Tisch School of the Arts
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Tisch School of the Arts (known more commonly as Tisch or TSOA) is one of the 15 schools that make up New York University (NYU).
The school was founded in 1965. It has 2,700 undergraduates (in 7 programs) and 500 graduate students (in 10 programs). Tisch is best known for its renowned acting program, and its impressive film program (often called the NYU Film School). The select MFA program in film directing accepts only 5% of applicants for an annual incoming class of 36 students. Students of Tisch are sometimes called "Tischies", a nickname used by both Tisch students and those from other NYU schools.
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[edit] History
The School of the Arts at New York University was founded in 1965 to provide rigorous conservatory training in theatre and film in the context of a large research university. The School quickly established itself as one of the leading art schools in the country, creating additional departments of dance, theatre design and lighting, and cinema studies within a few short years. The undergraduate Department of Drama was founded in 1974. The establishment of the Interactive Telecommunications Program (ITP) (1979), the Rita & Burton Goldberg Department of Dramatic Writing (1980), the Department of Performance Studies (1980), the Graduate Musical Theatre Writing Program (1981), the Department of Photography and Imaging (1982), the Department of Art and Public Policy (2002), the Moving Image Archiving and Preservation program (2003) and the Clive Davis Department of Recorded Music (2003) rounded out an extraordinary period of growth in terms of enrollment and breadth of programs of study. In 1982 a gift from Laurence Tisch and Preston Robert Tisch made possible the acquisition and renovation of 721 Broadway, where most of the School's programs are currently housed; in recognition of the Tischs' generosity, the School was renamed the Tisch School of the Arts.
Currently Tisch is best known for its film and acting departments. In 2004 the Independent Film Channel followed four graduate film students at Tisch in a documentary series called Film School.
Most recently, NYU Tisch has announced the opening of its first-ever branch campus in Singapore. The Tisch School of the Arts Asia, Singapore Campus will offer an M.F.A. in film production, and classes will begin in the fall of 2007 with administrative and classroom facilities located in its own building in the city’s main business district. This is the first time NYU Tisch is offering a degree outside New York, and it is expected that the program will ultimately enroll some 250 students.
Mary Schmidt Campbell, B.A., M.A., PH.D.; HON.: D.F.A., PH.D., has been Dean of Tisch School of the Arts since 1991. She also serves as Associate Provost for the Arts.
[edit] Programs
The Tisch School of the Arts offers BFA, MFA, MA, MPS, and PhD degrees.
Tisch is comprised of five divisions, encompassing 14 different departments and programs:
- The Maurice Kanbar Institute of Film and Television
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- Maurice Kanbar Institute of Film & Television
- Department of Photography and Imaging
- Interactive Telecommunications Program (ITP)
- Rita & Burton Goldberg Department of Dramatic Writing
- The Skirball Center for New Media
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- Department of Cinema Studies
- Moving Image Archiving & Preservation Program
- The Institute of Performing Arts
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- Graduate Acting Program
- Department of Dance
- Department of Design for Stage & Film
- Department of Drama, Undergraduate
- Graduate Musical Theatre Writing Program
- Department of Performance Studies
- The Clive Davis Department of Recorded Music
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- Clive Davis Department of Recorded Music
- The Department of Art and Public Policy
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- Department of Art and Public Policy
[edit] Undergraduate Film
Renamed for the benefactor of a large gift to the department in the late nineties, the Kanbar Institute of Film, Television and New Media is comprised of an undergraduate film program in addition to the famous graduate program. The four year undergraduate program is designed to give students a broad understanding of the aesthetic, technical and practical aspects of film and television production.
