Department of Theatre and Media Arts

Founded in 1959, the Society for Cinema and Media Studies (SCMS) is a professional organization of college and university educators, filmmakers, historians, critics, scholars, and others devoted to the study of the moving image. The college and university faculty and students who comprise this scholarly organization are involved in various fields of study, including (but not limited to): Film Studies, Cinema Studies, Television Studies, Media Studies, Visual Arts, Cultural Studies, Film and Media History, and Moving Image Studies.

The goals of SCMS are to promote all areas of media studies within universities and two-and four-year colleges; to encourage and reward excellence in scholarship and writing; to facilitate and improve the teaching of media studies as disciplines and to advance multi-cultural awareness and interaction. SCMS is dedicated to serving its members' professional needs and concerns; strengthening the ties between the academic community and those who interact with it, from the media industry to the government to the public at large; and to promoting the preservation of our film, television, and video heritage. 

Activities of the Society include an annual meeting and the publication of Cinema Journal. Anyone with an interest in film, television, video and/or new media teaching and/or publication is welcome to join.

Visit the SCMS website

The University Film and Video Association (UFVA) welcomes all individuals who share an interest in the making and teaching of film and video. Its membership consists of film scholars, teachers, and practitioners. The UFVA publishes The Journal of Film and Video, a good scholarly resource on contemporary film topics. Additionally, the UFVA hosts a conference every summer where its members present papers on film topics and filmmakers present their latest creative works. This is a perfect place for young scholars and filmmakers to present their latest work. We highly recommend submitting your work to this conference. It will offer you an excellent opportunity to network with professionals and add items to your resume.

Visit the UFVA website

The National Association for Media Literacy Education (NAMLE) was officially founded as AMLA (Alliance for a Media Literate America) on June 23, 2001, with 200 members at the National Media Education Conference in Austin, Texas. Since 2001, NAMLE has grown to over 400 members; held several successful National Media Education Conferences; forged alliances with numerous national education, youth, health, advocacy, and media organizations; and received a grant from the U.S. Department of Education to demonstrate the effectiveness of media literacy in media arts education.

The NAMLE mission is to stimulate growth in media literacy education in the United States. The organization believes media literacy is an essential life skill for the 21st century. As communication technologies transform society, they affect our understanding of our communities, our diverse culture, and ourselves. By applying literacy skills to media and technology messages and by learning to skillfully interpret, analyze, and create messages, media literacy empowers people to be both critical thinkers and creative producers of messages using image, language, and sound. The NAMLE was formed to unite the media literacy field and lead the drive to include the teaching of media literacy in a wide range of educational settings.

Visit the NAMLE website

Started in 1969 by Roger L. Stevens, the Kennedy Center's founding chairman, the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival (KCACTF) is a national theater program involving 18,000 students from colleges and universities nationwide, which has served as a catalyst in improving the quality of college theater in the United States. The KCACTF has grown into a network of more than 600 academic institutions throughout the country, where theater departments and student artists showcase their work and receive outside assessment by KCACTF respondents.

Through state, regional, and national festivals, KCACTF participants celebrate the creative process, see one another's work, and share experiences and insights within the community of theater artists. The KCACTF honors excellence of overall production and offers student artists individual recognition through awards and scholarships in playwriting, acting, criticism, directing, and design.

Since its inception, KCACTF has given more than 400,000 college theater students the opportunity to have their work critiqued, improve their dramatic skills and receive national recognition for excellence. More than 16 million theatergoers have attended approximately 10,000 festival productions nationwide.

Visit the KCACTF Website

The American Society for Theatre Research (ASTR) provides an organization and public voice for theatre scholars and promotes the cause of theatre as a field for serious scholarly study and research.

ASTR was founded in 1956 to encourage theatre scholarship and to provide a link with other similar groups represented in the International Federation for Theatre Research (IFTR/FIRT). ASTR is the only American theatre organization affiliated with the American Council of Learned Societies and the IFTR.

ASTR holds annual conferences and publishes a semi-annual journal entitled Theatre Survey.

Visit the ASTR website

The Rocky Mountain Theatre Association was founded in 1951 by Campten Bell from the University of Denver, C. Lowell Lees at the University of Utah, and Vio Mae Powell from Idaho State University. These theatre professionals, along with colleagues in neighboring states, originally created the RMTA. as a forum for students and theatre artists to expand their knowledge and experience through interaction with fellow students and theatre professionals. This exchange occurs at the Festivention, an annual convention featuring theatre arts workshops, lectures, demonstrations, performances, competitions, scholarships, employment opportunities, and informal gatherings.

Since its inception over 55 years ago, the organization has grown to include members representing the entire Rocky Mountain theatre community, thereby providing an even greater opportunity to exchange knowledge and expertise. Membership includes, but is not limited to, academic institutions such as high schools, colleges and universities, community theatres, individual theatre artists, non-profit organizations, and professional theatre companies.

Membership in the RMTA is open to anyone interested in the varied aspects of Theatre Arts. Individual artists, people in educational programs, community theatres, and professional theatres will find membership in the RMTA particularly stimulating and advantageous. For more information, contact your state representative

Visit the RMTA website

Advocating for theatre and education of the highest standards, the American Alliance for Theatre and Education (AATE) recognizes that theatre is essential in peoples' lives. AATE promotes standards of excellence in theatre and theatre education and supports the power of the creative experience.

AATE connects educators, artists, researchers, scholars and administrators, and provides opportunities for members to learn from each other, exchange and diversify their practices, their audiences, and their perspectives.

The dramatic impulse is a vital thread in the tapestry of life. The American Alliance for Theatre & Education provides artists, educators, and scholars with opportunities to connect with each other thereby enabling the membership to learn about and exchange ideas and resources while investigating and disseminating best practices in Theatre & Education. Serving a diverse population and providing a multiplicity of perspectives, interests and needs, the American Alliance for Theatre & Education acts as a national voice in support of theatre aesthetics and practice. We create forums for exchange and develop linkages with local, regional, national and international constituencies to promote theatre. They also publish a theatre education journal called The Stage of the Art.

Visit the AATE website

The Utah Theatre Association (UTA) was formed by a group of theatre educators that wanted to create a forum where high school theatre students could meet with college and university representatives to learn about their programs and audition for acceptance to programs and scholarships. Today, the conference has expanded and includes workshops covering all aspects of theatre from design to playwriting, acting to directing, stage combat to stage management.

The Utah Theatre Association sponsors the annual conference in conjunction with the International Thespian Society and UTA is still committed to introducing high school students to representatives from college and university theatre programs. Each year about 1,000 students and educators from across the state participate in the conference.

In recent years, the Utah Theatre Association has expanded its scope to become a resource for theatre educators. The Utah Theatre Association board of directors is comprised of educators from public and private schools in Utah with representatives from middle schools and high schools. Every college and university in Utah has also named a representative to the board. Over the last two years, the Utah Theatre Association has built ties to the Utah State Office of Education. UTA is committed to offering workshops geared towards current and prospective theatre educators at their conferences.

Visit the UTA website