Current Course Offerings
Fall 2025
CMA 1500: Fundamentals of Film and Video Production
Kramer, Mariah
01 3.0 hrs | Lecture | TR | 11:00a -12:30p | Buttrick Hall 020
Technologies and techniques of filmmaking. Digital video cameras, staging and lighting, sound recording, post-production sound, and image editing. Offered on a graded basis only. No Seniors allowed to register for this course.
Rattner, Jonathan
02 3.0 hrs | Lecture | MW | 9:30a – 11:00a | Buttrick Hall 020
CMA 1600: Introduction to Film and Media Studies
Crawford-Holland, Sasha
01 3.0 hrs | Lecture | TR | 01:15p – 2:30p | Buttrick 103
CMA 2250: 16mm Filmmaking
01 3.0 hrs | Seminar | TR | 9:15a-10:45a | Buttrick Hall 020
CMA 2260: Digital Production Workshop
Kramer, Mariah
01 3.0 hrs | Seminar | T | 4:15p – 7:00p | Buttrick Hall 015
Students create short films in different production modes (fiction, documentary, experimental) using advanced film production equipment and techniques learned in cinematography, sound design, editing and overall visual language, and focused on short form storytelling.
CMA 2400: History of World Cinema – Indigenous Cinemas
Koepnick, Lutz
01 3.0 hrs | Lecture | TR | 2:45p – 4:00p | Buttrick Hall 103
Indigenous Cinemas in Global Perspective Focus on films by and about First Nations Americans, Inuit, Sami, Aboriginal Australians, Maoiri, and Pacific Islanders, exploring different figurations of indigenous life and the place of indigenous filmmaking within the larger history of cinema. Special attention to the work of indigenous filmmakers that actively challenge the tropes, genres, and narratives of mainstream cinema. Discussion of relevant texts drawn from indigenous (media) studies to address past and present efforts to decolonize cinema and transform dominant circuits of cinematic distribution, exhibition, and spectatorship.
CMA 2500W: Screenwriting
Knight, Krista
01 3.0 hrs | Lecture | TR | 11:00a – 12:30p | Buttrick Hall 015
This course focuses on the foundations of writing for the screen. Students will analyze screenplays to understand the different aspects of character and story structure, culminating in writing assignments and short screenplays that focus on developing ideas, character construction, plot, and dialogue.
CMA 3257: Virtual Reality Design
Molvig, Ole
01 3.0 hrs | Lecture | TR | 11:00a – 12:15p | Engineering & Science Building 048
Interdisciplinary, project-based introduction to Virtual Reality (VR). Creation of immersive environments. Student projects guided by faculty mentors to create real-world, consequential VR simulations relevant to, and innovative in, their respective fields. Note: This class is not open to students with a Computer Science major or minor, CS students should enroll in CS 4249. The combined enrollment capacity of CMA 3257 and CSET 3257 is 20.
CMA 3333: Special Offerings – Film Festival Management
Kramer, Mariah
01 3.0 hrs | Lecture | TR | 1:15p – 2:30p | Buttrick Hall 020
This course is an introduction to film festivals and their role in independent cinema. Students will research various types of film festivals and discuss the history, cultural significance, and function of these festivals within the context of the independent film marketplace. Students will attend film festival screenings, panels, and/or networking events, while also learning how to plan, program, market, and manage a film festival and conference of their own.
CMA 3774: Contemporary Italian Cinema
Mirabile, Andrea
01 3.0 hrs | Lecture | MWF | 10:10a – 11:00a | Buttrick Hall 103
CMA 3850: Independent Study
Rattner, Jonathan
01 1.0-3.0 hrs
Waters, Jonathan
02 1.0-3.0 hrs
Molvig, Ole
03 1.0-3.0 hrs
CMA 3880: Internship Training
Fay, Jennifer
01 1.0-9.0 hrs
Rattner, Jonathan
02 1.0-9.0 hrs
Waters, Jonathan
03 1.0-9.0 hrs
Crawford-Holland, Sasha
04 1.0-9.0 hrs
CMA 3881: Internship Readings and Research
Fay, Jennifer
01 1.0-6.0 hrs
Rattner, Jonathan
02 1.0-6.0 hrs
Waters, Jonathan
03 1.0-6.0 hrs
Crawford-Holland, Sasha
04 1.0-6.0 hrs
CMA 4998: Senior Honors Research
Rattner, Jonathan
01 3.0 hrs
Fay, Jennifer
02 3.0 hrs
Waters, Jonathan
03 3.0 hrs
Koepnick, Lutz
04 3.0 hrs
Spring 2025
CMA 1002W: Moving Images and Analytical Thinking – Video Game Worlds
DeLevie, Brian
01 3.0 hrs | Lecture | MW | 08:00a – 09:15a | Buttrick Hall 205
Gaming the System: Narratives, Representation, and Power in Video Game Worlds. Dive into the captivating world of video games and explore how they shape our cultural and societal narratives. This seminar-style course will delve into pressing questions about the influence of video game narratives on identity, values, and societal change. After completing this course, you will be able to critically examine how video games shape, reflect, and challenge societal narratives, empowering you to become an informed and engaged media consumer and creator.
