Explore theme park history, and the evolution of the relationship between moving image media and theme parks

Examine the contexts and shared histories of theme parks and screen media
In this two-week intensive program, students will explore theme park history, and the evolution of the relationship between moving image media (film, television, and video games) and theme parks. The course will examine the contexts and shared histories of theme parks and screen media, explore theoretical, industrial, and cultural issues surrounding them, and investigate how these cultural phenomena are shaping one another in today’s media landscape. The program will include lectures, screenings, discussions and guided site visits to Disneyland, Disneyland California Adventure, and Universal Studios Hollywood. In class, students will study case studies of theme park rides and theme park “lands” by researching and analyzing scholarly texts, reference films, television shows, and video games. Each guided site visit will also include an on-site behind-the-scenes lecture.
Through these topics, students will be introduced to the fundamental skills of college-level academic writing, practice reading comprehension on college-level academic sources, and be challenged to practice critical thinking and observation skills through several reading and writing assignments.
Film and Television Summer Institute – Media Parks: The Cinematic and Televisual History of Theme Parks Program Overview
Students will participate in person at UCLA, experiencing all that our campus has to offer during their summer program.
For participants in the Film and Television Summer Institute – Media Parks: The Cinematic and Televisual History of Theme Parks, living in on-campus housing is mandatory. The total cost for housing, which includes room, board (two meals per day), student supervision, and evening and weekend activities, is an additional $1,521.
For more information on UCLA housing precollege programs, please see the Housing for Minors page.
Film and Television Summer Institute – Media Parks: The Cinematic and Televisual History of Theme Parks awards credit for the following UCLA coursework:
- Film and Television 18 – Media Parks: The Cinematic and Televisual History of Theme Parks (3 units)
Guided Site Visits
During the course, students will embark on three curated visits to Southern California theme parks: Disneyland, Disney California Adventure, and Universal Studios Hollywood. Visits will be structured around on-site behind-the-scenes lectures and instructor-guided experiences as well as required visits to select attractions and park “lands.” The required attractions/lands and will be the springboard for writing assignments and require students to connect their observations, critical media analysis, and argumentation skills to lecture concepts, assigned readings, and screenings. Students will choose specific attractions or lands as case studies for two short papers and one final paper.
These site visits allow students to have a firsthand educational experience and learn directly from the interactive aspect of theme parks. By studying the historical, cultural, industrial, and theoretical issues surrounding these spaces and attractions in-depth before encountering them, students will be well-prepared to approach these experiences from a critical and analytical perspective. Ultimately, this hands-on investigation provides students with a sense of how these interactive spaces and rides work together to create unique media experiences. While these excursions will no doubt be fun, they are first and foremost active learning experiences and sites of analysis.
Eligibility
To apply for the Film and Television Summer Institute – Media Parks: The Cinematic and Televisual History of Theme Parks, students must be:
- Open to students enrolled in grades 10th – 12th in Spring 2022 and Spring 2022 High School Graduates.
Admission
The program has application requirements for admission. Eligible applicants who submit all requirements successfully and timely, will be reviewed and notified via email of an admission decision within 3 weeks. See Application Requirements below for more details. Early application is strongly encouraged.
Applicants are required to provide the following during the online registration process:
- A personal statement answering:
- Why you would like to participate in the program, and what you expect to gain from the experience? (No more than 200 words.)
- This is a disciplined and rigorous program. Describe a time you took on an academic challenge. What were some of the obstacles you encountered and how did you overcome them? (No more than 300 words.)
- Unofficial transcript showing a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.0
- One letter of recommendation from a high school instructor verifying your ability to successfully participate in a disciplined and rigorous program.
Applying for the Film and Television Summer Institute – Media Parks can be done conveniently online with the following steps:
- Prepare all “Application Requirements” prior to starting the registration process.
- Access the Summer Institute Online Registration Form starting February 15 at 8am Pacific Standard Time (PST). Read all terms and conditions, then scroll to the bottom and select “Yes, Continue to Registration.”
- Provide responses to all required questions on both pages of the registration form and then “Submit”.
- Once your form is submitted, you will be directed to the Retrieve Registration page. Select “File Uploads” to upload application materials (see Application Requirements above for more information).
- Allow up to two weeks for the program instructor(s) to review your application after submission. An email will be sent to you with the official decision.
- If accepted to the program, follow the steps in your acceptance email to make payment of the $350 non-refundable registration fee* to reserve your space in the program.
A space in the program is not reserved until a valid payment of the $350 non-refundable registration fee* is made. If you are not prepared to pay after submitting the registration form, you may retrieve your registration at another time to make payment; however, this risks losing a space in the program if it reaches capacity prior to payment being submitted. An email with instructions to retrieve registration with your five-digit registration number will be sent within an hour after submitting your registration.
*The registration fee is required for each program and is not refundable under any circumstances including, but not limited to, drop for non-payment and withdrawal, even if you withdraw from the program before it begins.
If the program is full, you will not be prompted to make payment. If the program offers a waitlist and your application is accepted from the waitlist, you will be notified by email with instructions for how to submit payment. Please note if the payment is not submitted within 24 hours of receiving the email, you will be moved to the end of the waitlist.
If registering after May 1, full payment of the program fee and non-refundable registration fee will be required to reserve your space in the program. Additional fees, such as the document fee and IEI fees, will be assessed after enrollment.
For questions and assistance, please contact us at info@summer.ucla.edu.
UCLA Summer Sessions Summer Scholars Support
Qualified students attending grades 8th – 11th in Spring 2022 in the state of California may be eligible for Summer Scholars Support, a need- and merit-based scholarship offered by the UCLA Summer Sessions Office. A limited number of full and partial scholarships are available to support enrollment in SCIP/eSCIP, one Summer Course, or a Precollege Summer Institute.
Summer 2022 deadline to apply: April 1.
The Nicholas Endowment Scholarship
The Nicholas Endowment TFT Summer Institute Scholarship for Film & Television is a need and merit-based scholarship opportunity for underserved/ underrepresented high school students enrolled in grades 9-12 in Spring 2022 who would benefit significantly from a UCLA Film and Television Summer Institute experience.
Both partial and full scholarships are available for high school students enrolled in UCLA Film and Television Summer Institutes including Digital Filmmaking, Writing for TV: Big Ideas for the Small Screen, Cinematography, Traditional Animation, and Media Parks: The Cinematic and Televisual History of Theme Parks.
For deadlines, eligibility requirements, and application information, please visit the Nicholas Endowment TFT Summer Institute Scholarship page.
Nicholas Endowment TFT Summer Institute Scholarship Application Online Form will be available February 15, 2022. Deadlines and acceptances are on a rolling basis.
Program Dates:
July 10, 2022 – July 23, 2022
The schedule and syllabus are subject to change. Enrolled students will be given updated materials closer to the program start date.
Fees and Payment Info
The program fee includes the unit fees for the UCLA coursework offered as part of the program and thus varies by UC student status. In addition to the program fee, students are assessed other campus and administrative fees during the summer. This is a summary of fees that commonly apply to the selected student type.
Actual tuition and fees are subject to change by the University of California. Visit the fees, payment, and financial aid section for important disclaimer, as well as more details on fees, payment instructions, and information on delinquency, refunds, and financial aid.
**MANDATORY HOUSING FEE** = $1,521
Students living in on-campus housing will be charged an additional housing fee.
.
Program Fee | $2,500 |
Registration Fee | $350 |
IEI Fee | $61 |
Document Fee (for first-time Summer Sessions students) | $50 |
Meet your Instructors
Heather Lea Birdsall
Instructor, FILM TV 18 – Media Parks: The Cinematic and Televisual History of Theme ParksHeather Lea Birdsall’s current research traces the changing relationships between film, television, and video games and the American theme park. Her dissertation considers how modern-day theme parks are increasingly becoming “media parks,” or physically and virtually immersive cinematic, televisual, and game spaces. Using Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California as a paradigmatic case study, her dissertation examines these spaces and their story worlds as significant sites of narrative and spatial exchange, of cinematic and televisual presence, and of embodied and interactive experience. She served as a UCLA Collegium of University Teaching Fellow during the 2019-2020 school year and was awarded the UCLA Dissertation Year Fellowship in 2020.
Film and Television Summer Institute – Media Parks: The Cinematic and Televisual History of Theme Parks FAQ
Qualified students may sign up for more than one track as long as the dates do not overlap. For example, a student may take Digital Filmmaking and then Media Parks: The Cinematic and Televisual History of Theme Parks.
A laptop is recommended, but not required.
Students will receive a letter grade upon completion. See University Credit, Grades and Transcripts for more information about academic credit.
Still have questions? Check out the general Summer Institutes FAQ.