Best of the Week 2018-2019: Teaching to the Future
STUDENTS GET A BEHIND-THE-SCENES LOOK AT CLEVELAND STATE'S NEW FILM FACILITIES
Film Department Chair and Director of Innovation Mr. Nick Kuhar and twelve of St. Ed's most ambitious film students had the opportunity to tour Cleveland State University's brand new Film facilities on the sixth floor of the Idea Center at Playhouse Square. Mr. Frederic Lahey, Program Director of CSU Film, personally guided our Eagles on an hour-long tour where they got to see firsthand CSU's multiple new editing bays, each loaded with bleeding edge hardware and software. Students also got to see CSU's expansive equipment room, observed an acting-for-directors class and more. The new state-of-the-art facility will provide students at CSU's School of Film & Media Arts with a more contemporary and collaborative workspace to create original film and media content.
This new facility will provide new screening rooms, recording studios, enhanced audio and video editing suites, makeup and wardrobe rooms, a green room and a multi-purpose editing and mixing studio. "I really enjoyed seeing everything that CSU has provided its student filmmakers from equipment to specialized rooms for different pre-production and post-production needs," says Jimar Curry '19. "Seeing the students working diligently on their films, both collaboratively and independently, was a cool glimpse of what I can be looking forward to in the near future."
The trip to CSU not only spurred inspiration for new ideas that can be implemented at St. Ed's, but also strengthened a connection between both institutions for further collaboration. "As St. Ed's film program continues to grow, we continue to strengthen our relationships with major filmmaking institutions such as the Greater Cleveland Film Commission and CSU," says Mr. Kuhar. "In concert, our institutions have made bold moves to prepare some of the nation's finest up-and-coming filmmakers." In an effort to prepare students for excellent film programs such as CSU's, St. Edward's Film Department has made strides to match our most ambitious young filmmakers' passions and interests. "Via our four-year, flexible Film track, which includes Introduction to Visual Storytelling, Digital Cinema 1 + 2, Sports Documentary, Animation 1, and IB Film, we provide a mosaic of structured opportunities for students to excel at fundamental film production," says Mr. Kuhar. Since 2011, St. Ed's has invested in over $125,000 worth of film-related hardware and software and has constructed a curriculum that has provided our students entry into the world's top film schools, including the University of Southern California and NYU Tisch School of Arts. "CSU's film department is definitely more complex, but St. Ed's film curriculum and facilities are more than adequate for us to create amazing film," says Jimar. "St. Ed's provides us with the proper training, equipment and software in order for us to produce the best work and to follow our dreams in filmmaking."