CMA 1200: War on Screen
Koepnick, Lutz P.
01 3.0 hrs | Lecture | TR | 11:00a – 12:15p | Calhoun Hall 104
The combined enrollment capacity of CMA 1200 and GER 1442 is 30. Although seats may appear open in a section, if the combined capacity has been reached the course will close.
CMA 1500: Fundamentals of Film and Video Production
Rattner, Jonathan L.
01 3.0 hrs | Lecture | TR | 09:15a – 10:45a | Buttrick Hall 020
Note: Students will be required to attend weekly technical workshops on 4-5 Fridays per semester, with multiple options for workshop times. TBA. No Seniors will be allowed to register for this course.
Grimaldi, Carmine
02 3.0 hrs | Lecture | W | 04:15p – 07:00p | Buttrick Hall 103
Note: No Seniors allowed to register for this course.
CMA 1600: Introduction to Film and Media Studies
Crawford-Holland, Sasha P.
01 3.0 hrs | Lecture | TR | 11:00a – 12:15p | Buttrick Hall 103
This course is not open to non-CMA seniors. Students are required to attend one weekly film screening, Mondays at 5:30PM in Buttrick 103.
Minarich, Megan L.
02 3.0 hrs | Lecture | MW | 02:30p – 03:45p | Buttrick Hall 103
This course is not open to non-CMA seniors. Students are required to attend one weekly film screening, Mondays at 7:30PM in Buttrick 103.
CMA 2240: Narrative Filmmaking
Waters, Jonathan M.
01 3.0 hrs | Seminar | W | 04:15p – 07:00p | Buttrick Hall 015
CMA 2250: 16mm Filmmaking
Rattner, Jonathan L.
01 3.0 hrs | Seminar | MW | 09:30a – 11:00a | Buttrick Hall 020
Offered on a graded basis only. Prerequisite CMA 1500.
CMA 2270: Documentary Filmmaking
Kramer, Mariah L.
01 3.0 hrs | Seminar | TR | 09:15a – 10:45a | Buttrick Hall 015
CMA 2300: Film and Media Theory
Fay, Jennifer M.
01 3.0 hrs | Lecture | MW | 09:45a – 11:00a | Buttrick Hall 015
CMA 2370: Film and Media Aesthetics – Stay Tuned: Sound in Cinema
Koepnick, Lutz P.
01 3.0 hrs | Lecture | TR | 02:45p – 04:00p | Rand Hall 308
Many understand film as a primarily visual medium and consider sound as a mere bonus feature. In this class, we not only study the creative role of sound music, dialogue, sound effects in the history of cinema since its inception but discuss a series of international films that asks viewers to think hard about the relation of sound and moving images, the power of listening, the dynamics of noise and silence, and the potential of acoustical experience to transform our relation to the world around us.
CMA 2500W: Screenwriting
Knight, Krista
01 3.0 hrs | Lecture | TR | 01:00p – 02:30p | Buttrick Hall 015
This course focuses on the foundations of writing for the screen. Students will analyze screenplays to understand the different aspects of character and story structure, culminating in writing assignments and short screenplays that focus on developing ideas, character construction, plot, and dialogue.
CMA 3773: Classic Italian Cinema
Mirabile, Andrea
01 3.0 hrs | Lecture | MWF | 10:10a – 11:00a | Buttrick Hall 103
The combined enrollment capacity of CMA 3773 and ITA 3640 is 18. Although seats may appear open in a section, if the combined capacity has been reached the course will close.
CMA 3891: Special Topics in Film and Video Production – The Art of Editing
Kramer, Mariah
01 3.0 hrs | Seminar | TR | 01:00p – 02:30p | Buttrick Hall 020
The Art of Editing. Theory, practice, and art of video post-production with emphasis on video editing.
CMA 4962: Senior Seminar on Film Practice
Grimaldi, Carmine | Waters, Jonathan M.
01 3.0 hrs | Seminar | T | 04:15p – 07:00p | Buttrick Hall 103
Capstone course for CMA seniors only. Students will be require to attend a screening in Buttrick 103 on Tuesdays from 7-8pm on a bi-weekly basis
CMA 4998: Senior Honors Research
Fay, Jennifer M.
01 3.0 hrs | Research
Waters, Jonathan M.
02 3.0 hrs | Research
CMA 4999: Senior Honors Thesis
Fay, Jennifer M.
01 3.0 hrs | Senior Thesis
Waters, Jonathan M.
02 3.0 hrs | Senior Thesis
Rattner, Jonathan L.
03 3.0 hrs | Senior Thesis