Freshman in Film & TV are required to take aesthetic colloquiums in both 'Picture' and 'Sound' to better understand how filmmakers forge the various elements of a final Hollywood production. Introductory writing classes are instrumental in building the student's personal voice as a creative professional in the industry and are spring-boards to the more intensive Sophomore level script-writing classes. 'The Language of Film' serves to introduce the student to cinema language, theory and history as well as on overview of the inner workings of the industry. Freshman-level production classes include three options, each one runs a full fifteen-week semester in length. 'Sound Image', a production class that provides the basics of audio for film, concentrates on the nuances of sound recording as well as how the auditory can enhance and affect listeners without an accompanying image. In 'Digital Frame and Sequence' students use 35mm still photography to focus on image composition and to test the elements of editing theory. By using still images, sequences are created that lead students to concentrate on the development of meaningful storylines without the use of sound. The third Freshman production option is 'Introduction to Animation'. 'Intro' as it's called by Animation students, serves as an intensive study of movement and form introducing both hand-drawn animation and state-of-the-art techniques.
Sophomore year includes an intensive, year-long writing class to develop students' scripts in a small group that workshops each project aloud using classmates to read the various roles and critique based on their participation as a member of the audience. The elements of storytelling are outlined and students learn how to develop characters and create a dramatic arc with respect to pacing and dialog. Craft classes begin to supplement the primary film production and history classes with hands-on work in areas as varied as 16 and 35mm camerawork, recording audio, producing, preproduction, editing, sound design and special effects make-up. The first chance for students to officially test their mastery of the aesthetic and practical principles is reputed "to be the same as when Marty took it" (referring to Martin Scorsese). 'Sight and Sound: Film', the first production class where students shoot on 16mm film, has been one of the core courses in the program for much of it's lengthy history. This first film production class has a rigorous schedule with crews of four students sharing a camera rig (Arri S), accessories, tripod, sound package and lighting package to complete the class projects. The class schedule depends partly on shooting with black-and-white reversal film which saves the additional turnaround time required to have workprint struck from negative film. Another bonus of black-and-white reversal, when exposed properly, is the beautiful images it can create on the big screen. The class schedule dictates completion of twenty such 3-5 minute film projects for each crew over the fifteen week semester (only six weeks in summer) so, for a final grade each student must write, direct and edit five short movies; the first three are silent, the last two projects with sound. Detailed 'production books' with storyboards and/or shotlists, including evaluations of self and 'crew' are also required.
Sophomores are required to take a second 'Sight and Sound: Video' which, in Fall 2006, was recently revised, splitting the old 'Sight and Sound: Video' (more recently 'Sight and Sound: TV') into two new courses: 'Sight and Sound Studio' (studio television, including multiple cameras, live recording, and an acting component) and 'Sight and Sound Documentary' (a video documentary course). Tisch has two small television studios on its 12th floor used for this class. In addition to these mandatory classes Tisch film students are given their choice of many other film courses based on their field of interest, in subjects covering writing, directing, make-up, lighting, film history, editing, producing and more.
A little known fact is that Tisch Film also includes a robust animation department that teaches students in a variety of animation techniques; from 3D animation with Maya - to traditional cel animation, stop motion animation and digital compositing.
Building on the basics of film construction, craft and history learned during Sophomore year, Junior Year culminates in 'Color Sync', a film production class that stresses the importance of professional working methods and meeting specific deadlines. Ideas developed and workshopped in Sophomore year break way to scripts for 'Color Sync' that are the next step towards real-world production. This class requires building not only a script but polishing technical skills (Director of Photography, Assistant Camera, Gaffer, Grip, Sound Recordist, Boom Operator and/or Producer or Assistant Director) working on at least the three other members of their class' 'crew' projects. Each student writes and directs their own script for a narrative film project that runs at 8 minutes or less. 'Color Sync' is the first chance students are able to work with professional actors, color negative film stocks, productions with sycnronized sound, acquire production insurance, shooting permits and gain experience with professional labs, film vendors and the detailed budgeting and scheduling requirements necessary on a professional production. A final grade for 'Color Sync' depends on 'synched dailies' (sound and picture synched to screen in class, Beta SP or DVCAM) and a 'rough cut' presented to the teacher within one year of completing the class. Each class member receives a 'production allotment' to purchase film, defray the cost of processing and of telecine transfer. Also included in the student's production allotment is a limited amount of production insurance and access to the Production Center's vast camera, grip and sound location equipment facility, with access to Arri SR cameras, Fostex DAT recorders as well as the department's Postproduction Center, including Avid and Pro Tools editing and finishing systems, screening rooms and a professional recording studio, foley, ADR and Mix room. Students are cautioned not to fret if their 'Color Sync' isn't a masterpiece; it's a learning experience after all. Problematic Color Sync projects many times lead to much better preparation for Senior projects.
