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Film school plans Dubai campus

The Asian Academy of Film and Television is hoping to set up its first campus outside India with plans to provide an array of short courses.

Ranked among the top 10 film schools in the world by Cine Premier Hollywood, the Asian Education Group (AEG) is finalising talks with local partners.

Speaking with Khaleej Times, Sandeep Marwah, president of AEG, said: “If everything goes to plan, we could start this year. The short-term courses will be three-month programmes where a student would be associated with different film productions and become trained with extensive hands-on experience.”

The home campus based in Noida Film City provides students with industry exposure and intensive practical training in production companies and TV channels. Students from 90 countries are enrolled in the film school making it the institute with the highest foreign enrolments in India: “We have received offers from different entities in Dubai who have expressed an interest in our courses. We are planning to start with short-term courses in production, direction, editing, camera, lighting, TV journalism, acting, sound and script writing,” said Marwah.

Courses run by the academy are much sought after with the diploma courses attracting the highest number of applications. More than 8,000 students apply for the 100-odd seats at the film school in Noida.

“For short-term courses, we don’t need a huge infrastructure. What we need is the right curriculum and good faculty to train students,” said Marwah.

Notable personalities associated with the academy include Anil Kapoor, Sri Devi, Javed Akhtar, Satish Kaushik, Tabu and Shabana Azmi among other reputable names.

In Dubai, the academy is planning to develop a curriculum which will offer students with an option of travelling to Noida Film City and working on television and film productions while studying on the Noida campus. The courses will be designed to provide a practical overview of different aspects of broadcasting and production.

Sandeep added: “It is the right education which matters in the media industry. Students need to be trained in such a way that they can work the day they finish their course.”

Details about course offerings and the location of the campus will be announced in the coming months, once the approvals and partnerships are formalised.

muaz@khaleejtimes.com

Short courses offered

• Production Direction & TV Journalism
• Video Editing & Sound Recording
• Camera & Lighting Techniques
• Acting & Presentation
• Still Photography and Journalism
• Sound Recording & Radio Production
• Mass Media Research & Planning
• Screenplay Writing