1. Theatre and Media Studies Track
Coordinator: Dr. Thunnis van Oort
The Cinema Studies track at University College Roosevelt offers students in-depth familiarity with
cinema studies and, by extension, the broader area of media studies. The main accent is on cinema,
but the track also explores relations between film and other media such as theatre, books, visual
arts, or digital media. Courses in the track offer a combination of theory, history and analysis. This
means that the student who completes the track will learn some of the key theoretical concepts and
debates in cinema studies, will acquire an overview of the history of film (and its relation to other
media), and will be trained in audio-visual analysis using various methods and approaches. The track
helps students to build an elementary repertoire by offering an extensive film viewing programme.
Besides these specific media studies skills and knowledge, students train general academic
competencies such as critical thinking, analytical abilities, writing and debating. The track offers a
package that would grant admission to MA programmes in film or media studies.
Cinema studies is a natural fit in a Liberal Arts and Sciences education because it is a fundamentally
interdisciplinary field that intersects both social sciences and humanities domains. The field draws
literary scholars, communication scholars, (art) historians, philosophers, linguists, economists,
sociologists, anthropologists, and many other specialists from adjacent academic territories. The
track reflects this richness by combining textual and contextual approaches: besides studying films,
students will also consider the social, economic and historical circumstances in which media are
produced and consumed. The dominant styles and practices developed in Hollywood form an
essential touchstone that is subsequently related to a wide variety of alternatives to mainstream
American cinema.
Besides the intellectual fruits that cinema studies has to offer, several courses in the track allow
students room to apply their knowledge and skills to produce their own audio-visual creations.
Several partners are involved with or closely related to the track. The local theatre production
company Zeelandia collaborates during each Nazomer festival at the start of the Fall semester, where
students will visit a theatrical performance on location. The Zeeuwse Bibliotheek provides its cinema
auditorium for the course screenings. Student associations CameRa, Theatra and the Film Society
offer extracurricular opportunities to students wishing to improve their film making and acting skills.
CameRa organizes an annual film festival in spring allowing students to send in their work for
competition. In cooperation with the regional organization Cavak, the track offers a summer course
in Short Film Making.