University degrees: Postgraduate
Course length: 2 years full-time
To stay competitive in today’s market, film and television writers need to be able to work across platforms and genres. Designed with this in mind, our low-residency Master of Fine Arts in Writing for Film and Television emphasizes the art and business of film and television writing, as well as innovative writing for other emergent forms of media, from long- and short-form films to series television and webisodes.
Screenwriters in today’s industry must be versatile in terms of which genres and mediums they are able to work with. Emerson’s MFA in Writing for Film and Television is a progressive, two-year program that brings together a community of students for focused, rigorous instruction. Building on Emerson’s long-standing Department of Visual and Media Arts, the low-residency MFA program helps students refine their craft as writers for film, television, and other emergent forms of media.
The low-residency MFA program offers a personalized course of study in which professors work with you at the beginning of each semester to talk about story ideas and help you select which piece(s) you will write for the online workshops. They will also act as mentors throughout the program and regularly meet with you to discuss your career goals and how to set yourself up for success after graduation.
Each semester begins with a week-long residency, which will be held on our Boston (Fall) or our L.A. (Spring) campus.
Following the residency, you will take two online classes: a writing workshop and a topics course. Your creative work will be completed in the writing workshop and submitted online. You will receive thoughtful, detailed feedback from your faculty and peers. After reviewing your group feedback, you will schedule an online or phone meeting with your faculty advisor to discuss the progress of your creative work and receive constructive notes.
Online classes may consist of synchronous and asynchronous elements.
As an MFA candidate, you will complete a professional-caliber portfolio that contains the following: