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Relevant Course History

Relevant courses taken in my undergraduate degree at the Claremont Colleges, which include Scripps College (my home institution), Harvey Mudd College, Pitzer College, Claremont McKenna College, and Pomona College.

PSYC125 “Culture/Hum Dev:African Diaspora” – Spring ’24

Eric Hurley – Pomona College

While my major is Media Studies, my minor is in Psychology. The biggest thing I took away from this course was actual public speaking skills. Other courses have one or two presentations in the semester, Professor Hurley required eight. We were presenting almost every week, with detailed feedback each time. This made my presentation more prepared, fluid, and relaxed.

Skills Used: Public Speaking

MS170 “Digital Cinema: Experimental Animation” – Fall ’23

Rachel Mayeri – Harvey Mudd College

I walked into MS170 knowing absolutely nothing. The first day we were asked our proficiency in various programs and skills. I was the only person in the room with no experience in anything. In MS170 I went from never having opened Adobe Photoshop to animating in After Effects with ease. I am very very proud of the work I did in this course. You can see said work on my CREATIVE PROJECTS page.

Skills Used: Adobe Photoshop, Adobe After Effects, Adobe Premiere, Adobe Audition, Microphone Use and Sound Design

MS092 “Principles of Television Study” – Fall ’23

Ryan Engley – Pomona College

MS092 focused on 3 major aspects of television: liveness, formal constraints, and serial worlds.

Coming of age in the age of streaming, I never considered the importance of liveness in television. This course prompted reflection on how liveness has impacted my relationship with television and its ability to connect with viewers and form community. My favorite moment in television history was season 8 of Doctor Who, released week-by-week in fall of 2014. The reason this season is so dear to me, is because it was the first show/season I was distinctly aware of when the episode aired, and watched standing about 12in from my small flatscreen on my dresser. It is dear to me, because I watched it live. My increased awareness to this principle will guide my future art practices.

My favorite type of episode is the episode in which there is only one character. It always baffled and impressed me how dialogue can take place without multiple characters, and keep a viewer engaged. The reason these episodes are so impressive, is because of the formal constraint introduced. This concept has reframed my writing from “What can I do?” to “What can’t I do?”, and that limitation enriches the story.

ART148 “Introduction to Video Art” – Spring ’23

Kim-Trang Tran – Scripps College

ART148 was where I built the skills that have been the foundation of my artwork. Most of our energy was dedicated to getting familiar and comfortable with camera work. I learned about aperture, focus, ISO, microphone input/output, and experimented with aspect ratio. This class is where I learned Adobe Premiere.

Skills Used: Adobe Premiere, Microphone Use, Camera and Tripod Setup/Settings, Cinematography

MUS091 “Sound, Cognition, and History” – Spring ’23

Alfred Cramer – Pomona College

MUS091 was a Media Studies elective, however students from many different backgrounds took it. Professor Cramer taught sound from a variety of angles, including but not limited to, film, history, biology, engineering, and music theory. While not a music major, this course taught me a lot about the importance of sound design and listening.

Skills Used: Public Speaking, Teamwork

MS050 “Introduction to Film” – Fall ’22

Kevin Wynter – Pomona College

MS050 was my formal introduction to Media Studies at the Claremont Colleges. There I learned about camera angles and their meanings, paid attention to different editing styles, and exposed me to a chunk of “the canon”.

WRIT101 “Multilingual Writing” – Spring ’22

Stephanie Liu-Rojas – Pitzer College

WRIT101 is where I first got my feet wet with script writing. Professor Liu-Rojas exposed me to so many different perspectives on language and insight into the systems of English elitism.

ENGL165 “Theories and Methods in Literature” – Fall ’21

Kevin Dettmar – Pomona College

In ENGL165 I read many of “the canon” of media criticism. I accidentally took this as a freshman, but it unintentionally laid the foundation for my college career. This class quickly taught me how to read efficiently and write a college level essay. I think about Laura Mulvey on a daily basis.