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New Masters Degree in Film Studies at A&M-Commerce

Alan Flores

The campus of Texas A&M University-Commerce has now opened a new masters program in Film Studies. This program is not completely new though. The English department of this university already had a film studies program that granted a certificate in film studies, but the certificate was not a complete degree. According to Dr. Tony DeMars ,who is one of the head professors, this new program mainly involves  “courses from the English department that concentrates on teaching about film as a narrative and courses of the production side of film from the Mass Media, Communication, and Theatre Department to create a full M.A. degree.”

The courses from the Mass Media, Communication, and Theatre department side mainly focus on the production, writing, and acting that go into a movie. For example, there is a class called “Film Production Elements” which Dr. DeMars says that this class “is a basic overview on how to make a movie.” From the English Department side, students will be talking classes like “Intro to Film Studies.” Also there are courses about the history of film and even courses on specific genres of film. All of the classes from the English Department focus mainly on studying the film industry and how film should be another way to tell a story.

Dr. Tony DeMars says that this new degree can help the student become more competitive in the film industry. Graduates could start out as production assistant in a film project and build their way up to find their dream job. There are two kinds of jobs in the film industry. The jobs that are “below the line” are all the technical jobs, and the “above the line” jobs would be like being a director or a writer. This degree prepares the student to be successful in the film industry.