UNCW Film Studies

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UNCW Film Studies

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The Film Studies's department at the University of North Carolina-Wilmington is teaching students to create and analyze moving images, to produce research, and to make art. No posts are guaranteed, but we will do our best. Also, turn around time is 3-5 business days. Faculty, Alumni and Current Students cans submit their news through this form: https://forms.gle/H35evQejcqAiyFDY9

10/14/2026

FACULTY SPOTLIGHT | André Silva
The festival run continues for Professor André Silva and his essay documentary 8 Seconds at the Three Sisters!

The film has now been accepted into 14 film festivals internationally, with four more screenings this fall at the Tallgrass Film Festival, Charlotte Film Festival, Richmond International Film Festival, and Ridgway Independent Film Fest.

8 Seconds at the Three Sisters follows a filmmaker on a solo canoe trip up North Carolina’s Black River to the ancient Three Sisters Swamp, where an unexpected event changes the course of both the journey and the film. Combining digital video, hand-processed 16mm film, animation, and voiceover, the film reconstructs an experience whose original images and sounds were lost to the river.

Congratulations to André on the film’s continued festival journey!

10/12/2026

ALUMNI NEWS | Dylan Bradshaw

Big news for UNCW Film Studies alumnus and filmmaker Dylan Bradshaw! His sci-fi short One Minute was named one of the Top 50 films in the Future Vision XPRIZE, selected from more than 2,500 submissions worldwide.

One Minute stood apart as the only traditionally produced live-action film among a field dominated by AI-generated entries.

The film follows a grieving son who, amid the race to cure a devastating memory disease, risks his own mind for one final minute with his mother, who no longer remembers him.

The Future Vision XPRIZE challenged filmmakers from around the world to imagine stories with feature-film potential, with a grand prize package that included $100,000 in cash and a $2.5 million equity investment toward developing the winning concept into a feature film, along with additional production and industry support.

Congratulations to Dylan and the One Minute team on standing out among thousands of submissions and earning a place in the competition’s Top 50!

10/08/2026

Happy Fall Break, Seahawks! 🍂🎬
Whether you’re road-tripping, leaf-peeping, or finally finishing that edit, enjoy the long weekend (Thu–Fri) and come back recharged!

10/06/2026

ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT | Laura Casteel

Celebrating 50 years of the North Carolina Aquariums through film!

UNCW Film Studies alumna Laura Casteel (’13) recently shot and edited Inspiring Wonder, a short documentary celebrating the founding of the North Carolina Aquariums in 1976 and marking the organization’s 50th anniversary.

Laura works as a videographer and producer for the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources (DNCR), which oversees the Aquariums division. The project is a great example of where a Film Studies degree can lead, putting filmmaking and visual storytelling to work documenting the people, places, and institutions that shape North Carolina.

Congratulations to Laura on helping tell the story of a half-century of inspiring wonder!

10/02/2026

🎬 Apply Now! Spring 2027 Internships - Deadline: November 1

Film Studies majors! Ready to turn your passion into professional experience? Applications for Spring 2027 FST 498: Internships are OPEN!

💥 Earn 3 elective credits
🎥 Get hands on experience in areas like casting, production, post-production, content creation, film festivals & more
🌐 Build your resume, grow your network, and gain real-world skills
✨ Yes, it counts—and yes, it's fun
Seats are limited, so don’t wait!

To apply:
📚 Read the eligibility requirements on our Film Studies website (link in bio)
🔗 Check your UNCW email for current partner agency info
📝 Submit your application before November 1

Take your Film Studies journey beyond the classroom!

Questions? Reach out to Professor Shannon Silva at [email protected]

09/30/2026

NEW FACULTY SPOTLIGHT | Meet Basil Dababneh!

We’re excited to welcome Dr. Basil Dababneh (he/they) to UNCW Film Studies! Basil joins our faculty this fall as an Assistant Professor of Film Studies, bringing research and teaching that move across cinema, popular culture, digital media, and q***r and trans studies.

Basil received their Ph.D. in Cinema and Media Studies from the University of Chicago in 2025. Their research broadly explores the intersections between Cinema and Media Studies and Q***r and Trans Studies, with complementary interests in Popular Culture, Affect Theory, Critical Race and Feminist Studies, the Digital Humanities, and Arab Media.

