Welcome, Future Bruins to Bruin Bound!

This day provides our 2022 admitted students with an all-encompassing understanding of the services, resources, and opportunities available to you at UCLA. This site will focus on the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television (TFT). We hope to enhance your student life and ease your transition to UCLA. Ask us questions, explore the campus, and enjoy our site!

There are two departments at our School: The Department of Theater; and the Department of Film, Television and Digital Media (FTVDM). Below is a listing of the many of the theater, film and television resources at UCLA

 

UCLA Locations to Watch Theater or Films

  • Theater Shows
    UCLA students can watch productions put on by our Theater Department. Please go here to see the schedule of productions that our students will be performing in the 2021-22 academic year. Visit the Central Ticket Office if you are interested in attending.
  • Melnitz Movies
    The Graduate Student Association holds screenings for current UCLA students. In past years, students have previewed movies before the public release.
  • The Billy Wilder Theater
    The Hammer Museum in nearby Westwood Village shows many films from the UCLA Archives at the Billy Wider Theater. These films are free to UCLA students.
  • Geffen Playhouse – College Nights
    Students can see professional plays at the Geffen Playhouse at nearby Westwood Village. By signing up for College Nights e-mails, students will get codes to purchase tickets.
  • Archive Research and Study Center
    The UCLA Film and Television Archive is the largest university-based film and television archives in the world. UCLA students can have individual viewing sessions of many of these collection through the Archive Research and Student Center.

UCLA Student Groups that deal with theater or film

There are many students at UCLA that have interests in theater, film and/or television. Several groups may be at today’s Bruin Bound day. Looking at the website, UCLA has 21 film-related student groups and 13 theater-related student groups.

Studio 22
Studio 22 is UCLA’s on-campus media learning and resource center. It was created by UCLA’s Residential Life and is located in the Residence Halls. Students are on the staff to train students in media production and to check out film and video equipment to students. Students also have the ability to access editing software and reserve studio space/sound booths.

UCLA – A Popular Location for Filming Movies and TV Shows
If the UCLA campus looks familiar, you may have seen it on a movie, TV show or commercial. A scene from The Social Network was filmed in Melnitz Hall, where you may find yourself taking classes. This article explores the film history on UCLA’s campus.

UCLA and TFT Virtual Tours
Freshmen admits are invited to experience a virtual narrated tour of UCLA’s TFT facilities. Visit www.tft.ucla.edu/tours/ and click “Explore Our Campus Now” to watch a behind-the-scenes peek at our first-rate facilities including theaters, soundstages, TV studios, and prop, scene and costume shops. You can find more virtual tours online: Here is the UCLA campus tour, and here is the housing tour.

Entertainment Classes and Activities for non-TFT students

  • TFT Summer Institutes
    TFT offers Summer Institutes (some are high school institutes for younger relatives). Some of the classes taken at the Institute will count toward our program. You can find our Theater Summer Institutes here and our FTVDM Summer Institutes here.
  • TFT Summer Classes
    We also offer TFT Summer Classes that are not part of an institute. Summer courses for Theater can be found here and summer courses for FTVDM can be found here.

TFT Minors and TFT Classes Open to Non-majors

There are two minors offered at TFT: The Theater Minor and the Film, Television and Digital Media (FTVDM) Minor. Classes for the TFT minors are also the classes that UCLA non-majors can take during the regular academic year. These classes can be found on the appropriate minor course lists. Here’s where to find the Theater Minor List and the FTVDM Minor List. Note, only the courses on this list, taken at UCLA, will count towards the minor. These are two very popular minors, and enrollments in these courses are in high demand. Consequently, enrollments in the majority of these classes are restricted to DECLARED majors and DECLARED minors in the priority and first passes, and will be open to all UCLA students at the start of the second pass, space permitting.

Students may only apply to add the TFT minors after:

  • completing a minimum number of approved classes,
  • getting a minimum grade(s) in those classes,
  • having a minimum overall GPA and
  • submitting all the application materials in the minor application period

More information, including about the application process, is available at these pages: Theater Minor and FTVDM Minor.

Changing Majors to TFT

There are two undergraduate majors at TFT: The Theater Major and the Film and Television Major. Areas of interest (such as acting, directing, and screenwriting) are not available as individual majors, though you may choose these to an area of interest within the two TFT majors. If you were accepted to UCLA as a freshman and are thinking of changing to a TFT major, here are some notes on what the process looks like:

  • To be eligible to apply for a Change of Major to one of our departments, students must complete the General Education requirements of their current major before their third year (junior year) at UCLA
  • Completing the GE requirements is most important if you want to be eligible to change to a TFT major
  • We only accept Change of Major applications from students in their second (sophomore year) at UCLA
  • Students must apply by the application deadline, which is usually December/January of their second (sophomore) year
  • Students must complete all the supplemental application materials by the application deadline
  • You can only apply as a Change of Major to one of the TFT majors (you cannot apply for both)

Note: We do NOT allow double-majoring at TFT. Additionally, transfer students may not switch to either TFT major after admission to UCLA, as explained here when students applied.

Professional Programs and Extension Programs

UCLA TFT offers a variety of professional programs and extension programs. While these courses don’t count toward the major or UCLA credit, they are a great way to broaden your horizons and learn from experts in the industry. More information on these programs can be found at:

 

Enjoy your day. Go Bruins!