About You
Where did you go to college?
Did you attend college online, in person on campus, or both?
I attended college completely online. We didn’t have virtual meetings that we had to attend. The courses were work at your own pace, but you had set due dates.
Did you know what you wanted to major in before your Freshman year?
Absolutely not, but I'll deny that if you ask Freshman me. Going into college, I wanted to major in Psychology, but I was waitlisted for the fall semester at my top university pick. Instead of attending another school, I worked on my core classes at a local technical university. At the end of the Fall semester, I no longer wanted to go to school for psychology. Instead of reapplying to universities, I completed my Associate’s degree with the idea that I would later get a degree in Business Management. Since I was unsure if this was what I wanted, I didn’t take a lot of Business classes; instead, I chose to get an Associate’s in Arts. After completing this degree, I realized English (Creative Writing) was my passion, so I started off majoring in this and later added on an additional major, Film and Media Studies.
Did you receive any scholarships throughout your time in college? If so, what kind?
I didn’t receive a scholarship per se, but I did get to attend all of my undergraduate courses for free by working at Starbucks. One of the benefits of working at Starbucks is that they pay for your undergraduate degree as long as you’re working an average of 20 hours a week. You’re not obligated to work with them after completing your degree, and you get a lot of free coffee, so I couldn’t resist working for them in exchange for no student debt.
Why did you choose this major?
I chose Film and Media Studies because I was passionate about writing, and I wanted to gain experience in both writing films and analyzing them. I knew I wanted to use these skills one day to get a job working in the film industry involving archiving or prop management. I have yet to achieve this career goal, but I haven’t given up on this dream.
About the Major
What type of courses did you take for this major?
For this major, I took screenwriting courses, film studies courses, and film production courses. After completing the required courses for the major, you can pick what you want your emphasis to be. Since I was majoring in English as well, I focused on screenwriting courses. I took things like Screenwriting Adaptations, Screenwriting for Television, and Writing the Web Series.
What course did you find the most fun/least fun?
My favorite course hands down would have to have been Screenwriting Workshop: Adaptations. This class gave me a new appreciation for film adaptations. Making a book into a movie is no easy feat, and there are reasons why screenwriters alter events in a book for films. Spoiler alert, it’s to ensure that they appeal to those who haven’t read the books. Every week in this course, I had to read a novel that had been adapted into a film. After reading the book, I would then have to watch the film, write about how the two varied, and create a scene for the film based on a random challenge given by the professor; my favorite was a scene I had to create for The Addams Family (The picture above is actually the beginning of this scene). Throughout the semester, there was a project where we had to read a novel of our choice and write the first thirty minutes of the screenplay. We could use whatever book we wanted, so I picked Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel. This project was challenging because it required you to alter the story you selected and make it appeal to a wider audience.
My least favorite course would have to be one of the mandatory courses for this degree, Introduction to New Media. This class covered technical issues of the Internet and new media platforms. For assignments, I had to critically analyze the social, cultural, political, economic, entertainment, and ideological issues related to new media. This course required weekly journal entries, multiple discussion board posts/responses, essays, and a project on someone who influenced new media. While it wasn’t my favorite course, I did learn about specific aspects of new media that were beneficial in future courses.
What course did you find to be the hardest/easiest?
The hardest course for me was Introduction to Film and Film History. It wasn’t that the courses were necessarily hard, but the professor’s assignments were difficult. As far as content that is difficult to master, I found The Creative Process course hard. In this course, I learned the role of every single person and department on set. I also had to understand the film process, which encompasses everything from the inception of an idea to a film’s time on the big screen.
The easiest course was Screenwriting for Television Part I. In this course, all of the assignments were components of the final project, which was a completed screenplay and pitch to investors. I think what made this course so easy was that it relied heavily on your ability to be creative. Not only that, but the lectures were entertaining, and the professor kept students engaged with anecdotes, puns, and dancing.
What skills does this major require and develop?
This major helps build your creative, communication, and analytical skills. Going into the program, you don’t have any required skills, but you should have an interest in these skills as they are essential to your success with this degree. This undergraduate degree will help you build upon interests and channel your interests into job-ready skills.
What type of internship would be ideal for someone with this major?
For internships, it depends on what career you want to pursue after graduation. Some of the internships that you could go for are Videographer, Video Editor, Production, Public Relations, Screenwriting, Marketing, Communication, and Live Theatre. A great way to search for internships is to look at major production companies; many of these companies host internship programs that can qualify as school credits. If you still feel overwhelmed, university career services can help you find your perfect fit.
What minors or other courses might complement this major?
Minors that complement this major can be English, Creative Writing, Communication, Public Relations, Marketing, Art, Film Production, Graphic Design, Journalism, and Theatre.
Are there any special groups/associations for this major?
There aren’t any within Arizona State that specifically cater to Film and Media students. An organization that you can join, however, is your local film society. This will give you access to screenings of independent films that wouldn’t make it onto the big screen. They are more notable societies for people pursuing screenwriting, but they are very expensive.
Post Degree
What can you do with this major?
With this major, you can go into work as an executive, screenwriter, producer, reviewer, teacher, marketer, analyst, and blogger. The sky's the limit with this degree.
What might be some unexpected careers?
Some unexpected careers for this major are talent agent, event manager, broadcaster, film archivist, journalist, and social media manager.
Is graduate work usually required to work in the fields associated with this major?
While graduate work isn’t required for most fields with this degree, internships are highly recommended. With Film and Media Studies, getting experience in the field is your key to success. If film archiving is something you are interested in, obtaining a degree in library and information studies with an archiving emphasis is highly recommended as jobs will be limited in this field without your master’s degree.
What type of graduate degree could you pursue with this major?
There are a few different degrees you could pursue with this major. You can go for a Masters in Library and Information Studies, Communication, Advertising, Public Relations, Film, Journalism, and Creative Writing.
Danielle Carlton, Library Associate