For the sixth consecutive year, Variety Magazine, a top industry publication, named Biola University’s Snyder School of Cinema and Media Arts as a top film school in North America. Biola is one of just 21 schools recognized in the publication’s Entertainment Education Impact Report — “Discover Top Film Schools and Educators in North America.” Schools selected for the list are described as offering “cutting-edge courses and a roster of prestigious instructors that will lead budding filmmakers on a track toward entertainment industry success.”

Variety highlights Biola’s industry-active alumni community, the $4+ million in accessible industry-grade equipment for students to use from day one of the program, and the school’s upcoming $92 million studio facility. A 56,500 square feet studio facility is set to replace the current 10,000 square feet production space for students to utilize in the coming years.

"In an effort to be more than just a film school, we teach excellence in craft but also excellence in character,” said founding dean of Biola’s Snyder School of Cinema and Media Arts and former AMC Networks executive vice president of programming strategy, Tom Halleen. “Educating students how to make something is not enough … we want our students to understand the importance of teamwork, collaboration, and great character as they build their reputations and careers.” 

The report spotlights Biola’s four-screen program approach — Biola teaches content creation and management across movie, TV, computer and device screens.

“In a tech-savvy world saturated with filmmaking apps, does film school continue to hold value for aspiring writers, directors and producers? The answer is yes,” the article touts.

With the assistance of an in-house career team, every Cinema and Media Arts student secures an internship with organizations such as Disney, Sony, DreamWorks, Marvel Animation, Twentieth Century Fox, PBS, The Television Academy, Television City and others.

Prominent Biola alumni working in the film industry include filmmaker and influencer Zach King (’12), writer and director Scott Derrickson (’90), who directed box office hits like “Doctor Strange,” John Mabry (’03), co-producer for “Blue Bloods” on CBS, Garret Wycoff (’11), VFX artist for blockbusters such as “Avengers.” In addition, alumnus Rob Bredow (’94) who works with CTO Lucasfilm/ILM X Lab was nominated for an academy award for his work in producing “Solo: A Star Wars Story,” and Joshua Perez (’11) who was part of the team that worked on the Academy Award winning film “Spiderman: Into the Spider-Verse” at Sony Imageworks, and others.

Last year, students participated in 500 independent productions. Recent Biola student projects have been nominated for the Student Academy Awards and College Television Awards. Last year, the school launched a summer film camp for high school students and an initiative for Biola women in entertainment as well.

Biola’s Snyder School of Cinema and Media Arts is dedicated to sending out “thoughtful, kingdom-minded storytellers into the mainstream of the industry to tell stories that matter to a world that needs them the most.”

Along with this accolade, Biola has been ranked and commended by publications such as The Wrap and MovieMaker Magazine.

Learn more about Biola’s Snyder School of Cinema and Media Arts and apply now.  

For more information and press inquiries, contact Jenna Loumagne, director of media relations and strategic communications, at media.relations@biola.edu.