digital media production

In America, conversations about grief and loss are often avoided, and in art, tend to be sugarcoated, or even “corny.” Kent State Assistant Professor and independent filmmaker Dana White is changing that narrative through her work, and was recently recognized by the Ohio Arts Council. “We don’t address these really uncomfortably topi...

An abstract eye for film, creative camera work and a feminist mindset are all factors that make up Kent State alumna Ailene Joven, '21. As a digital media production student, she began creating the short film “Define” during the early days of COVID-19. Several years later, that film was screened at the Cleveland International Film Festival...

Before he graduated in December 2022, digital media production alumnus Sam Teyssier had already racked up some impressive credits: He’d worked on television shows including “American Rust” and “A League of Their Own,” as well as Sundance Film Festival’s Audience Award winner “Cha Cha Real Smooth.” These experiences — which he beg...

The School of Media and Journalism (MDJ) at Kent State is pleased to welcome two new full-time faculty members for the 2022-23 academic year in the areas of media diversity and studies, and multimedia/video production and documentaries. Tara Conley, Ed.D., and Kathryn Cooper, Ph.D., are joining the faculty as assistant professors. This ...

Dana White and Chris Knoblock are Kent State’s film dynamic duo. Throughout their past few years of teaching at Kent State, the couple has created an environment for students to experiment with filmmaking in a way that allows them to find their passion in the industry. After moving from New York City to Los Angeles as actors, the two wa...

The CCI course Media and Movements explores social movements of our time through storytelling, strategy and advocacy. In this semester’s seminar, themed “Building a Better World,” students were required to select a specific human rights or human dignity issue that impacts their Kent State peers and then reimagine a better future based on p...

When documentary filmmaker and Media and Journalism alumnus Tom Jennings, ‘85, started his college education at Kent State, he had no idea what to do for his future career. Coming from what he describes as a “lousy childhood,” there was one skill he knew he had a knack for: writing.   “The on...

Kent State Media and Journalism alumnus Bobby Makar was a passionate filmmaker and adjunct instructor who encouraged his students and helped them develop their work every step of the way. He died unexpectedly last year at the age of 35, and a Digital Media Production scholarship has now bee...

From the South to the Midwest, climate change has affected the United States in various ways, with partisan politics and social media increasing its awareness to new levels. During the summer of 2021, student journalists from Kent State joined peers from three different regions of the U.S. to report on this issue. They did this through ...

As they prepare for careers as directors, writers and cinematographers in an industry that’s dominated by men, female filmmakers at Kent State University empower and support one another through the Female Filmmaker's Initiative (FFI). In April 2021, the student group premiered its first film, "I Am," and the short documentary has n...