OKLAHOMA CITY (OBV) – Oklahoma City Community College is receiving accolades for its film school, once again being ranked as one of the 30 best in the nation by a top film publication.
MovieMaker, a resource for interviews, behind-the-scenes movies stories, movie recommendations, festival coverage and other film production-related information, ranked OCCC’s Gray Frederickson Department of Digital Cinema as one of the 30 best film schools in the U.S. and Canada in 2024.
This is the third consecutive year OCCC’s film school has been named one of North America’s 30 Best by MovieMaker, an online publication with a quarterly print issue based in Hollywood, Calif.
“Being honored on MovieMaker’s list of the ‘Best’ year after year is a testament to the quality of our program,” said Sean Lynch, professor of digital cinema production at OCCC. “Our students have contributed to blockbuster movies, award-winning TV shows and more.”
The Gray Frederickson Department of Digital Cinema offers world-class training by industry-expert instructor and uses state-of-the-art equipment and facilities.
“Oklahoma City Community College is training the workforce that supports Oklahoma’s film industry,” said OCCC President Dr. Mautra Staley Jones. “OCCC appreciates MovieMaker’s continued recognition of our esteemed program.”
The film school held special direct-to-cinema production training courses throughout this summer, starting this past May.
The non-credit digital cinema production “intensive” courses provided participants career-ready training in a workforce development-focused format.
“Oklahoma City Community College provides training to help meet the demand for a highly-skilled workforce in the film industry,” Lynch previously said. “Our summer Intensive courses offer participants a chance to learn all the skills they need to be career-ready in various specialty areas of digital cinema production in a focused timeframe.”
The direct-to-industry intensives were taught by filmmaking professionals.
Film and television production has grown in Oklahoma in recent years, with productions of hit shows Reservation Dogs and Tulsa King, and major films, including Killers of the Flower Moon and Twisters, the blockbuster sequel to the 1996 box office smash, Twister.
The Oklahoma Film + Music Office (OF+MO), a business development unit of the Oklahoma Department of Commerce, partnered with the Universal Filmed Entertainment Group (UFEG) to provide a traineeship program during the Twisters production, giving increased access and opportunities within all film production areas.
Prairie Surf Studios in Oklahoma City was used for the Twisters film production.
OCCC is the most affordable community college in the state. School officials recently announced that the school is keeping its tuition rate flat for the seventh straight year. It will remain $135.29 per credit hour for in-state tuition and fees ($100.84 tuition, $34.45 mandatory fees).
More information about OCCC’s Gray Frederickson Digital Cinema Department and the Digital Cinema Production program can be found on the college’s website.
