All courses that count as IMA Major Electives
Mechanical Engineering (Undergraduate)
3 credits – 15 Weeks
This course provides students with an opportunity to learn about the individual and collaborative services provided by professional managers both inside and outside EMT companies. It develops a system by which to evaluate the quality of the service provided, the nature of the service and how these services are being implemented through collaboration with industry creative and business executives. Through discussions with and lectures by entertainment and media lawyers, accountants, talent and literary agents, studio executives, producers, publicity and advertising specialists, the student will understand the diversity of talents required to complete a project or product successfully. Course Objectives: To provide students with an understanding of the role of the executive in the entertainment and media industries who can assemble a team of creative professionals and manage their activities so that successful content can be the outcome. To share an overview of the various disciplines and content genres/typology needed for the industry sectors that include movies, television, music, publishing, electronic games, theater, and related businesses. To gain insights into legal and financial issues pertaining to the various entertainment and media industry sectors, including basic copyright, intellectual property and privacy issues. To examine the roles and responsibilities of each of the members of the team assembled by the manager (producer, head of production, student head, manager/agent, manager/lawyer, business coach, management consultant). To review and be capable of implementing business plans for funding entertainment projects offered through venture capital, limited partnerships, angels or other specialists in financial deal making. To learn from the experts using lectures, cases, film, texts and guest lectures.
Marketing (Undergraduate)
2 credits – 15 Weeks
Marketing (Undergraduate)
2 credits – 14 Weeks
Marketing (Undergraduate)
2 credits – 14 Weeks
Video games are now a mainstream form of entertainment. In economic terms, this industry has experienced tremendous growth, despite a grueling recession, growing to an estimated $60 billion worldwide. A key development that has changed the playing field for both the producers and consumers of interactive entertainment is a shift away from physical retail to digital and online game distribution. The audience for games has also shifted—no longer the exclusive practice of hardcore gamers, video games have gained mass appeal in the form of social and casual gaming, on the internet, on consoles, and smartphones. At the same time, the development and publishing of games has become far more accessible. The game behind the game, in a manner of speaking, has changed. In this class, we explore the basic components of the current video game industry. Every week, we review major current events, will hear from people currently working in the industry, examine case studies, and discuss the overall business landscape. Central to each class is the notion that practical business considerations and the design-driven creative process do not have to be in opposition.
Marketing (Undergraduate)
2 credits – 15 Weeks
MKTG-UB 58-000 (10780)01/28/2021 – 05/10/2021 Thu4:00 PM – 6:00 PM (Late afternoon)at Washington SquareInstructed by
This course covers the digital technology industry (e.g. consumer electronics, software) from a strategic and marketing perspective. The objectives are to understand how these industries function, the unique challenges they face, and how digital technology companies can leverage their strengths to achieve success in the marketplace. The focus is on understanding the interactions between competition, technology evolution, and firm capabilities.
Marketing (Undergraduate)
2 credits – 15 Weeks
This course provides students with a framework for understanding the economics and key strategic issues facing organizations in the entertainment industry. It establishes a basis for the formulation of marketing tactics and strategies for firms competing for consumers’ discretionary spending. Recent developments in major sectors of the entertainment industry are covered, including movies, television and cable, theatre, and sports. Issues that cut across all types of entertainment industries are examined, including licensing, promotion, and new technologies.
Marketing (Undergraduate)
2 credits – 15 Weeks
Considers contemporary science fiction as literature, social commentary, prophecy, and a reflection of recent and possible future trends in technology and society. Writers considered include such authors as Isaac Asimov, J. G. Ballard, Octavia Butler, Arthur C. Clark, Samuel Delany, Philip K. Dick, William Gibson, Robert Heinlein, Frank Herbert, Ursula K. Le Guin, Neal Stephenson, and Bruce Sterling.
English (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 15 Weeks
In this course, we will explore the versatile usage of animation in the world of graphic design as a unique form of expression. We will examine how motion design combines movement, rhythm, space, and timing to orchestrate abstract shapes, words, and symbols. Through a series of weekly exercises, students will gain an understanding of key concepts in motion design while using and learning Adobe After Effects. We will follow the footsteps of motion design history, reconstructing classic pieces in order to gain a fundamental understanding of this art form. We will learn how graphic design, music, choreography, and acting can all be applied to the motion of design elements and furthermore, how the combination of animation and design can convey compelling stories, emotions, and ideas. Students will survey the technologies and methods that enabled the fields’ developments – from drawing on 18 mm film, the analog Scanimate in the 80s, to UX motion, interactive design, and contemporary live performances. Inspired by those traditions, students will be encouraged to take on an experimental approach, discuss thought processes, and develop their own visual language while combining interdisciplinary practices. *Adobe After Effects will be used as a main tool in the course, therefore a sufficient computer (over 16GB of RAM and a graphic card) is required.
