Student productions are an integral part of the Entertainment Studies program. Below you will find useful information about what will be expected of you as you prepare to produce a short film for your class.
Rights and Responsibilities
UCLA Extension does not own the content you make!
As a result, you retain all rights to your intellectual property but you are required to fund your project and provide your own short film production insurance. Note that you are required to purchase your own, independent short film production insurance to cover all aspects of your film. UCLA exclusively provides the insurance required to secure your FilmLA permit at a student rate. You are still required to secure your own production insurance. Your instructor can clarify the type of insurance that will be necessary for your specific film production.
Filming is allowed on the UCLA campus but University permission is required, and students are responsible for following all University protocols.
Find Your Crew and Post Your Project
Partner with our other talented entertainment studies certificate students for your production!
Student productions are continuously crewing up for directors, actors, producers, cinematographers, script supervisors, film composers, editors, gaffers, grips, etc.
Check out the UCLA Extension Entertainment Studies Find Your Crew page to view students’ work and contact students to collaborate on a project. You can also post your student project and collaborate with your fellow classmates by posting your project. Crewing up with fellow UCLA Extension certificate students allows you to build and strengthen your network.
If you would like to be added to the Find Your Crew page, please fill out the Find Your Crew form. If you are working on a project for class and want to post it on our website, you can fill out the Post Your Project form.
To further facilitate the crewing up process, all Entertainment Studies certificate students are invited to attend our Networking Events. RSVP for the next Entertainment Studies networking event Here!
Student Film Production Workflow
Here are the steps for producing a student film within the Entertainment Studies program:
- In order to receive a student film production letter, you must be enrolled in a current course that requires a short film to be produced, and be making the film for class, under the supervision of your instructor. We are not able to provide film letters unless you are making a film under the supervision of an instructor for one of the following classes:
- FILMTV X 476.39 Making Your First Short Film
- FILMTV X 476.95 Directing Workshop I: Composition and Movement
- FILMTV X 476.95b Directing Workshop II: Storytelling
- FILMTV X 478.481 Documentary Filmmaking Workshop
- FILMTV X 476.12b Advanced Filmmaking Workshop: Production and Post-Production
**If your class does not appear on the list but you are enrolled in an Entertainment Studies course, a copy of your transcript may assist you in obtaining various student film rates from vendors and the UCLA bookstore. Official transcripts can be requested via your “My Extension” account and unofficial transcripts can be printed from your account at any time.
- If you are enrolled in one of the above classes and want to obtain a film letter, please send us an email with your Name, Student Identification Number, Project Title, Director’s Name and the names of any producers. A letter will be provided after the final refund deadline for your course has passed. This letter can be used to obtain a film permit on or off campus. Before receiving a letter, you will be asked to fill out a form providing information about your film and sign a Student Filmmaker Code of Conduct, signaling your agreement with the terms and acknowledging the responsibility you have as a student filmmaker representing UCLA Extension to conduct yourself professionally, responsively, and respectfully in your interactions with others and at the locations at which you may be filming, as well as to comply with any COVID-19 safety guidelines required by local public health officials and UCLA.
- Insurance is mandatory for all student productions. UCLA Extension may be able to provide liability insurance that exclusively covers your FilmLA or on-campus permit application, depending on where you will be filming. Please contact our office for more information. For all other needs, production insurance is required and can be found through various insurance brokers. We do not recommend a specific vendor. This must be obtained for nearly any aspect of film production: equipment rentals and film location permits, etc.
- As a UCLA Extension student, you are eligible to shoot your film projects on the UCLA campus. In order to obtain a film permit to shoot on campus, you need to contact the UCLA Events Office. You will need to provide your Film Letter from our office along with a BruinCard or Driver’s License, Student Film Warrant Form, notated script pages, Location Confirmation Form, complete listing of expected production equipment, and a $105 film permit processing fee.
More information can be found on the UCLA Events website.
PLEASE NOTE: Filming is not allowed at the UCLA Extension Metro Centers: Extension Lindbrook Center, Extension Gayley Center, Extension DTLA, Extension Woodland Hills, and any other non-UCLA campus classroom location. Unfortunately, UCLA Extension does not have any available space for auditions, rehearsals, film editing space, or production locations. We also do not provide equipment for use or rent.
Should you have any questions, please contact the Entertainment Studies office at (310) 825-9064 or entertainmentstudies@uclaextension.edu.