Tisch Special Programs

Students in the Tisch School of the Arts Music Video Production program in Dublin will create music videos for twelve bands this fall. Artists include The Japanese Popstars, Codes, Wallis Bird, 79 Cortinaz, Paranoid Visions, YNGVE, Ham Sandwich, Royseven, Declan O’Rourke, Cowboy X, Foy Vance, and Abigail Smith.

Tisch collaborates with Hot Press magazine to select bands to work with student directors. Bands must submit a photo, essay, and music sample to be considered.

Music Video Production is offered every spring and fall semester in Dublin. Applications for spring 2009 will be accepted until Friday, November 14. For more information, please visit Tisch Music Video in Dublin.

Interested in spending a semester with Tisch Special Programs in Cuba? The New York Times has a recent article about the many ways one can experience Cuban food, art, and culture right here in New York. From ropa vieja in the Village, to son music in East Harlem, those who are curious can whet their appetites for all things Cuba and get an idea about what a semester in Havana might be like.

It may be 48° here with wind whipping through the canyons of steel that some 8 million people call home, but here at Tisch Special Programs we're already busy prepping for summer. What's that, you say? You're thinking about summer in New York City, too? Well, good, because we've got just what you need! Summer in New York is breathtaking views from the Brooklyn Bridge, the smell of hot dogs and fresh cut grass at baseball games, concerts in the park (we've got a couple), and your chance to experience everything Tisch School of the Arts has to offer. Not a college student? We've got you covered with non-credit classes and certificate programs.

Dublin may have made it's stamp on the artistic world at the pens of literary titans like James Joyce, Samuel Beckett, and George Bernard Shaw, but Tisch Special Programs is bringing a whole new type of storytelling to your bag of tricks.

That's right, puppetry. Tisch Special Programs has brought on Creator Producer Yvette Edery to teach Puppetry Performance: Ireland Workshop and Summer 2009 is your chance to be a part of this exciting new program.

The New York Times reports today that a "record number of students are studying abroad," with less traditional destinations like China, the Czech Republic, and South Africa increasing in popularity. Not one to be outpaced, Tisch Special Programs offers you programs in all three of these artistic and cultural hotbeds, not to mention many others.

The article—which cites the Open Doors 2008 report from the Institute of International Education—goes on to state that the number of Americans studying in China increased by 25% last year over the previous year. The number of Americans studying in South Africa is up by a whopping 28%.

We at Tisch Special Programs are committed to bringing you an intensive academic and artistic experience in an ever-broadening list of countries. We continually develop new programs in new locations so stay tuned!

Graphic credit: The New York Times

Are you a current or former student of Tisch Special Programs? If so, we would love to hear from you—be a guest blogger and make your voice heard!

If you’re currently enrolled in one of our programs, tell us how your semester is going, what you did today, what you like about the city you’re studying in, tell us anything! Same goes for alumni—tell us something that stands out in your mind from your time abroad with Tisch Special Programs.

Help other students interested in studying abroad learn more about what a semester in Amsterdam, Dublin, Florence, Havana, Johannesburg, London, Nice, Paris, Prague, or Shanghai is like. No anecdote is too small, whether it be about a class, a field trip, the food, culture, or even the weather.

Submit your stories/anecdotes to Chris Ozer at chris.ozer@nyu.edu.

p.s. Have some photos from your program that you'd like to share? We'll take those too!

Monica Shorn, a Tisch Film and TV student and participant in this Fall's Dublin Screenwriting program, has been assiduously blogging about her semester in Ireland. Her blog is packed with insight about life in Dublin that only a student in the program could provide. The following is just a small sample from one of her many posts:

Thankfully, we took a little field trip out to the west of Ireland this weekend, and it was just wonderful. Unlike the trip we'll be taking to Belfast in a couple of weeks, this excursion had nothing to do with any class --- it was pure fun and exploration, courtesy of Tisch. All of us students, plus our program director Susanne and our R.A. Sigita, drove out to Galway on Saturday morning, taking in kilometer after kilometer of green fields and dozy cattle.

Apparently Saturday was the best day of the entire Irish summer this year. It was nearly cloudless, with temperatures hovering in the low 80s. Coming from Washington, where the average summer day feels like the inside of a vacuum cleaner bag, hot and damp and dusty, that's laughable. But boy, did the people we encountered make the most of it! We strolled around Galway, munching on crepes as we took in the weekend farmers' market, packed with olives and leeks and blocks of limestone for sale --- all of it hawked by sunburnt smiley men. It's a sweet and good-natured town, far less industrial than Cork and less self-involved than Dublin. If only we had more time there!

But we hustled on. We had a ferry to catch, you know!

The next leg of our journey took us out to Inisheer, the smallest of the three Aran Islands. It's located between the Atlantic Ocean and the mouth of the Galway Bay.

Click here for the entire post.

Thanks Monica!

This past summer, Tisch Summer High School students in the Photography program blogged about their experience. For any high school student interested in the daily nitty-gritty of the summer program, this blog is a must read. Here's a sample:

As the bright light shined through each of our windows early this morning, some of us rushed to grab our cameras and take a picture of ourselves. As artistic photographers, one may be quick to think that such a spontaneous, unplanned action would be out of the realm of mainstream art. However, throughout the day many students took a picture of themselves every half hour. These images will culminate in a final project that combines these images to create a progression of the person's day. So, as we dragged ourselves out of bed-some earlier than others-we were sure to take a timer in an effort to systematically complete the assignment.

