Video & Media Design MFA virtual open house

The School of Drama graduate Video & Media Design program is a conceptually rigorous, hands-on and innovative three–year program that teaches advanced technical skills in a critical context. Video & Media Design graduates are expected to think critically about media technologies, their impact on individuals, relationships, and society, and to explore these issues in the form and content of their work.

The intensive three-year course of study provides a solid theoretical grounding in the history and contemporary issues surrounding media technologies, as well as extensive practical experience through class-work and participating in the School of Drama’s vibrant production schedule. 

The program offers tuition scholarships, optional weekly paid work for the department, an esteemed faculty, and a rich program of visiting artists, industry professionals, and workshops on cutting-edge performance technologies. Graduates participate in Showcase events in New York and LA where they are introduced to CMU Alumni and industry professionals, kickstarting their careers.

Register for a virtual open house on Saturday December 3 at 12pm Eastern Time. And meet with faculty, current students and alumni who can provide detailed insight and information about the program.  To apply and/or learn about other virtual and in-person visit opportunities, visit here.

Graduates of the Video & Media Design program leave with a wide range of skills and our alumni work across many performance and entertainment disciplines, including theater, film, television, dance, opera, game design, extended reality, immersive experience design, concert design, and live events.

CMU has top-tier Schools of Art, Design, Computer Science, Engineering and many others, and students are encouraged to seek out the best pathway to their artistic and professional goals. The VMD curriculum is designed so that students can take advantage of these diverse resources, developing skills in animation, robotics, 3D performance capture, creative coding, algorithmic systems, and live camerawork. Faculty advisers work with students to create their ideal curricula. Students then employ these skills in their production work, creating new forms of storytelling and narrative for a complex world.

This is an exciting time of expansion for the program. The College of Fine Arts is developing a 50,000 square foot interdisciplinary research and production center, focused on technology and performance, with a soundstage, digital stage, production studios, classrooms, a 180 seat 4k screening room, and gallery spaces. The top-ranked School of Art’s Electronic & Time-Based Media program will join Drama’s VMD program in offering collaborative courses, performances, festivals, community events, and industry workshops in these spaces beginning in fall 2023. 

This dedicated space will create new opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration and experimentation, and for exploring how emerging technologies, networked systems, and artistic practices open up new possibilities for storytelling, performance, and art.

Pittsburgh combines affordability with vibrant arts and theater scenes, multiple active theater companies, alternative performance venues, screenings, music festivals, and an active film production scene, offering students opportunities to expand their relationships to the wider creative community.

Open house: Register for a virtual open house on Saturday December 3, 12pm Eastern Time. And meet with faculty, current students and alumni who can provide detailed insight and information about the program.  To apply and/or learn about other virtual and in-person visit opportunities, visit here.