The Department of Film and Media Studies is designed for those who are captivated by the large screen and the small screen. As home to the Carsey-Wolf Center for Film, Television and New Media, we have become one of the world’s leading film and media research centers, fostering a new generation of visionaries with a stake in the future of screen media.

We focus on film, television, and new media around the world. Our 400 undergraduates cultivate critical and analytical skills through the study of media objects and practices. Students have the opportunity to interact closely with distinguished faculty on research projects and to meld theory with practice through a vibrant mix of activities, such as the Screenwriters' Co-op, Reel Loud Film Festival, and Media Fields Journal.

The Department hosts the long-running AFI Routledge book series.  

The Department of Film and Media Studies at UCSB is a place creative young minds can thrive. Watch as students describe their creative and academic experiences.

Film and Media studies News & Events

Featured
Immersive, Hands-on Filmmaking
Cool Courses, Focus on Faculty
Immersive, Hands-on Filmmaking
Cool Courses, Focus on Faculty

From Netflix, PBS, Discovery, The History Channel, and more, film professor Chris Jenkins brings his professional documentary experience to the classroom to teach students the art of film production. The poplular, two-term course Crew Production teaches pitching, networking, and all that goes into workting with a production team.

Cool Courses, Focus on Faculty
An Insider Lens on Storytelling
Focus on Faculty, News
An Insider Lens on Storytelling
Focus on Faculty, News

Cheri Steinkellner has had a successful career in television, film, and theater and is now writing a novel. She continues to be a legend in the storytelling world, sharing her expertise with UCSB film students and insider stories from the industry. In an HFA interview, Steinkellner discusses her experiences working on iconic projects like Cheers and her unique creative teaching methods.

Focus on Faculty, News
The “Disneyfication” of Literature for Children
News, Student Spotlight
The “Disneyfication” of Literature for Children
News, Student Spotlight

Movies and media shape children’s understanding of culture and morality, but the “Disneyfication” of literature often raises questions about what is gained or lost in the process. Martina Mattei, a Comparative Literature Ph.D. student at UC Santa Barbara, examined Disney’s adaptations of Pinocchio and The Little Mermaid. She noted how Disney simplified the dark moral complexity of Pinocchio into a more uplifting tale and highlighted the backlash against Halle Bailey’s casting in the 2023 remake of The Little Mermaid, reflecting nostalgia for Disney’s earlier portrayal. Mattei argues that simplified adaptations can risk erasing the cultural richness of the originals, shaping how future generations understand these tales.

News, Student Spotlight
What UCSB's Mona Damluji ‘Wants You to Know’ About her new Children’s Book
Focus on Faculty
What UCSB's Mona Damluji ‘Wants You to Know’ About her new Children’s Book
Focus on Faculty

UCSB Film and Media Studies professor Mona Damluji recently discussed her journey into children's literature and the inspiration behind her socially-conscious works. Damluji published her debut children’s book, Together, in 2021, emphasizing the power of collective action. Her upcoming book, I Want You to Know, dives deeper into personal and political narratives. Written as a poem for her children, the book reflects on the generational effects of war, particularly in the Middle East, and explores themes of displacement and resilience. Damluji aims to open dialogue about complex histories, colonialism, and intergenerational trauma.

Focus on Faculty
Diving Deep: Ocean Storytelling with Ian Kellett
Cool Courses, Focus on Faculty
Diving Deep: Ocean Storytelling with Ian Kellett
Cool Courses, Focus on Faculty

Ian Kellett, a UC Santa Barbara professor co-leads the Coastal Media Project. It’s a nine-week, 12-credit intensive summer course focused on environmental media production and documentary studies, offered through UCSB’s Carsey-Wolf Center. It combines a passion for film with environmentalism as students adventure through nature, telling meaningful stories.

Cool Courses, Focus on Faculty
From Iran to America: Culture and Immigration
News
From Iran to America: Culture and Immigration
News

Filmmaker and director Persis Karim visited UC Santa Barbara for a screening of her film The Dawn is Too Far, hosted by the Center for Middle East Studies. The film details how art serves as a cultural creative outlet for many Iranian immigrants who moved to America.

