UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television, located in Los Angeles, offers undergraduate degrees, graduate degrees and professional certificates in film production and related areas. Two Master of Fine Arts (MFA) programs focus specifically on production: the Producers Program and Production/Directing. Graduate students can also opt for the professional certificate in Screenwriting/Production. The two-year Producers Program focuses on development, management and marketing, in addition to technical aspects of filmmaking. The four-year Production/Directing MFA emphasizes all roles of the director with additional focus on preproduction and postproduction. Graduation from the program requires 72 units, or 18 courses, and a thesis. As of 2010, annual tuition and fees included $20,443 for in-state students and $32,688 for out-of-state students. Students also finance their own productions, which can incur costs of $15,000 to $50,000.
The USC (University of Southern California) School of Cinematic Arts in Los Angeles provides an elite education in filmmaking and production. The Bachelor of Arts in Cinematic Arts Film & Television Production entails 128 hours with 45 upper-level hours in cinematic arts. The MFA in Film and Television Production consists of 52 units to be completed over three years. The program is designed around a studio format with students working hands-on from inception to completion of film projects. As of 2011, undergraduate and graduate students pay $1,360 in tuition per unit.
New York City's Tisch School of the Arts, in affiliation with New York University (NYU), offers the MFA in Filmmaking. Admission to the three-year program for aspiring writers and directors is extremely competitive with only 36 students admitted into the program each year. Storytelling and technical expertise are equally developed as students create a minimum of five movies during the program. The comprehensive program includes writing and direction for documentary and fiction film and postproduction courses. NYU also offers a three-year MBA/MFA dual degree in producing. The program features courses from NYU's Stern School of Business and Kanbar Institute of Film & Television at the Tisch School of the Arts. Students are prepared to work in the executive capacity with comprehensive training in business and filmmaking. For the 2011 spring term, graduate tuition and fees were approximately $21,000.
Columbia University in New York City offers the MFA program in Creative Producing through the university's School of the Arts. The program's 60-credit requirement is fulfilled during the first two years, with the last year dedicated to the thesis. Students write and direct short films under 15 minutes for the first two years and create a full-feature project ready for production for the thesis. Tuition and fees as of 2011 total approximately $24,409 per semester.