Generally regarded as the follow-up course to 'Color Sync', students learn the influence that postproduction can make in 'Editing Workshop'. Industry professionals lead small classes using Avid software to produce a 'fine cut' of their film. The 2000-2001 school year was the last that postproduction for 'Color Sync' and 'Editing Workshop' used gang syncs, rewind tables and flatbeds. After dozens of years of editing on film, in the Fall of 2001 ten of the Department's fifty-three Steenbecks were removed and converted to fourteen Avid Xpress systems. Soon after, all thirteen Steenbecks for 1st Year Grad Film were also replaced. In Spring 2007 less than twenty Steenbecks remain, all devoted to multiple class sections of 'Sight and Sound: Film'. Replacing the aging fleet of Steenbecks for other classes is the largest number of Avid systems under one roof, in the world, as well as over sixty computers with Final Cut Pro and over forty Pro Tools systems.
Senior Year film production classes are likened to a more real-world model where every director must 'pitch' his script and only the best pitches result in an approved production allotment. Junior is the last year students are 'guaranteed to shoot' and must now compete in a more realistic atmosphere, for a limited number of production allotments. Advanced craft classes utilize state-of-the-art technology including a complete 35mm camera rig on long-term loan from Panavision. Senior year helps concentrate students on their particular area of interest through participation in both approved department and professional projects, on campus and on location in NYC. Further preparing students to thrive in the industry the department sponsors multiple workshops, internships and screenings.
The department's 'The Director's Series' features screenings of new and important films and provides the audience with a Q&A with the filmmakers. A film festival open to all Senior and Grad Thesis projects is attended by the general public as well as important industry contacts. The 'First Run Film Festival' is sponsored by the department and held at NYU's Cantor Film Center in April of each year where students compete for large cash prizes as well as the hope of meeting the right contacts. Other screening opportunities organized by the department include the 'Freshman Festival', 'Intermediate Festival' and 'Animation Festival.'
Notable Undergraduate alumni include director Oliver Stone ("Natural Born Killers", "JFK") and, more recently, Ryan Fleck ("Half Nelson"). Notable Undergraduate faculty include animator John Canemaker ("The Moon and Son: An Imagined Conversation"), producer/editor Sam Pollard ("Mo Better Blue", "Four Little Girls", "When the Levees Broke"), actor Marketa Kimbrell ("The Pawnbroker"), television producer James Gardner, soundman Chat Gunter ("Law and Order"), director of photography Tom Mangravite, documentary filmmaker George Stoney ("All My Babies"), editor Lora Hays ("Harlan County, USA") and director Kelly Reichardt ("Old Joy").
[edit] Rita & Burton Goldberg Department of Dramatic Writing
The Rita & Burton Goldberg Department of Dramatic Writing, often simply referred to as the DDW, is one of the smaller departments of Tisch and provides instruction for playwriting and screenwriting. More recently, a third section, television writing, has gained prevalence. Freshman and sophomore years, students are encouraged to learn each form, but by junior and senior year they must declare a "concentration" in one of the three fields. To apply to the DDW, prospective students must submit a portfolio of short writing.
