For a complete list of School of Communications courses and requirements, refer to the online catalog that pertains to your academic year of entry to GVSU. Select "Communications".

Complete catalog of course descriptions and program requirements.

CFV 123 Survey of Media Production Modes (replaced CFV 170)
Introductory course in the critical study of the various modes of film/video/animation/new media production.  Examines distinctive formal elements of each mode as well as the economic and cultural context of production and reception. A pre-admission course for film and video production. Offered fall and winter semesters. Three credits.

CFV 124 Image & Sound
A beginning course in problem-solving skills, image-sound, and sequencing relationships applied to basic expression through visual and audio media. Students explore the principles that guide the development of creative solutions and learn basic terminology used in production and critique. A pre-admission course for film and video production. Offered fall and winter semesters. Three credits.

CFV 125 Media Production I
Fundamentals of video production, including the techniques and the aesthetics of shooting, lighting, and editing. Emphasizes hands-on production experience, using small format video. A pre-admission course for film and video production. Offered fall and winter semesters. Four credits.

CFV 226 Media Production II
The second course in the media production sequence, emphasizing the techniques and aesthetics of editing. Includes an edit training lab where students learn non-linear digital editing procedures. External firewire hard drive required (7200 RPM, 80+ GB).  Prerequisite: Admission to major. Offered fall and winter semesters. Four credits.

CFV 261 Scriptwriting I
Writing for film, video, radio, and mixed media. Writing exercises in dramatic, informational, documentary and public service announcements and commercial formats. Prerequisite: Admission to major. Offered fall and winter semesters. Three credits.

CFV 321 16mm Film Production I
16mm shooting, editing, and budgeting, using class members as production unit. Includes attention to the history and aesthetics of this format. Prerequisite: Admission to major. Offered fall and winter semesters. Three credits.

CFV 322 Documentary Production I
Explores theory and practice of documentary production through a series of short projects.  Includes viewings and readings.  Prerequisite: Admission to major and 226. Offered every year. Three credits.

CFV 323 Media Technologies
Basic electronics theory, audio and video recording, synthesizing on audio or video signal, and signal processing. Prerequisite: 226 or CBR 281; Physics 226 or 229 recommended. Offered winter semester of even-numbered years. Three credits.

CFV 324 3D Computer Animation
Introduction to 3D modeling and animation using computers.  Students will demonstrate proficiency at basic modeling skills, surfacing, lighting, and animation. There will be consideration of how color, shape, lighting, and texture influence meaning.  Work in critical analysis provides a context for the animation process.  Prerequisite:  Admission to the major.  Offered winter semester.  Three credits.

CFV 325 Animation I
An introductory course in animation filmmaking. Students will work in small groups on animation and movement exercises and will individually produce a short final film. Readings will be assigned; films will be viewed and discussed. Prerequisite: Admission to major. Offered fall semester. Three credits.

CFV 326 Computer Image Making
Explores theory and practice of imaging, image manipulation, and multimedia production.  Emphasis will be placed on how the computer as a tool affects the communications environment. Prerequisite: Admission to major. Offered fall semester. Three credits.

CFV 327 Film and Video Art
A practical examination of the elemental codes and structures of film and video. Exercises in lighting, sequencing, sound, color, and composition. Viewings and readings. Prerequisite: Admission to the major and 226. Offered winter semester. Three credits.

CFV 328 Intermediate Film Practicum
Explores the craft of narrative drama in motion pictures. Students with some background in film, video, and/or audio gain an understanding of the professional model of media production by assisting in the planning and shooting of a dramatic film. Prerequisite: Permission of instructor. Offered spring term (6-week course). Variable, three or six credits. Permit required.

More information on the Summer Film Project

CFV 330 Digital Post Production
Explores conceptual issues in editing images and sound in a digital production environment. Prerequisite: Admission to the major and 226. Offered fall and winter semesters. Three credits.

CFV 362 Scriptwriting II
A seminar in which students work on individual scripting projects of substantial length, using class and instructor for critical analysis. Prerequisite: Admission to major and 261. Offered winter semester. Three credits.

CFV 368 Lighting for Film and Video Productions
The process of studio and location lighting for film and video; principles, instruments, measurement tools, filters/diffusers, single/multiple setups. Prerequisite: Admission to major and 226. Offered every fall and winter semester. Three credits.

CFV 370 Film and Television Interpretation
A series of courses, each of which considers the political, dramatic, and aesthetic qualities of a specific group of films or television programs. Prerequisite: Admission to major. Offered fall and winter semesters. May be repeated for credit when content varies. Three credits.

CFV 375 World Cinema
Explores the economic, historical, and cultural context for film production and exhibition in several countries to understand the relationship between cinema and national culture. Examines the influence and significance of films that have constituted alternatives to the Hollywood entertainment model. Close textual readings of foreign films. Prerequisite: Admission to the major, or permission of instructor. Offered winter semester of even-numbered years. Three credits.

