BFA graduates are known and respected throughout the Canadian industry for their technical and creative proficiency. As active professional filmmakers and media creators, the faculty are involved in the industry, allowing us to bring that experience and understanding into the classroom. The size of the department, its extensive facilities, its broad curriculum, the scale of student productions and perhaps most of all the extraordinary talent and dedication of our student body, all combine to create an accelerated learning experience like no other. York is located in the heart of the GTA, one of Canada’s primary film centres, and our Department is actively involved in the Canadian film, television and media industries. Professionals from all sectors of the industry regularly make their way up to visit our students. Upper level students may participate in a summer internship program that gives them on-the-job experience. For a significant number of students, their internship has led directly to employment with prominent companies in the film and television industry. Every year the Toronto International Film Festival includes York talent, with features and short films produced by alumni, faculty and often also current students. A university is very different from a training program which focuses solely on technical instruction.

York faculty are not only active in the industry but have chosen to work within the university setting because we like to think about what we do. The university experience is about much more than finding a job. At the same time, we believe the all-around experience York offers makes our graduates employable in a wider range of positions. This is demonstrated by the successes of our alumni, who include not only prominent directors, cinematographers, producers and editors, but also industry executives, casting directors, special effects designers etc. Our BA/Cinema and Media Studies graduates have gone on to positions as film critics, publicists, curators, educators, film festival organizers, book and magazine editors, teachers and professors. They have found a variety of jobs in the cultural industries working for film production houses, museums and galleries, in the broadcasting sector (TVO, History Channel, VisionTV, CBC etc) and (in two recent cases) setting up their own publishing company devoted to independent cinema. Some of our students have received prestigious scholarships to go on to graduate school to train as cutting-edge media researchers and film scholars.