When we reached 721 Broadway-our third home- we were met with a two stunning presentations by two of our amazingly talented TA's. Both Alicia and Michael showed the class their past and present work. Personally, I thought it was extremely interesting to see the images created by these artists during their high school years. Anywho, we should all know by now that the photography kids are never simply being lazy. So, following this regiment, shortly following the two presentations, we set out for the Bronx museum of art. Inside the museum, there was a magnificent display of Jamel Shabazz's work. This artist definitely served as an inspiration for myself and I am sure others in the group. I'm also sure that everyone is very excited to meet him when he comes to visit our class next week.

Oh and I must not forget the famous box lunches we consumed while sitting on the sidewalk outside of the museum. Interestingly enough, the sandwich improved for some and for others-not so much. Such a fluctuation may be caused by the new and "improved" form we now fill out while ordering the lunches.

Following the museum visit, we took the subway back to NYU. As always, the ride was full of flash fighting and hilarious conversations. When we arrived at Weinstein, we quickly had dinner in the dining hall and then we were yet again off on another adventure-the New York Mets game. Our seats in the back of the stadium were definitely situated with some real fans and those wearing red were probably a bit scared.

As we returned to the dorm, everyone looked exhausted, but the cameras were still flashing and the voices were still echoing. Although our eyes may be half closed, we are always ready for the image.

So, I'm sure a lot of people are just finishing up taking their last photo of the day and I myself am extremely tired.

Until next time,

Britt

There's much more over at ZipZapSnap!

Last Thursday, Tisch Special Programs and the Tisch Office of Student Affairs hosted a workshop for representatives of area high schools and community-based organizations. The event was a great chance for everyone involved to engage in a dialogue about the many different ways to get talented high school students involved in various arts programs, including our own Summer High School program.

Attendees had the chance to hear from Mary Schmidt Campbell, Dean of Tisch School of the Arts, as well as two alumni of Tisch Summer High that have gone on to great things as Tisch undergrads. Representatives from the following schools and organizations were in attendance:

Art Start (Brooklyn)
Bronx River Art Center (Bronx)
Downtown Community Television Center (Manhattan)
James Madison High School (Brooklyn)
Midwood High School (Brooklyn)
Newcomers High School (Queens)
The Point (Bronx)
Nutley High School (New Jersey)
West Essex High School (New Jersey)
Prospect Park YMCA (Brooklyn)
Youth Onstage! (Manhattan)

If you or someone at your organization is interested in attending a similar workshop or having someone from Tisch Special Programs visit your students, give us a call at 212-998-1517.

Are you a high school student interested in attending Tisch School of the Arts but feel that the costs of studying here may be out of reach? Well, then meet Lena-Marie Gilbert and Avijit Halder. Both of these talented artists attended the Tisch Summer High School program, which they credit with giving them the confidence to apply to the undergraduate program at Tisch, where they are now members of the class of 2012. Prior to applying, both students considered the costs of attending Tisch too high, and were able to enroll in the Summer High School program thanks to generous scholarships from the Alexandra M. Cohen Foundation and the Surdna Foundation.

Here's more about Lena-Marie:

Lena-Marie Gilbert had always aspired to attend the Tisch School of the Arts' Department of Drama. Despite being an exceptional and talented student, Lena-Marie was not confident that she could get into to the school or afford it. Regardless, in her junior year, Lena-Marie applied to the Tisch School's Summer Programs for High School Students. With a Steven and Alexandra M. Cohen Foundation Scholarship, she was able to attend the Acting at Lee Strasberg Workshop.

For four weeks, she lived on NYU's campus and spent six-hours a day in acting and theatre classes taught by Tisch School faculty. The experience proved invaluable. In addition to improving her craft, Lena-Marie says, "The high school program gave me the confidence to apply to the Tisch School's undergraduate program...I thought maybe I do have a shot of getting into one of the most difficult art schools in the country!"

Lena-Marie continues her training at the Tisch School this fall as an undergraduate in the Department of Drama. She considers her acceptance at the Tisch School as her biggest accomplishment to date--and one that might not have been possible without scholarship assistance.

And about Avijit:

Avijit was born in Calcutta, India, and was one of the children documented in the Oscar-winning film Born into Brothels. Due to the documentary's success, Avijit was able to attend high school in the United States, where he learned about the Tisch School of the Arts' Summer High School Program in film.

Avijit says that it was after participating in the program that he decided to attend the Tisch School and pursue a career in film. "[The program] gave me the spark that I could go into film. The experience overall - it was hard, because it was a lot of work, but the challenge was just amazing...I thought this is what I really want to do. This is what college is supposed to be like."

A Surdna Foundation Scholar, Avijit credits the financial support he received for making his success possible. "The scholarship was everything to me...My whole life is like a scholarship - from where I come from to where I am today to who I am. Everything. The scholarship means that much to people who get them.They have talent, but they can't express it because they don't have enough money. The scholarship is the door that lets them out."Avijit is now pursuing an undergraduate degree in film. He says, "I believe in the power of film and how it changed my life. I firmly believe that it can change anyone's life."

We know that Lena-Marie and Avijit are just two of many talented thinking artists that will continue to have similarly successful stories. Read more about the Tisch Talent Identification Process.