This course explores unruly images, bodies, faces, spaces, aesthetics, and even feelings that exist at the margins of categorization, making these powerful subjects for artistic work. We will manipulate image-making tools and give form to expressions that reveal the hidden structures of power. Through lectures, discussions, workshops, and readings, we will look at topics such as memes and glitch art, cyberface and AR filters, monsters and glitched bodies, uncanny valley and AI images, as well as liminal space and collaborative world-building. We will pay particular attention to selected writings from Hito Steyerl, Legacy Russell, Rosa Menkman, and Adam Greenfield, and apply these critiques to emerging perceptual technologies (volumetric 3D capturing, machine learning, AR/VR, web-based 3D game engines) that students will use to create their projects.
Open Arts Curriculum (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 15 Weeks
An intense hands-on study of practical techniques and methods of software engineering. Topics include advanced object-oriented design, design patterns, refactoring, code optimization, universal modeling language, threading, user interface design, enterprise application development, and development tools. All topics are integrated and applied during the semester-long group project. The aim of the project is to prepare students for dynamics in a real workplace. Members of the group meet on a regular basis to discuss the project and to assign individual tasks. Students are judged primarily on the final project presentations.
Computer Science (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 15 Weeks
CSCI-UA 474-000 (21436)09/02/2021 – 12/14/2021 Mon,Wed2:00 PM – 3:00 PM (Early afternoon)at Washington SquareInstructed by Bloomberg, Amos
Object-oriented programming has emerged as a significant software development methodology. This course introduces the important concepts of object-oriented design and languages, including code reuse, data abstraction, inheritance, and dynamic overloading. It covers in depth those features of Java and C that support object-oriented programming and gives an overview of other object-oriented languages of interest. Significant programming assignments, stressing object-oriented design.
Computer Science (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 15 Weeks
TouchDesigner is a powerful software hub for live audiovisual performance and installation art. With a cutting-edge buffet of inputs and outputs at our disposal, what new, evolved, or remixed types of art can we create? If you’re a musician, you’ll make and play an instrument that didn’t exist before. If you’re a dancer, your movements will become the music and visuals, instead of the other way around. If you’re a visual artist, you’ll collage with code, sculpt with magic, and create installations that respond to your audience instantly. If you’re all of the above, you’ll have fun in this class. The course starts with video art — live camera feeds, visual effects, and projection mapping — then weaves in audio reactivity and sound generation for DJ/VJing. We will use the MediaPipe plugin to detect our faces, bodies, and objects and use that data to make music, control systems, and modulate visual effects. We will scan objects, people, and environments with our phones to create virtual scenes and 3D animations rendered live. We will learn communication protocols — MIDI to send input and receive output from MIDI controllers or DAWs such as Ableton; OSC to wirelessly connect to other computers, software, and livecode environments; and NDI to send high-resolution and low-latency video feeds between devices. By the end of the course, students will be able to use TouchDesigner to connect and control any modern art/performance/game software. Assignments are time-intensive: creating original work to be shown in class and watching recorded lessons of the next week’s concepts. Classtime is a mix of homework performances, collaborative exercises, concept walkthroughs, and studio time. The final is a small group performance or interactive installation that is a part of a public show. No previous coding, fabrication, or performance experience necessary. Note: There is no longer mandatory use of Arduino in this course, though students with interest in Arduino microcontrollers can still create custom hardware interfaces that send sensor input or receive command signals and turn TouchDesigner into a hub for interactive installations or performance props.
What types of performance can we create if we’re not limited to a physical stage or even a physical body? How much more can we communicate with video once our audience has the power to directly interact with the content, not just passively observe? We can create dynamic, digital experiences and innovative, virtual performances using Unreal Engine, a game engine and powerful suite of development tools. Students will learn the fundamentals of Unreal Engine, including 3D environments and assets, lighting, cameras, animations, audio, basic VFX, and programming interactivity using visual scripting blueprints. Then, we will incorporate external hardware such as depth cameras, LiDAR scanners, and motion capture suits to create our own digital assets, including virtual avatars of ourselves. Students will use this foundation in virtual production to create projects ranging from 3D music videos to choose-your-own-adventure memoirs to Performances with puppet avatars in an online 3D environment. The final assignment will be a part of a public show.
Sound is physical. It can move objects, vibrate surfaces, perceptually alter our emotions, and shape the way viewers engage with spaces. As artists, we are conditioned to aspire to situate our work within traditional settings. How can we reposition sound as a main element of a work within unconventional contexts? This course will use the question of a sonic utopia as a platform to create interdisciplinary projects that exist between installation, sculpture, video, performance, movement, and music. Students will learn sound theories through lectures and in-class workshops and are encouraged to incorporate their individual interests into each of the four main projects that aim to position sound as a primary element of a work in order to expand the possibilities of working with sound.
