<p>is the film and media studies in ucsb mainly about film analysis, philosophy and theory??? i want to learn how to make film, not how to analyze a film, is ucsb the right choice for me?? but i heard that ucsb just recently built or currently expanding their film programs, but idk if this's true, i really need advices from current ucsb film studies students ;)</p>
<p>I believe they only have you do one production based class. It is NOT a production based major.</p>
<p>Can you take more than just one? How do we take classes from the [Carsey-Wolf</a> Center at UC Santa Barbara](<a href=“http://www.carseywolf.ucsb.edu/]Carsey-Wolf”>http://www.carseywolf.ucsb.edu/)?</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.filmandmedia.ucsb.edu/program/undergraduate/undergraduate.html[/url]”>http://www.filmandmedia.ucsb.edu/program/undergraduate/undergraduate.html</a></p>
<p><a href=“http://www.filmandmedia.ucsb.edu/program/undergraduate/faqs.html[/url]”>http://www.filmandmedia.ucsb.edu/program/undergraduate/faqs.html</a></p>
<p>Hey there,</p>
<p>I am currently a Film and Psychology double major at UCSB, and I had your exact questions last year when I applied to UCSB as a transfer. So first of all, everyone is right, UCSB is not a production program. But the production opportunities are ample. There are quite a few courses that are offered which are VERY production orientated, such as: production technology (the most popular one), crew production, basic/advanced animation, project development, lighting, basic screenwriting, adapted screenwriting, acting/directing, writing for new media, short film production, and so on. Also, the major is huge. It is one of the top 10 majors at the school and I think there are close to 600 film majors here. I can promise you that you will NEVER have a hard time finding a crew to join for a film. There is an awesome email server through the film major which anyone can send the entire major an email regarding crew and/or casting calls. During my first quarter I became a PA for one of the 106 (crew production) films and it was one of the most awesome experiences I have ever had. We shot on the RED, had overnight shoots, did casting in LA, the whole works. This quarter I was the production manager for two separate Reel Loud films (Reel Loud is an awesome film festival run through the film department every year) and I am currently in the development stage for the first film Im planning on directing. There are PLENTY of opportunities here if you pursue them. Also, be sure to volunteer at the Santa Barbara Film festival. That was a really cool experience. (I got to be inches away from James Franco one night, and then Christopher Nolan the next!) If you have anymore questions, ask away!</p>
<p>How difficult is it to double major in Psych and Film Studies? Is the work load overwhelming?</p>
<p>What exactly do you learn when majoring in Film Studies? I know that it’s about “understanding film and media history, theory, and criticism,” but what does that actually mean. Do learning the history, theory, and criticism of film help at all when making a film?</p>
<p>Are there any film clubs at UCSB? If so, how many are there and which do you think is the best?</p>
<p>Um, I’m sure I’ll have other questions later lol. Thanks!</p>
<p>1) Psychology is a really easy major. The hard part is pre-psychology (I think there are four courses in all). Once you get past those its not bad at all. The work load is not very overwhelming, well, not for me anyways. </p>
<p>2) And yes, I believe all of that helps, but it really matters on the class. As with any subject, some are way better than others. For example, two core classes for the film major are Classical Film Theory and Contemporary Film Theory (192 A and B). I took 192A last quarter, and that was definitely quite an abstract class. We pretty much had to discuss ideas in film that could be contributed to every film that has been made and any film that will ever be made. There was definitely a lot of reading, but it was interesting nonetheless. Pretty much you learn about film theorists who argue about what film is made up of (ontology), how we come to know film/what film should be (epistemology) and how film should look (aesthetics). There tends to be a split between formalism and realism, and all the theorists feel on this spectrum. Although on the surface studying stuff such as film theory seems irrelevant to someone who wants to get into production, you can definitely apply it in cool ways. I mean, it really is so cool to think about this medium that I want to spend the rest of my life working with, in a whole new light. Classes such as that help you grasp the formal elements of film extremely well. This quarter I am taking a puzzle films class and a pornography class. Both are genre classes and they are really interesting. The puzzle films class is awesome for it helps you dissect complex narrative, and is extremely helpful for story development. And the professor is amazing. Pretty much, most of the information you learn you need to apply to film making but I definitely feel like the stuff I learned has tremendously helped me when I’m on set.</p>
<p>3) There are various clubs such as the filmmakers co-op and the studio. Filmmakers co-op is cool because through them you can check out equipment, network with other film majors and showcase your work. They also run cool events such as word farm and cam con. This week, for example, they are running free courses in editing and shooting in 16 mm format.</p>
<p>wow thank you!! your answer is very helpful 
Just to comfirm…so the lower division is about theory while upper division involves a few production courses right? it sounds decent
and has any ucsb film studies student successfully transfer to another uc in junior year?? what is the transfer rate in this major??</p>
<p>And are the film theory classes hard or difficult to understand?? how are the professors?</p>
<p>Thank you so much mgunko! Is the cost of double majoring significantly higher from doing only one major? I mean, you’d have to take more classes to get both degrees right?</p>