Their first book project, tentatively titled Transq***rying the Silly in Media, explores the unique aesthetic, affective, and counterpolitical dimensions of “silliness” across popular digital cultures, taking the “silly” as a key category of analysis for q***r and trans studies of film and media.

In the classroom, Basil enjoys teaching Film Studies courses across an equally wide range of subjects, including q***r and trans cinema, children’s film and media, global horror, affect and emotion, and popular media cultures.

We’re thrilled to have them bringing new approaches to film, media, and popular culture into our classrooms and scholarly community. Welcome to UNCW!

09/28/2026

NEW FACULTY WELCOME | Meet Tanite Chahwan!

We’re excited to welcome Dr. Tanite Chahwan to UNCW Film Studies! This fall, she joins our faculty and brings with her research that takes us into the vibrant film cultures of Egypt and Lebanon.

Tanite Chahwan earned her Ph.D. in Film, Television, and Media from the University of Michigan. Her research focuses on 1950s Egyptian and Lebanese cinemas, especially melodrama and movie stardom, looking at how popular films and their stars shaped conversations about gender, national identity, and a changing postcolonial society. Drawing on archival research in Cairo and Beirut, she works with film magazines, photographs, and other materials that bring the era’s vibrant film and star culture to life. Before entering academia, she worked in film and television production, photography, and videography in Lebanon.
In the classroom, she is excited to introduce students to films and perspectives beyond the traditional Hollywood and European canon, and to explore how cinema and popular culture open up new ways of thinking about history, politics, gender, and identity.

We’re thrilled to have Tanite bringing new films, histories, archives, and perspectives into our classrooms and Film Studies community. Welcome to UNCW, Tanite! See less

09/25/2026

ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT | Megan McDeavitt

From filmmaking to the floor of Lake Ontario! UNCW MFA in Filmmaking alum Megan McDeavitt is putting her storytelling skills to work in a fascinating place: aboard the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ship Thomas Jefferson.

Megan, an ensign on the Thomas Jefferson, recently completed a short film exploring the hydrographic survey of the bottom of Lake Ontario that she and her shipmates are conducting as part of the Lakebed 2030 initiative.

And now that work is headed to the big screen! Megan’s film will screen at the Thunder Bay International Film Festival in January.

We love seeing where our alumni take their filmmaking skills, especially when the answer is apparently to the bottom of a Great Lake. Congratulations, Megan!

09/23/2026

STUDENT SPOTLIGHT | D.C. Agwu

UNCW Film Studies student D.C. (David-Chuku) Agwu is exploring new territory in immersive filmmaking.

In May, D.C. released a live-action interactive VR cinematic for Meta Quest, developed through his Film Studies Directed Independent Study and in collaboration with UNCW Computer Science. Working with Kian Miley, D.C. created a Unity-based “choose your own adventure” engine that allows viewers to shape the narrative as they experience it.

The project brought together a student crew including Tommy Bowers (Co-Director), Luke Hughes (Lead Actor/Camera Operator), Jayna Kolbicka (Lead Actress), Jack LeMasters (Art Director), Rogers Ferguson and Dalton Slade (Grip & Electric), Martin McGowan (BTS), and W. Helser (1st AC).

And the experimenting continues. This fall, D.C.’s research is focused on refining VR production workflows and exploring how interactive filmmaking can become more accessible to filmmakers from a range of backgrounds.

Next up: Prize Pool VR, an interactive film following a campus-wide water-gun assassin game with a $1 million prize waiting for the winner.

The work is advised by Professor Byrd (Film Studies) and Pedro Acevedo (Computer Science).

Congratulations to D.C. and the entire team on an ambitious collaboration across filmmaking, storytelling, and emerging technology!

09/22/2026

REGISTER NOW for Film Studies October 22nd
Virtual MFA INFO SESSION

Join us online, October 22 from 4:30 - 6:00 to explore our innovative Master of Fine Arts program in Filmmaking, where we embrace a multi-modal, interdisciplinary approach to cinematic arts. Learn about our diverse curriculum, cutting-edge faculty, and the application process. (Link in comments)

Address

Wilmington, NC
28407

Telephone

+19109623000

Website

http://uncw.edu/filmstudies/index.html

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