TO THE EDITOR:
In response to your recent article, “Lights, camera, inaction” — Ryan Schocket’s stance that there have been no productive outlets for filmmaking at UNC, until now, is simply wrong.
UNC founded the Department of Radio, Television, and Motion Pictures in the late 1940s, and that program lasted until 1993. Then, it was absorbed by the Department of Communication and School of Media and Journalism. The production courses in the communication department are the most challenging, instructive and rewarding courses I have taken at UNC. In no other context can you learn as many real-world skills for film production from knowledgeable, talented filmmakers.
Students in the department have had their work shown at film festivals and continue on to successful careers in the field in places like New York and Los Angeles. (In fact, we have networking systems established in both cities.) Our faculty have had their work featured at Full Frame, MoMA and numerous other festivals and venues collectively.
I shouldn’t have to write a whole letter explaining that my college major does indeed exist — not when a quick Google search could lead your reporters to this information. There is not only one outlet for filmmaking at UNC, and there is not only one perspective. There are quite literally hundreds of talented, successful, driven film students at UNC of varying interests and from different backgrounds — if you had interviewed more than three of them, you would have figured that out for yourself.
Aaron Lovett
Junior
Media production and documentary studies
