Wesleyan University - The College of Film and the Moving Image

Wesleyan University has long been a leader in undergraduate Film Studies. Since the 1960s, scholars in both the humanities and the social sciences have recognized cinema as the most important of the new forms of art developed in the 20th century--one which has had a profound and pervasive effect on all of modern culture. The growth of Film Studies as an academic discipline testifies to the importance of examining film not just as a cultural artifact, but also as an influential art form and an industry of global significance.

The mission of the film studies major is to deliver the finest undergraduate film, television, and media education through our distinctive blending of history, analysis, and production. The major explores moving image art by looking at what is on screen using the language of filmmakers. We highlight studio-era cinema as the foundation of visual storytelling. Our emphasis is firmly on cinema as an audience-centered artistic practice. We consider the creation and analysis of the moving image to represent compatible reverse processes—creator to film to audience, or audience to film to creator. No matter the level of the course or the nature of the discussion, we maintain a direct route from our intellectual activity to filmmakers’ choices and audience experiences. In contrast to graduate programs, which separate practice from study or teach methods of scholarship, we teach about the films themselves in a jargon-free classroom.