Film/Video at Pratt

You can’t escape the moving image—from theaters, television and art galleries, to smart phones, YouTube, building facades, and cabs—movies are everywhere. The magic of cinema that stunned us at its inception is now fully integrated into our daily lives. How can you as a young artist make the most of this moment? How can you explore all the exciting new possibilities of film and video, while still becoming skilled in the relevant traditions?

 

                                  Click here to see examples of our students' work

 

The Pratt Film/Video program is designed to grow the next generation of innovators in moving image and sound. We offer a solid foundation in the culture, techniques, and processes of filmmaking, with training in both traditional and non-traditional forms. At Pratt, there are no limits. Fiction or non-fiction? Commercial or art world? These may be boundaries you choose to move beyond. Your classes will take you through all modes of film and video (narrative, documentary, alternative), encouraging intellectual cross-fertilization and allowing you to shape your own artistic vision. While our program provides students with professional training in all current technologies, our priority is creative expression. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In our curriculum, award-winning film/video artists and industry professionals teach an exciting range of courses, from the foundational first year "Digital Cinema" sequence, to the culminating "Senior Project," in which each student makes a short film as his/her senior thesis. 

We provide a core curriculum of rigorous required courses, while simultaneously encouraging students to follow their own interests as they choose electives, which include contemporary film/video topics as well as interdisciplinary collaborations with students in other majors. For example, consider an elective in "Writing Through Pix + Sound," a non-traditional screenwriting class; or collaborate with Fashion Design students in "Film + Fashion" and explore the rich interaction of costume and the moving image. 

Access is key. Starting freshman year, students at Pratt Film/Video shoot with large-sensor interchangeable lens digital cinema cameras, quality microphones, and compact digital audio recorders. Students edit in our digital editing facilities, manipulating image and audio with the latest post-production software. Our community is critical to student development. All members of the Pratt Film/Video Department (administrators, faculty, and technical support staff) are active accomplished filmmakers, enthusiastic to share their experience with you.

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As a Film/Video major, your access will extend beyond Pratt into New York City itself. Identifying new directions in the field is not limited to your "Ways of Seeing" video class. You can visit cutting edge galleries and micro-cinemas, world-class museums, and film festivals—it’s happening all over the city. Opportunities for pre-professional experiences abound. You can join a film crew shooting on New York City streets—or intern at places like the Museum of Modern Art, Saturday Night Live, or one of the countless independent companies that comprise the city’s thriving creative scene.

The future for the moving image is unpredictable and wide open. At Pratt, we’re excited by the possibilities. Our mission is to provide you with the tools and techniques, an understanding of history, and a complex yet flexible interdisciplinary arts education allowing you to guide us into that future.  

Our recent grads are already leading the way with their infectious pioneering spirit.  Some include: the co-founders of the notorious Brooklyn Underground Film Festival, a director of photography for Spike Lee, a director of media production at NewYorker.com, one of the chief editors of Gawker.TV, and a critically acclaimed feature filmmaker. We are watching their accomplishments and looking forward to yours.

Contact Us

filmvideo@pratt.edu
(phone) 718-636-3633
(fax) 718-636-3478

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