The American Film Insitute

The American Film Institute
P.O. Box 27999/ 2021 North Western Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90027
213.856.7600
Fax: 213.467.4578

First and foremost, AFI's Center for Advanced Film and Television Studies is a Conservatory, similar to European art and music conservatories, where leading artists mentor rising talents. The MFA and MA programs focus solely on teaching the art of the moving image and training better storytellers. The willingness to experiment and to push the boundaries of storytelling has been a vital component of the Center since 1969.

Education and Training Programs at AFI offer emerging artists the opportunity to learn from the most talented people working in cinema, television and the digital arts. AFI's Center for Advanced Film and Television Studies (CAFTS) is a two year production based Conservatory offering Master of Fine Arts (MFA) degrees in six disciplines. CAFTS also offers a one-year Master of Arts (MA) degree in Digital Media Studies.

The Center for Advanced Film and Television Studies provides a unique curriculum, offering a two-year Master of Fine Arts program in six disciplines and a one-year Master of Arts degree in Digital Media Studies. The programs are hands-on and production-based, creating a rigorous academic environment that closely parallels the challenges of real-world production.

The production facilities include state of the art 16mm film equipment, digital television production and editing equipment, sound stages, mixing rooms, and elaborate computer facilities.

Alumni: David Lynch, Terrence Malick, Jeremy Paul Kagan, Paul Schrader, Amy Heckerling, Tim Junter, Ed Zwick, Marty Brest.

Cinematography Alumni:

Caleb Deschanel, ASC ('69)

Hope Floats, Fly Away Home, Crusoe (dir.), The Natural, The Black Stallion, The Right Stuff, Being There

Frederick Elmes, ASC ('72)

The Ice Storm, In The Gloaming, Night On Earth, Wild At Heart, River's Edge, Blue Velvet, Eraserhead

Janusz Kaminski, ASC ('87)

Amistad, The Lost World, Jerry Maguire, How To Make an American Quilt, Schindler's List

Robert Richardson, ASC ('79)

The Horse Whisperer, U-Turn, Nixon, Salvador, Casino, Natural Born Killers, A Few Good Men, JFK, City of Hope, Born on the Fourth of July, Talk Radio, Platoon

Juan Ruiz-Anchia, ASC ('79)

Death In Granada, The Adventures Of Pinocchio, The Jungle Book, Glengarry Glen Ross, House of Games, At Close Range