Open Arts Curriculum (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 14 Weeks
OART-UT 1096-000 (13635)09/05/2023 – 12/15/2023 Tue5:00 PM – 8:00 PM (Late afternoon)at Washington SquareInstructed by
Introduction to Game Engines is a course intended for students who already have an understanding of programming fundamentals that introduces concepts, problems, and methods of developing games and interactive media using popular game engines. Game engines are no longer just used for the development of games, they have increasingly gained popularity as tools for developing animations, interactives, VR experience, and new media art. Throughout the semester, students will have weekly programming assignments, using a popular game engine. There will be a final game assignment, as well as weekly quizzes and a final exam. The course assumes prior programming knowledge, if students do not have the appropriate prerequisites a placement exam may be taken. There will be an emphasis on using code in a game engine environment as a means of creative expression.
Open Arts Curriculum (Undergraduate)
2 credits – 7 Weeks
OART-UT 1621-000 (14528)10/26/2022 – 12/14/2022 Fri2:00 PM – 4:00 PM (Early afternoon)at Brooklyn CampusInstructed by Hawk, Danny
Data Physicalization is an emerging research area. It explores new techniques to design and encode data into physical artifacts through geometry or material properties. Recent advances in Computational Design and Fabrication offer novel opportunities to complement traditional screen-based visualizations enhancing people’s ability to discover, understand, and communicate data. This course uses a data visualization approach to define new methods of computational design and digital fabrication. Students will create unique, data-driven, everyday objects and sculpt meaning into them. Through the use of platforms such as Rhinoceros: a 3D modeling software, and Grasshopper: a visual programming language, students will be introduced to fundamental computational methods for designing and fabricating, as well as the understanding of digital fabrication strategies for parametrically generated design. Prerequisite: Interaction Lab or Creative Coding Lab. Fulfillment: IMA/IMB Elective.
Interactive Media Arts (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 15 Weeks
INTM-SHU 261-000 (17317)09/05/2022 – 12/16/2022 Wed1:00 PM – 4:00 PM (Early afternoon)at ShanghaiInstructed by Godoy, Marcela
The current design methods and technologies in the field of digital entertainment, from design concepts to design tools, are still based on 2D screens, but the product is often 3D. This contradiction results in the designers not being able to see the final consequences of their work directly. Can existing VR technologies solve this contradiction? Immersive design is a new design method for digital creativities beyond the screen. It usually takes VR, AR, or MR devices as design interfaces to craft 3D models, textures, game environments, and other gaming experiences. Not only game assets creation but also game design concepts can be changed with these new technical inputs. In this course, students will answer the following questions: ○ Is immersive design more intuitive? ○ Is immersive design more efficient? ○ Do immersive design techniques have lower learning costs? ○ What traditional design lessons and concepts can be applied in an immersive design environment? In view of these questions, students from different disciplines will give answers through discussions, projects, collaboration, documentation, and VR games. Prerequisite: Communications Lab. Fulfillment: IMA/IMB Elective.
Interactive Media Arts (Undergraduate)
2 credits – 8 Weeks
INTM-SHU 259-000 (17316)09/05/2022 – 10/28/2022 Tue9:00 AM – 12:00 AM (Morning)at ShanghaiInstructed by Zhang, Xingchen
Industrial Design in Action is a course that will help you bridge the gap between your ideas and their physical form. From initial research to conception, you will practice and apply different design methodologies that lead to creative and innovative ideas; acquire a fundamental understanding of form, function and design language; and utilize sketching and visual storytelling to communicate a message and features of a compelling product. In addition, you will become familiar with various Computer Aided Design (CAD) softwares; explore different types of materials for different uses and applications; and experiment with a myriad of fabrication techniques, from basic hand tools to advanced digital fabrication, you will learn to use the right tool for the job. Altogether these skills will enable you to go from prototype to a finished product. In a nutshell, this course is about designing and fabricating things we love. Prerequisite: Interaction Lab or Communications Lab or Application Lab. Fulfillment: IMA/IMB Elective.
Interactive Media Arts (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 15 Weeks
INTM-SHU 129-000 (17315)09/05/2022 – 12/16/2022 Mon9:00 AM – 12:00 AM (Morning)at ShanghaiInstructed by Garcia, Andy
In response to the popular conception of the “immaterial” Internet, and “datafication” of all aspects of life, how might we rethink the materiality and environmentality of media in our research? This upper-level seminar will introduce students to various theoretical frameworks in media studies including new materialism, media archaeology, studies of media infrastructures and ecologies, cultural geographies, and elemental media. Students are expected to critically assess the (geo)politics of material/environmental media and to adopt a mix of these frameworks to develop a research project and essay. Prerequisite: Junior standing OR What is New Media. Fulfillment: IMA/B Elective, Advanced IMA Elective.
Interactive Media Arts (Undergraduate)
4 credits – 15 Weeks
INTM-SHU 350-000 (17319)09/05/2022 – 12/16/2022 Wed1:00 PM – 4:00 PM (Early afternoon)at ShanghaiInstructed by Pan, Weixian