UC Irvine’s digital filmmaking program waits in budget purgatory

Even before the pandemic, budget cuts hit arts programs the hardest. Now, UC Irvine students involved in the digital filmmaking minor wonder if the program, which was already hanging on by a thin thread, will survive the university’s latest financial hardships. “One of the strong parts of our program is that we support our students of color and want to enable them to tell their stories, which haven’t been told.” A highlight of the program has been participating in the Newport Beach Film Festival, where students showcase their work like alumna Nancy Nguyen who decided to make a documentary about the last gay bar in her Garden Grove hometown titled “ Frat House,” which later traveled to additional festivals. “I want to make sure that the students that come after me also have those resources available to them so that they feel like they can navigate a difficult industry with the right tools and the right knowledge.” Buhr added that his ultimate hope is for the university to recognize the potential of the program and to work with students to secure a stable source of funding and support. “To know that there’s a very safe space where people can create work is reassuring and unique to other film schools, which tend to abide by Hollywood set structures.” Ideally, the founders of the program would like three to five years to develop it into a major.