About Digital Cinema
Learn Digital Cinema production in the town MovieMaker Magazine has repeatedly ranked among the best places in the world to live and work as a filmmaker.
More Than a “Film School”
Digital Cinema at Southern Oregon University offers the most immersive and innovative filmmaking education in the Pacific Northwest. Our students learn by doing – in courses that merge theory with practice to prepare them for dynamic, creative careers as visual storytellers.
Incoming students begin mastering audio recording technology, videography, and digital video editing fresh out of the gate through our Production Tools suite of courses, before progressing into advanced technique courses in sound, lighting, cinematography, editing, entrepreneurial producing, and production management. Courses in history, theory, analysis, and research skills all inform the creative process and help students make connections between their own work and existing cinema traditions, conventions, and markets. Electives provide students opportunities to explore other areas of interest, including directing, screenwriting, documentary, and virtual reality, among others.
Immersion & Mastery
The centerpiece of the Digital Cinema program’s immersive approach to professional preparation is DCIN 450 The Crew Experience. Taken by most Digital Cinema students in the spring term of their junior year, The Crew Experience is a 12-credit production course in which our student filmmakers leave the classroom to “learn on location,” collaborating under the supervision of experienced professionals on the set of a significant film project. Students apply and interview for their crew positions based on their experience, skill level, and the portfolio of work they have developed in preceding classes.
Students who opt to pursue their BFA in Digital Cinema Production Arts will spend their senior year working in a substantial role on a year-long Capstone project, giving them the opportunity to specialize and develop deeper mastery in their concentration area. Capstone roles might include director, producer, screenwriter, cinematographer, production designer, or editor, and eligible Capstone projects might include a scripted short film, a short documentary, a television pilot, a promotional campaign, a music video, a web series, a VR experience, feature script, or other forms of media.
Production Resources at SOU
The Digital Media Center (DMC) is the central hub of production activity at SOU. It boasts a 1,000 sq.ft. live television studio with green screen, an immersive virtual reality lab, a sound recording booth, a 20-station Mac lab with Adobe Creative Cloud, and an equipment room with free gear check-outs to students, including professional-grade 4K production packages. The DMC is home to Rogue Valley Community Television (RVTV), which operates public access cable channels for community and student-produced content, and is also one of the top employers of students on campus, placing them behind the camera to produce content for real-world clients.
Film Club & the SOU Student Film Festival
The Digital Cinema program is a collaborative community where students forge lifelong professional ties. Outside of classes, many of our students get involved in the SOU Film Club, where students plan their own film outings, workshops, collaborations, special screenings, and other fun events.
Film Club also produces the annual SOU Student Film Festival. This competitive showcase of student talent screens at the historic Varsity Theatre in downtown Ashland every Spring. An awards ceremony and after-party follows the screening. For more information about the SOU Student Film Festival, visit FilmFreeway.
Living & Learning in Ashland, Oregon
For ten consecutive years (2014-2023), MovieMaker Magazine has ranked Ashland among its “best places to live and work as a moviemaker,” which makes SOU one of the best places in the world to live and learn as a student filmmaker. Hundreds of professional media-makers and more than a dozen production companies are based in Southern Oregon, offering students ample internship, mentorship, and apprenticeship opportunities. The Oregon Media Production Association (OMPA) — Oregon’s statewide media trade association — maintains a substantial presence in our region and offers regular networking opportunities for both students and professionals. Our regional film and media commission, Film Southern Oregon, works to connect filmmakers of every kind with the resources they need to complete local projects. Downtown Ashland also has two markers on the Historic Oregon Film Trail.
Southern Oregon boasts several significant film festivals, with the Ashland Independent Film Festival (AIFF) most prominent among them. AIFF brings the best of independent cinema to Ashland every April and includes a free student competition that awards cash prizes, and the AIFF Film Center in downtown Ashland hosts educational workshops and screenings year-round. Many Digital Cinema students participate in AIFF each year as volunteers, interns, and programmed filmmakers.
Finally, SOU student filmmakers enjoy easy access to some of the world’s most diverse and cinematic landscapes for location shooting. Deserts, redwood forests, waterfalls, whitewater rivers, glacial peaks, Crater Lake, and the Pacific Coast all reside within an afternoon’s drive. Farms, vineyards, ranches, state and national parks, and city centers can all be found in short driving distances from one another, providing an endless variety of shooting backdrops for student filmmakers.
Contact the Digital Cinema Program
SOU Digital Cinema Program
1250 Siskiyou Blvd.
Ashland, OR 97520
541.552.6669
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