The Arkansas Higher Education Coordinating Board approved Mid-South Community College’s Associate of Applied Science Degree in Digital Media during its quarterly meeting on Friday, July 26.
“The Digital Media program is great because it gives students the opportunity to learn how to do a variety of different things,” said instructor and program organizer Anwar Jamison. “You can’t really get this type of instruction anywhere else in this area because most other schools focus on particular facets of the profession.”
“Our students will learn film and video production, graphic design, website design, and audio production on the digital platform. The variety of skills they’ll have the opportunity to develop at MSCC will make them very attractive to regional employers.”
Program-specific courses include Film & Video Production, Audio Production, Screenwriting, Cinematography, Producing and Directing, Advanced Digital Graphics, Digital Radio, Intro to Web Page Design, Digital Graphics for the Web, and Web Design & Methodology.
MSCC also offers a 12-hour Certificate of Proficiency in Film and Video Production that includes Introduction to Film, Film and Video Production, Audio Production, and Screenwriting.
Jamison said he wishes he could have been exposed to a more varied curriculum while going to college.
“I didn’t have the opportunity to get any website or graphic design experience, so when it came time to do a film, I had to go to other people or use the do-it-yourself way,” Jamison he said. “Our program will give students an introduction to almost everything they will need to know.”
Courses scheduled for the fall 2013 semester include Audio Production and Film and Video Production. Audio Production will meet 1 p.m.-2:25 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays, and Film and Video Production will meet 11:10 a.m.-1 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
The audio course includes an introduction to theory and practice and provides both hands-on experience with equipment and techniques as well as discussions of the principles and ethics underlying the writing, recording, and editing of creative audio presentations.
Jamison said the video production class focuses on hands-on learning opportunities for students of any academic level.
“Film and Video Production is completely hands on, almost from the very beginning of class,” he said. “The course has no prerequisites, so even new students will have the opportunity to enroll and jump right into making videos.”
With the rapid rise of digital media, many people have already been exposed to some of its practical applications.
“Technology and video are so wide spread that almost everyone has some knowledge and interest in it,” Jamison said. “Almost everybody is an amateur photographer or videographer now.”
“And since everything has gone digital, it’s a great time for these kinds of courses. Incorporating all of the different components is also a big plus because employers want people who can do all of those things.”
Jamison, who earned master’s degrees in Communications (Film and Video Production) and English at the University of Memphis, brings a good mix of classroom and practical experience. His undergraduate degree is in English Writing from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater.
“I’ve had the opportunity to write and direct an independent film which has been distributed to stores, so there are a lot of things that I can pass along to my students,” he said. “Often, things don’t go as smoothly as you think they will, and I’ve already experienced some of that.”
Jamison has worked with educators from U of M and Arkansas State University while designing the MSCC curriculum. He said the opportunities for students are exciting.
“When they say the magic of filmmaking, it really is. I think of it as magic because you can make almost anything happen on the screen. It’s definitely a lot of fun.”
For more information on Digital Media or other high-tech programs at MSCC, visit the college at 2000 West Broadway in West Memphis, call (870) 733-6728, email admissions@midsouthcc.edu, or see the website at www.midsouthcc.edu.
MSCC’s fall 2013 semester begins Monday, Aug. 19, and registration will be held on Monday, Aug. 12, 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m., and Tuesday, Aug. 13, 5-6:30 p.m.
No comments:
Post a Comment