RUSSIAN STATE UNIVERSITY OF CINEMATOGRAPHY

 

The Russian State University of Cinematography (VGIK) is the world’s oldest film school founded in 1919 by Lev Kuleshov and Vladimir Gardin, outstanding Russian filmmakers. S. Eisenstein, A. Dovzhenko, M. Romm, S. Bondarchuk, R. Karmen, G. Chukhrai, E. Tisse, A. Golovya, B. Volchek, Ye. Gabrilovich, V, Yezhov, S. Komarov, R. Yurenev taught at VGIK at different periods of its history. Some of VGIK’s alumni, such as A. Tarkovsky, V. Shukshin, O. Ioseliani, A. Konchalovsky, N. Mikhalkov, V. Abdrashitov.

The university’s faculty comprises highly qualified scholars and professionals working in film and television industry and at the theatre.

VGIK is an institution of higher education training specialists at the following departments:

Professional training /specialties		Qualification (degree)	Course of studies	Form of studies
070301 «Acting skills» Drama, film, TV actor		specialist	4 years	full-time
070601 «Film and TV direction» Fiction film, -TV& film director, teacher Documentary film, -TV& film director, teacher Animation and computer graphics director, teacher TV program director, teacher Multimedia director, teacher		specialist	5 years	full-time
070701 «Sound direction of audio-visual arts (film and television)» Sound director		specialist	5 years	full-time
071001 «Production design» Production designer, special effects artist Costume designer		specialist	6 years	full-time
071002 «Graphic» Animator and computer graphics artist Animated cartoon designer		specialist	6 years	full-time
070901 «Cinematography» Director of photography for film and television, teacher		specialist	5 years	full-time
074201 «Cinema studies» Film critic		specialist	5 years	full-time, correspondence
070800 «Screenwriting» Screenwriter - bachelor Screenwriter, teacher - master		bachelor / master	4 years/ 2 years	full-time, correspondence
074301 «Producing for film & TV» Film and TV producer Line producer TV program producer Multimedia producer		specialist	5 years	full-time, correspondence
080200 «Management» Manager		master	2 years	full-time

1. The training is done in accordance with the curricula of higher education comprising a wide range of disciplines in the chosen profession as well as humanities (as Russian and World Literature, History of Art, Film History, Philosophy, Aesthetics, Theory and History of Culture, Music, etc.) The curriculum completed successfully, the student gets a diploma of a specialist, a state-recognized document of higher education on the results of the final project assessment.

2. Foreign citizens with a previous university degree can be enrolled on a special shortened program (3-3,3 years) or to the Center of Extended Professional Education which offers a further training in main movie professions: Screenwriting, Film Directing, Documentary Film and TV Directing, Cinema Studies, Film and Drama Acting, Film and TV Producing, Sound Design.

3. The University also has a post-graduate program for training scholars in various areas of cinema studies (“Film, Television and Other Audio-Visual Arts”; “Economics and Management in Non-Production Spheres”) that offers a Doctor of Philosophy degree in Art.

4. There is a possibility of having special courses (individual or group) in different aspects of filmmaking, e.g. Film Editing, Video, Animation and Computer Graphics, History and Theory of Cinema, Screenwriting. Educational services in a number of other spheres of film production, TV and multimedia are also available. The duration of these courses depends upon the applicant's choice and the desired level of training. After finishing the course the student gets a certificate.

5. In Summer VGIK organizes short workshops ("Summer School") which combine studies with a tourist program.

The University has a film studio, where students make their shooting exercises and graduation films.

VGIK has a 16-floor student hostel for 750 people. There are 16 blocks on the floor, each block consisting of two bedrooms, a hall and a bathroom. The hostel also has a gym and a weight room, classrooms for Russian lessons, drawing and music, a student café, a shop where one can buy food and essential goods.

The teaching is in Russian. Those not speaking Russian are offered a Preparatory Russian Language program where the students also get the first notion of their future profession.

Training of foreign citizens at VGIK is financed from the federal budget when they are admitted in accordance with a) the recommendation of the Federal Education Agency, approved by the RF Ministry of Culture, b) the international treaties. In all other cases students are to pay a fee under a contract, which is renewed every year. The tuition fee of the basic academic course (A) and post-graduate program (C) is revised annually and approved by the Learned Council. The cost of other programs depends upon the number of the subjects and services and is estimated individually.

The tuition fee does not include the cost of the shooting and video exercises and graduation projects made by the students in the course of studies and depends on the character of the chosen project. It does not include the hostel rent either.

For the enrollment the applicants should submit the following documents:

       -   a written application; 

       -   an application form; 

       -   the officially legalized original of the document stating his or her academic background with an appendix listing the studied subjects, academic hours and marks and their notarized translations into Russian; 

       -   8-10 3×4 cm photographs;

For the enrollment after passing the entrance tests beside the listed above documents one should present:

      - the certificate of the equivalence of the certificates of education obtained at the Federal Department of Control in the Sphere of Education and Science (Rosobrnadzor);