The College of Visual and Performing Arts at Syracuse University is now home to the 23rd best film school in the country, according to a recent ranking in The Hollywood Reporter.

The Hollywood Reporter — which releases a ranking of the country’s 25 best film schools annually — placed Syracuse’s film program 23rd on the list for the second year in a row. VPA made the Top 25 list in all but one year since the rankings started in 2011, with the school previously being ranked as high as 11th in 2014.

In a profile explaining the ranking, The Hollywood Reporter highlighted that the strengths of the program lie in the school’s internship and study abroad opportunities.

Students in VPA could land an internship at two of the world’s largest film festivals: the Cannes Film Festival and the Sundance Film Festival.

“I think there are a lot of film programs, but not many of them have the kind of international focus that we have,” said Owen Shapiro, professor and program coordinator of film in VPA.

Shapiro added that the school’s international focus has an effect on the type of students the school draws in.

The college is widely recognized for its large abroad programs. The most noted abroad programs for film students involve study in Prague, Czech Republic; Bosnia; Peru; and Bologna, Italy.

Shapiro said the school’s desire to create the “total filmmaker” is what sets film education at SU apart from other universities.

The concept of the total filmmaker, coined by the late comedian and filmmaker Jerry Lewis, involves practicing all disciplines of film from cinematography to scriptwriting, editing, directing or special effects, Shapiro said.

“When they become juniors, after they’ve had two years of filmmaking, they have developed some stronger interests in some areas more than others,” Shapiro added.

He said students can then begin to take advanced courses in those particular areas in anticipation of a year-long senior thesis project.

All students create their own style, Shapiro said.

“If you look at a group of films from our seniors and graduate students, you won’t be able to say, ‘Oh, that’s a Syracuse look.’ They will all be very individual,” Shapiro said.

Ranking high on The Hollywood Reporter’s well-trusted list makes the school more visible to prospective film students, said Jennifer Saluti, director of recruiting and admissions at VPA.

Saluti added that due to the increased visibility of the program, the flow of applications could change.

“Rankings will often broaden the external image of programs, make them more visible to a wider audience,” Saluti said. “Because rankings like these increase visibility of programs, they often result in an increase in applications.”

Published on August 28, 2017 at 11:40 pm

Contact Brandon: bross02@syr.edu