In general, undergraduate students must take at least one writing workshop each semester. In the core freshman workshop, Craft of Visual and Dramatic Writing, students are expected to write a number of short works, but by junior year are expected to work on full-length pieces. Other core classes include Classic and Modern Drama, Shakespeare for Writers, and Film Story Analysis. Students are also encouraged to take classes emphasizing production and performance, and must complete at least one internship over the course of their undergraduate experience. Finally, each student must also take numerous General Education and elective classes to gain a strong liberal arts background.
The department was founded in 1980. In December 2003, the department was renamed to include the names of Rita and Burton Goldberg, thanks to a generous gift to the department.
In general, the department holds about 200 undergraduates and 40 graduates. Notable alumni include playwrights Neil LaBute, Kenneth Lonergan, and Doug Wright. The current chair of the department is Richard Wesley. Its home is on the seventh floor of the Tisch building at 721 Broadway, New York City.
[edit] Department of Photography and Imaging
The Department of Photography and Imaging provides an undergraduate program of study that combines course work in traditional and digital photographic processes with those in modern two dimensional design.
[edit] Interactive Telecommunications Program
The Interactive Telecommunications Program is a pioneering graduate department focused on the study and design of new media, computational media and embedded computing under the umbrella of interactivity.
Founded in 1979, the origins of the program date back to 1971 when George Stoney and Red Burns created the Alternate Media Center (AMC). ITP grew out of the work of the AMC, and set the stage for the experimentation which would follow as well as the informing spirit of collaboration, and the ongoing emphasis on crafting social applications and putting the needs of the user first. A pioneering center for application development and field trials, the AMC initially focused on exploring the then-new tool of portable video made possible by Sony's introduction of the Portapak video camera.
Red Burns and her colleagues at the AMC came from backgrounds in documentary film and traditional media -- they shared a vision for a freely accessible, grass-roots technology which would enable users to create their own documentaries and distribute them widely. Their efforts led to many significant developments in the field, including lobbying Congress for the creation of what is now public-access television and significant field trials for two-way television in community settings, the use of teletext in major urban centers and communications technologies for the developmentally disabled.
Burns believed that a graduate course of study was needed to train creative, forward thinking, ethical new media developers for what she saw would be a new and growing field. The first 20 graduate students entered the program in 1979 -- and it grew quickly from there. In 1983 Burns turned her full attention from AMC to ITP and was appointed Chair of the department, a position she holds today. In 1996, she was awarded the Tokyo Broadcasting Systems Chair. Under her leadership the department has become an internationally renowned center for scholars and practitioners who are eager to engage the newest technologies and put them in the hands of media-makers.
Michael Mills, former full-time faculty member of ITP, went on to Apple Computer. His group developed the original prototypes that later became QuickTime. Current ITP professor Dan O'Sullivan, during his student years, served as an intern at Apple and created the prototype for the first navigable interactive movies. O'Sullivan also introduced the first widely used interactive television application in NYC, produced and broadcast directly from ITP by way of Manhattan Cable Public Access.
Industry leaders, artists and visionaries who have lectured at ITP over the years include Academy-Award winner, Chairman and CEO of R/Greenberg Associates Digital Studios Robert M. Greenberg, musician and pioneer of immersive virtual reality Jaron Lanier, multimedia artist Vito Acconci, multimedia artist & musician Laurie Anderson, Ethernet creator Bob Metcalfe, CEO of New York Times Digital Martin Nisenholtz, artist Toshio Iwai, and Masamichi Udagawa and Sigi Moeslinger of Antenna Design, to name but a few.