News
Cinematic Sound and the Density of Silence
News
Cinematic Sound and the Density of Silence
News

Cinema sound editor Javier Umpierrez joined UCSB Film and Media Studies professor Greg Siegel for a post-screening discussion on the 2021 fantasy mystery film Memoria, which was the inaugural feature of “Panic!,” a fall series presented by UCSB’s Carsey-Wolf Center. Umpierrez spoke about his role in Memoria’s sound design and the film’s portrayal of bodies and locations recording history.

News
Grammy-nominated Grads: UCSB Musicians Make it Big
Alumni All-Stars
Grammy-nominated Grads: UCSB Musicians Make it Big
Alumni All-Stars

The story of how UCSB college band Rebelution put themselves on the map, garnering a global audience of millions and a Grammy nomination. A feature story written by UCSB student Emily Ferguson.

Alumni All-Stars
Wendy Eley Jackson: Teaching from a Film Industry Perspective
Focus on Faculty
Wendy Eley Jackson: Teaching from a Film Industry Perspective
Focus on Faculty

Screenwriter, producer, and UCSB educator Wendy Eley Jackson speaks to a student from the campus' Film and Media Studies department about her experiences within Hollywood’s film industry. Having gained acclaim working on several well-known films and television shows, Jackson uses her knowledge and resources to mentor her students towards successful careers in the film industry.

Focus on Faculty
HFA Creativity Contest 2024: Photography
Student Spotlight, News
HFA Creativity Contest 2024: Photography
Student Spotlight, News

This spring, UC Santa Barbara’s Humanities and Fine Arts Division hosted an annual contest to highlight creative student voices across the campus. The following are the winning submissions in the Photography category.

Student Spotlight, News
HFA Creativity Contest 2024: Visual Art
News, Student Spotlight
HFA Creativity Contest 2024: Visual Art
News, Student Spotlight

This spring, UC Santa Barbara’s Humanities and Fine Arts Division hosted an annual contest to highlight creative student voices across the campus. The following are the winning submissions in the visual art category.

News, Student Spotlight
A Cinematic Focus on Native American Women
News
A Cinematic Focus on Native American Women
News

As part of its “Storytelling for the Screen” series, the Carsey-Wolf Center hosted queer and Native American director, writer, and producer Erica Tremblay for a post-screening conversation about her film, “Fancy Dance” with moderator Lisa Parks, a professor in UCSB’s Film and Media Studies department. 

News
A Hands-on Experience in Filmmaking
Student Spotlight, Cool Courses
A Hands-on Experience in Filmmaking
Student Spotlight, Cool Courses

Allen Schultz, a Writing and Literature major specializing in film and screenwriting at UC Santa Barbara, took on the job of production manager in the student-produced film, “Overture". In this interview, he delves into the logistics of creating a student-made film about a young boy, who is both blind and deaf, overcome by his love for music as he experiences the vibrations of sound. Allen also discusses his rewarding role as director in his own short film “Disposable,” a story about life as a UCSB student and Jewish identity.

Student Spotlight, Cool Courses
Student Spotlight: Of Sunshine, Cakes and Flowers
Student Spotlight
Student Spotlight: Of Sunshine, Cakes and Flowers
Student Spotlight

Lily Fitzgerald, a third-year UC Santa Barbara Film and Media Studies student, started baking cakes in the neighboring community of Isla Vista in 2022. Shortly after, she founded her business “Sunshiney Cakes,” and has since been baking these whimsical, wildflower-topped cakes and posting them to social media.

Student Spotlight
Beyond Tokenism: Celebrating Black History Month at UCSB
News, Focus on Faculty
Beyond Tokenism: Celebrating Black History Month at UCSB
News, Focus on Faculty

Humanities and Fine Arts Dean Daina Berry and Film lecturer Wendy Jackson joined student moderator Maya Johnson for a panel discussion celebrating Black life in America. They discussed a variety of topics surrounding Black life both personally and within academia, in honor of Black History Month this February.

News, Focus on Faculty