern students must apply to the dual degree no later than their first semester. The application has six components:
- Short Answer: Professional Aspirations – Reply to “What are your short-term career goals?” in 150 words or fewer. Format double-spaced, 12-point font.
- Change: ____ it: Redesign Stern’s call to action in 350 words or fewer by filling in the blank with a word that speaks to you and your creative/professional goals. For example: “Change: dream it” or “Change: empower it.” Format double-spaced, 12-point font.
- Essay 2: Personal Expression (a.k.a. "Pick Six"): Paint a self-portrait in six images; open with a 3-sentence or fewer introduction about your selection. Include a one-sentence caption describing the significance of each image.
- EQ Endorsement: NYU Stern seeks applicants who present exceptional emotional intelligence. 2 EQ endorsements are required for admission; one must come from a current supervisor, and the other can be personal or professional.
- Essay 3: Optional. Provide additional details about your academic and/or professional background in 250 words or fewer. Format double-spaced, 12-point font.
Master of Arts Media Producing
Launched in 2025, NYU Tisch’s MA in Media Producing is an immersive online program designed for working professionals that blends creative development with the business mechanics behind film, television, and digital media. During the 15-month program, graduate students worldwide learn how to identify promising stories, package and pitch them effectively, and assemble the right team to bring them to life. Instructors also dive into essentials of fundraising, casting, production management, post-production, and marketing, gaining the practical fluency producers rely on every day.
By the end of the program, graduate students have the tools, industry knowledge, and discipline to become producers who understand how to create films that are seen and remembered. The program also offers an exciting optional curated experience at Sundance.
The program only admits for the fall semester. Applicants must hold a bachelor’s degree in any background and show enthusiasm for storytelling in any visual medium. No entrance examination is required, but international students must take the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) English exam, the IELTS, or the Duolingo exam.
Year 1
Fall
Graduate students start the program by diving into Producing Essentials, a foundational course that frames the producer’s creative and managerial role across film, television, and digital media. This term builds the vocabulary, workflow awareness, and practical instincts needed to evaluate stories, collaborate effectively, and understand how producers guide a project from concept to execution.
In the second fall session, graduate students advance to Production Management, where they examine scheduling, budgeting, crew structures, and daily logistical operations. In addition, they take Entertainment Business Law to explore contracts, rights, intellectual property, liability, and the legal frameworks that shape deals and protect creative work.
Spring
Graduate students start the spring semester by taking Script Analysis, learning to break down story architecture, evaluate narrative potential, and determine what a project requires artistically and financially before it enters development.
In the second spring session, Creative Fundraising and Deal Making outlines the fundamentals of packaging projects, pitching effectively, securing financing, and navigating the business realities of producing film and television series. Post-Production / Marketing and Distribution covers editorial workflows, finishing processes, festival strategy, audience targeting, and release planning.
Summer
In Summer I, students must choose two electives from the following:
- Media Mavericks
- Festivals and Markets
- New Technologies
- Internship
In the second summer session, students learn creative and business fundamentals start refining their thesis film in Thesis I, outlining its creative positioning, financing approach, and production plan under faculty mentorship.
Year 2
Fall
Graduate students complete the program with Thesis II, where they finalize and present their culminating producing project. The thesis must reflect their ability to evaluate, package, plan, and position a professional-grade film.
How to apply
Read the application requirements taken directly from NYU Tisch's website:
- Fill out the General Application: Learn more about the General Graduate Application requirements by reading "NYU Tisch General Admissions Requirements for Graduates for 2026 Entry."
- Statement of Purpose (3 pages maximum, double spaced, 12 point font): In Tisch Special Programs, the Office of Admissions looks for people with unique points of view, who hope to make creative work with an impact. Give the panel a sense of who you are in your own words beyond what can be inferred from your résumé or CV. Your statement of purpose should provide information about:
- What ideas do you have and what are you curious about? What kinds of projects are you interested in making or re-making?
- Why you're applying to this program. What are your academic and professional goals?
- Tell the Office of Admissions how your experiences, successes, and failures have shaped how you see the world.
- Résumé or CV: Provide a professional résumé listing academic background, work experience, honors, affiliations with professional organizations, papers presented at conferences, published work, etc. If you have a LinkedIn profile, please provide the complete URL.
- Two Letters of Recommendation: Applicants are required to ask recommenders to submit their letters through the online application system. Preferred recommenders: one professional, one personal.
- Upload Transcripts: Official academic transcripts or unofficial photocopies of academic transcripts should be scanned and uploaded. Applications that are missing transcripts will not be submitted for admissions review until the application is complete. If accepted, then applicants will be asked to mail in hard copies of official academic transcripts.
- Questions about the online application for admission should be addressed to the Tisch School of the Arts Graduate Admissions Office 212-998-1918 or tisch.gradadmissions@nyu.edu.
- Questions about the MA in Media Producing degree should be referred to Virginia Gonzales at 212-998-1500 or e-mail: tsp.ma.producing@nyu.edu.
- 2-Minute Introductory Video: Use a webcam or smart phone to record yourself. The panel is not looking for special effects, as long as they can see and hear you clearly.
- Upload a 1-2 minute video where you tell Office of Admissions about yourself and what interests you about the entertainment business. The panel will not be judging the production value of this submission; instead, panelists encourage applicants to use cameras that are readily available to them (e.g. cell phones or computers).
- They are not looking for polished/edited videos; it is meant to be a short video where you tell them something about yourself that they cannot get from other aspects of your application.
- Creative Portfolio: You must submit ALL of the following:
- Dramatic Story: The Dramatic story is a required short narrative writing exercise. Write a two-page story which builds dramatic tension. The dramatic story must begin with It was raining when I arrived. Format for the Dramatic Story: 2 pages, double-spaced, 12-point font. (Save as a PDF and upload to the application.)
- Visual Submission: Please use a maximum of eight photography stills to tell a story.
- Concept: Describe one concept for a feature-length script, narrative film, or television show that you would like to develop. Format for the Concept: Write no more than one page, typed, double-spaced, 12-point font. (Save as a PDF and upload to the application.)
Request a fee waiver
To receive an application fee waiver, send a request via email to the Director of Graduate Admissions, Joe Miserendino (jm7@nyu.edu).
Briefly summarize the nature of your request and provide supporting evidence. For additional questions about the admissions process and application waivers, please contact the Office of Graduate Admissions at admissions.gradfilm@nyu.edu.
Graduate readmission application guidelines
If you previously attended NYU Tisch as a graduate student, you can apply for readmission. Most students reapply after their approved leave of absence has lapsed, or if they failed to maintain matriculation. Fill out the application here.
Ready to apply?
Start the General Graduate Admissions Application and begin the creative portfolio via SlideRoom.
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