Film and Moving Image Studies (BFA)

Moving images and screens are everywhere. They define our modern world. They shape how we see ourselves and others, what we believe and what we imagine possible. Learning to read moving images critically is the essential literacy of our time. 

Grounded in the humanities and fine arts, this uniquely interdisciplinary program uses the moving image to explore culture, society and art. Whether you come to Film and Moving Image Studies through a passion for cinema or an interest in art, philosophy, sociology, sexuality, history, cultural studies or critical race theory, you will discover new perspectives and new tools to investigate the questions that matter to you. You will develop the visual, narrative and media literacy to understand not only the images around you, but the world they help create.

A Bachelor of Fine Arts degree takes a minimum of three or four years (90 – 120 credits) of full-time study, depending on your academic background.

Program options

• Specialization in Film and Moving Image Studies* (66 credits)
• Major in Film and Moving Image Studies (48 credits)
• Minor in Film and Moving Image Studies (24 credits)

*Admission is to the major. Students in the major may apply for a transfer to the specialization after completing specific first-year courses.

The breadth and depth of faculty expertise in Concordia's Film and Moving Image Studies programs is really what make our courses so exciting. Our faculty members have expertise in many areas:

• Sexuality studies, feminism and female filmmakers, Queer Cinema
• Political documentary, postcolonial theory, the history of film studies
• Cinephilia, underground filmmaking, melodrama, semiotics, film theory
• Experimental ethnography, Soviet Cinema, Japanese Anime

Please note that film production courses are only available to students in the Specialization in Film and Moving Image Studies program.

For a list of required courses, please download the Program Guide according to year of entry.

Conferences, lectures & symposia
In addition to the variety of special lectures, conferences and symposiums organized by Concordia's Mel Hoppenheim School of Cinema (MHSoC), our cinema faculty maintain several research centres, among them, Concordia's Documentary Centre, the Advanced Research Team on History and Epistemology of Moving Image Study (ARTHEMIS), and the Sense Lab. 

International study opportunities
Concordia University offers students the opportunity to take part in an International Student Exchange Program (ISEP) that will count for credit towards their Concordia degree, while paying the same tuition fees they do at home and possibly receiving funding. International study opportunities bring cultural diversity and enrichment through immersion in the programs of study at Concordia’s partner institutions.

Professional internships
The MHSoC has established collaboration with all of the major film festivals in Montreal, through which many students find volunteer and internship opportunities each year. Moreover, students may opt to apply up to six credits from their degree towards an internship in film-related institutions, where they can pursue work in film archiving, research, editing publications or writing film criticism. Consult the Undergraduate Calendar or Graduate Calendar for details about program specific requirements and prerequisites.

Independent studies
Students may explore specific areas of film through independent study. Consult the Undergraduate Calendar or Graduate Calendar for details about program specific requirements and prerequisites.  

You’ll graduate with superior communication skills, plus the knowledge and discipline to think critically about culture and society. Our alumni work in cultural industries including:

• Film conservation
• Film production
• Museums and galleries
• Archives and libraries

Many of our students go on to graduate programs in moving image studies.