Filmmaking, BFA Major in
Candidates for graduation from The Lawrence Herbert School of Communication with the degree of Bachelor of Fine Arts in Film-making must fulfill the following requirements:
Semester Hour Requirement
The successful completion of at least 124 semester hours and a cumulative grade-point average of 2.0 in work completed at Hofstra.
Liberal Arts Requirement
At least 81 semester hours of the total must be in liberal arts. Beyond this minimum, the student may elect either non-liberal arts courses or additional liberal arts courses.
Residency Requirements
There are two requirements that must ordinarily be completed in-residence at Hofstra: 30 semester hours in the major field of concentration, and the last 30 semester hours.
Candidates for the BFA in Filmmaking must complete a minimum of 30 semester hours of the major in-residence.
The semester hours in-residence for the major need not be included within the last 30 hours.
General Requirements for the BFA:
NOTE: Requirements listed below include options whereby a student may apply courses in one discipline toward several different requirements. No student may use any one course to fulfill more than one general requirement. A single course, however, may be used to satisfy both a general degree requirement and a requirement that is specific to a chosen major or minor.
- Nine semester hours of distribution courses in the humanities (see Distribution Courses). The nine semester hours must include at least three from the Literature category and at least three from the Arts category. No more than three semester hours of Creative Participation courses may be used to satisfy this requirement.
- Nine semester hours of distribution courses in the natural sciences and mathematics/computer science (see Distribution Courses). At least three semester hours must be chosen from each category.
- Nine semester hours of distribution courses in the social sciences (see Distribution Courses). The nine semester hours must include at least three from the Behavioral Sciences category and at least three from the History, Philosophy, Religion category.
- Three semester hours of distribution course credit in the Cross-Cultural category (see Distribution Courses).
- Three semester hours of distribution course credit in the Interdisciplinary Studies/Other category (see Distribution Courses). A student may satisfy this requirement with three semester hours of Interdisciplinary Studies course credit or with three semester hours in any other category. However this requirement is satisfied, it is an additional three semester hours to the thirty semester hours required by A-D above.
- Satisfactory completion of WSC 001andLoading...WSC 002. Students entering Hofstra with full credit for WSC 001 and WSC 002 must, during their first semester at Hofstra, take the Hofstra Writing Proficiency Test. Students who do not pass the test are required to completeLoading...WSC 040and retake and pass the Hofstra Writing Proficiency Test.Loading...
- Foreign Language Requirement.
The foreign language requirement may be fulfilled by completion of level 2 of a foreign language.
Students without transfer college credit in the foreign language studied in high school must take the language placement test (administered by the Language Laboratory) to determine placement in the proper level. No student shall receive credit toward graduation for any course below his or her level of placement in that language.
Students with transfer college credit in a foreign language should continue in the next level which follows that in which they have received credit.
International students may satisfy the foreign language requirement either by completing
Students must receive a grade of C- or better in all courses applicable to the major. BFA majors must maintain a GPA of 2.5 in all courses applicable to majors.
All students pursuing a BA In The Lawrence Herbert School of Communication must complete a liberal arts-based minor.
CATEGORY 1: Foundation Requirements - Semester Hours: 24
- RTVF 010 - (AA) Introduction to Film Studies
- RTVF 027 - Introductory Film Production
- RTVF 047 - Intermediate Film Production
- RTVF 110 - Introduction to Screenwriting
- RTVF 137A - Film History - Part I
- RTVF 137B - Film History - Part II
- RTVF 167 - Advanced Film Production
- RTVF 060 - Documentary Film and Video Production
- or
- RTVF 080 - Experimental Film and Video Production
CATEGORY 2: Film Studies Requirements - Semester Hours: 12
Chosen from:
- RTVF 129 - Script Analysis
- RTVF 138 - Film Adaptation Studies
- RTVF 139 - Film Theory
- RTVF 157 - Film Genres (may be repeated when topic changes)
- RTVF 158 - Film Authorship (may be repeated when topic changes)
- RTVF 177 - Documentary Studies
CATEGORY 3: Electives - Semester Hours: 19-22
- RTVF 021 - Fundamentals of Audio Production
- RTVF 060 - Documentary Film and Video Production
- RTVF 080 - Experimental Film and Video Production
- RTVF 067 A-Z - Film Production Practicum (may be repeated when topic changes)
- RTVF 067A - Color Correction
- RTVF 067B - Intro to 3D Animation
- RTVF 067C - Intermediate 3D Animation
- RTVF 067D – 2D Digital Animation
- RTVF 067F - Visual Effects
- RTVF 067G – Digital Storyboarding
- RTVF 067H – Advanced Cinematography
- RTVF 067J - Advanced Editing
- RTVF 107 - Cinematography and Lighting for Film
- RTVF 118 - Advanced Screenwriting I
- RTVF 119 - Advanced Screenwriting II
- RTVF 120 - Sound Design for Film
- RTVF 127 - Introduction to Animation Techniques
- RTVF 128 - Screenwriting Seminar
- RTVF 129 - Script Analysis
- RTVF 147 - Directing for the Screen
- RTVF 148 - Producing the Motion Picture
- RTVF 149 - The Art of Film Editing
- RTVF 150 - Independent Studies/Readings
- RTVF 161 - Advanced Audio Production
- RTVF 168A - Senior Film Projects I
- RTVF 168B - Senior Film Projects II
- RTVF 170 - Internship Program
- RTVF 178 - Film Studies Thesis
- Any Hofstra University Course (under Advisement): 3 – 6 credits
CATEGORY 4: Capstone Requirement – Semester Hours: 3-6
Chosen under advisement from the following: