USC's School of Cinematic Arts is set to upgrade its media production capabilities, thanks to a new partnership with Blackmagic Design. The collaboration aims to equip the school’s students with industry-standard tools that will better prepare them for professional environments.
The partnership includes the provision of URSA Broadcast and URSA Mini Pro cameras, ATEM 4 M/E Broadcast Studio 4K switchers, ATEM Camera Control Panels, HyperDeck Studio Pro recorders, and DaVinci Resolve Micro and Mini Panels. These tools will be integrated into the school’s curriculum, providing students with hands-on experience with advanced equipment.
Elizabeth Daley, Dean of the School of Cinematic Arts, expressed enthusiasm about the partnership: 'Blackmagic is known for providing high quality equipment that filmmakers and other content creators find accessible. We are thrilled our students get to use Blackmagic Design tools because we know that means they will be better prepared for the work environments they will encounter after graduation.'
Greg Vannoy, who oversees USC’s Trojan Vision television station, highlighted the significance of this upgrade: 'While we broadcast in HD, the full UltraHD capability now available through these new tools creates a better learning facility for our students. The URSA Broadcast cameras and ATEM 4 M/E Broadcast Studio 4K switchers will transform our studio into a modern teaching environment.'
Meri Weingarten, Director of Digital Media & Technology at the School, emphasized the importance of providing students with industry-standard tools: 'It’s important for our students to learn in an environment that closely resembles the industry. We know this will improve their skills.' Vannoy further praised Blackmagic Design's equipment, noting, 'We are excited to offer the URSA Mini Pro to our students. Blackmagic has done a great job creating a compact, multi-purpose camera that captures a beautiful image.'
The partnership also includes DaVinci Resolve Micro Panels for color grading classes and DaVinci Resolve Studio for professional use by instructors. Additionally, several URSA Mini Pro cinema cameras will be available for student projects.