CFV 380 Special Topics
A study of special topics not regularly covered in the curriculum. Expectations of the student in this course approximate those in other 300-level courses. Prerequisite: Admission to major. Three credits. May be repeated for credit when content varies.

CFV 399 Independent Study
An experience of an essentially scholarly and/or creative nature undertaken by a student under the supervision of one or more faculty members. Initiated by the student who has a special interest in a subject which is not available in the current curriculum. The student and the faculty sponsor agree on the scope of the study, its components, and methods of evaluation. Prerequisite: Admission to major. Variable credit.  Permit required.

CFV 422 Documentary Production II
Working in production teams, students produce a documentary video about a socially significant topic of their choosing.  Readings and assignments will develop an understanding of the methods for producing independent documentary and the accompanying issues commonly encountered.  Prerequisite: Admission to major and 322.  Offered winter semester.  Three credits.

CFV 424 16mm Film Production II
Working in production teams, students will shoot a short synchronous sound motion picture from a pre-existing script. Prerequisite: Admission to the major and 321. Offered winter semester. Three credits.

CFV 425 Animation II
Continued work in animation production for character and graphic animation. Introduction to 3-D computer animation and current technologies for special effects in motion pictures. Students will design, storyboard, and complete an animation project. Prerequisite: Admission to the major and 325. Offered winter semester. Three credits.

CFV 426 Cinematic Multimedia
An introduction to multimedia production. Students will design, script, build, and user-test a variety of interactive learning modules that run on the Macintosh computer. The course will examine the increasing use of computers in motion picture and video production, including consideration of how cinematic techniques can be applied to interface design. Prerequisite: Admission to the major and 326. Offered winter semester. Three credits.

CFV 428 Advanced Film Practicum
Explores the craft of narrative drama in motion pictures. At an advanced level, film students gain theoretical and practical experience in the production of a dramatic film. Students fill skilled positions on the film's crew. Prerequisite: Admission to the major and 424. Offered spring semester (6-week course). Variable, three or six credits.  Permit required.

More information on the Summer Film Project

CFV 429 Post Production Practicum
The process of audio, film, and video post-production, emphasizing the draft/revision process. The medium is film; however, editing will proceed in a nonlinear digital environment. Prerequisite: 261 and either 330 or CBR 281. Offered summer semester. Three credits.  Permit required.  More information is available here.

CFV 470 Nonfiction Film/Video Practicum
This is a client-oriented course.  Students will produce a professional video from a variety of non-fiction contexts.  Prerequisite:  Admission to the major and one intermediate video production course (CFV320 or higher).  Offered fall semester.  Three credits.

CFV 490 Internship
A supervised work experience in an area of a student's potential career interest. Initiated by the student, who plans the work experience with the advisor, the faculty sponsor chosen to supervise the internship, and the supervisor at the work site. Credit is awarded only when the student, the faculty sponsor, and the work supervisor have completed evaluations of the internship. Offered every semester. Variable credit.  Permit required.  More details are available here.

CFV 498 Senior Thesis/Project
The senior thesis/project demonstrates both depth and sophistication in the major. Offered every fall and winter semester, but not necessarily in the summer. Variable credit.  A project or thesis proposal must be submitted and accepted to enroll in this course.  Permit required.  Details are available here.

CBR 281 Audio Production I
Introduction to general principles of sound and to hardware and software of radio and other major media uses of sound. This is a production course. Offered fall, winter, and spring/summer semesters. Three credits.

CBR 382 Audio Production II
A two-part course: First, core topics that are the foundation of all audio production. Second, topics of special interest, such as radio, TV film, music recording, and digital audio. Throughout the course, professionalism will be stressed both in the final products and in individual performance. Prerequisite: 281 or permission of instructor. Offered spring/summer semester. Three credits.

CBR 485 Audio Production III
Microphone use, mixing, and editing. Final project is an eight-track mix-down. The class uses the facilities of a professional recording studio. Prerequisite: CBR 382. Offered fall semester. Three credits.

COM 348 Film Theories (SWS)
Examines a selection of major theories concerning sources of meaning and power in film and television. Prerequisite: Junior standing. Offered every semester. Three credits.

COM 371 Media and Society
Examines the communications environment of societies and current issues affecting media. May be repeated for credit when content differs. Offered every semester. Three credits.

COM 372 Global Communications
A global focus on the relationship between media and society. The nature of global media in a world community. Varieties of media technologies, contents, and effects. How media encourage cross-cultural unity, or increase tensions within and between nations. Part of Society and the Media theme. Offered every fall. Three credits.

COM 373 Women and Minorities in Film and Television
An examination of American film and television from the perspective of those social groups whose participation in the industry has been restricted both in front of and behind the camera. Offered every other year. Three credits.