Current ITP faculty members are known for their contributions to the new media field -- Daniel Rozin, Chrysler Design Award-Winning Artist in Residence, has had his work shown in major museums around the world, most recently at the Israel Museum; Dan O'Sullivan and Tom Igoe have just published the authoritative text on physical computing; Jean-Marc Gauthier is the author of several books on interactive 3D applications, and his art installations have been seen internationally; Douglas Rushkoff and Clay Shirky are widely published critics, authors and journalists; Marianne Petit is an artist well known for her interactive stories as well as her work in assistive technologies and social applications; Red Burns has served on many boards and is regularly an invited speaker at industry events -- she is also the recipient of a Chrysler Design Award, for "Design Champion," a leadership award from the New York Hall of Science, the educator award from the Art Directors Club, Crain's All Star Award, the NYC Mayor's Award for science and technology and was the first recipient of the Matrix Award.
The online magazine Digital Performance describes ITP as
"An oversized Greenwich Village loft houses the computer labs, rotating exhibitions, and production workshops that are ITP — the Interactive Telecommunications Program. Founded in 1979 as the first graduate education program in alternative media, ITP has grown into a living community of technologists, theorists, engineers, designers, and artists uniquely dedicated to pushing the boundaries of interactivity in the real and digital worlds. A hands-on approach to experimentation, production and risk-taking make this hi-tech fun house a creative home not only to its 230 students, but also to an extended network of the technology industry’s most daring and prolific practitioners."
[edit] Undergraduate Drama
Founded in 1974, the Undergraduate Department of Drama currently holds the world record as the world's largest drama department; approximately 1400 students are currently matriculated there. Boasting numerous alumni in television, film, and theater, it prides itself on a unique blend of conservatory training, theater studies and liberal arts studies. According to the undergraduate drama department's literature, "the program in drama places equal emphasis on rigorous conservatory training and comprehensive theatre study in the most exciting and creative city in the world: New York." The current head of the department is Kevin Kuhlke.
Training culminates in performance. Over one-hundred shows are produced each year in the program including main stage shows, studio related projects, directing projects, and student-run black box productions. The most significant performance spaces are the Skirball Center, Frederick Lowe Theatre, The Abe Burrows Theatre, and The Linhart. Unlike most conservatories where casting is assigned and each class serving as an individual company, casting at the undergraduate level at NYU is open to any student in his or her second, third, and fourth year of training.
[edit] Conservatory training
The cornerstone of the program is the professional training component. Drama's professional program is a network of unique studios, each teaching an exclusive approach to the craft. Students train intensively in one of eight studios three full days a week in a working environment composed of twelve to eighteen students. [1] Students train intensely for three full days a week, and a typical drama student can expect to spend more than forty-five hours a week in class and rehearsal. All incoming actors are placed in a primary studio where they must train for the first two years. Students are divided and placed into these different studios, based on their audition, interview and personal preference. The studios are as follows:
- Stella Adler Conservatory
- Atlantic Theater Company
- Collaborative Arts Project 21 (This program serves as the department's musical theatre program.)
- Experimental Theatre Wing
- The Meisner Extension
- Playwrights Horizons Theater School (While housing an acting program, this studio also trains stage directors.)
- Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute
- Technical Production Track (Students interested exclusively in technical theatre apply for this studio.)
After their first two years of education, undergraduate actors have the ability engage in an internship or to audition for an advanced studio. Placement in these programs is open only to juniors and seniors and acceptance is offered only after a successful artistic review. These studios are as follows:
- Classical Studio (This studio is dedicated to the study and performance of Shakespearian text.)
- Experimental Theatre Wing Transfer Track
- Stonestreet Studios Film and Television Acting Workshop
[edit] Theater studies
All Students must take a minimum of seven theater studies courses. The first two are introductory courses: Introduction to Theater Studies (ITS) and Introduction to Theater Production (ITP). To fulfill the rest of their theater studies requirements, student's can choose from dozens of upper level theater studies courses, with topics ranging from avant-garde to Broadway, or from classical texts to modern American drama. There are also a series of honors seminars in theater studies, with varying topics from semester to semester.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Tisch School of the Arts website
- New York University website
- Stern Tisch Entertainment Business Association
- Tisch Talent Guild
- Tisch Undergraduate Student Council
- ITP Homepage
