AAFT University.
AAFT University of Media, Arts and Technology has announced admissions for its Cinematography Degree Course and MA Cinema programs for the 2026 academic year. These programs are purpose-built for students who want to build careers in cinematography, direction, screenwriting, and filmmaking spanning traditional theatrical cinema as well as India's booming OTT and digital content landscape. Backed by more than 30 years of media education excellence, AAFT University has produced over 35,000 alumni currently working across Bollywood, regional cinema, international film festivals, television networks, and OTT platforms including Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+ Hotstar, and SonyLIV.
India's media and entertainment industry is undergoing its most transformative decade. The Indian M&E sector is projected to cross INR 3 lakh crore by 2027, with OTT content, digital-first films, and web series contributing the largest share of new production activity. Streaming platforms are commissioning hundreds of original projects every year, and the demand for professionally trained cinematographers, directors, and storytellers has never been more acute.
Yet formal cinema education in India remains inaccessible to most aspirants constrained by limited seats at government film institutes and outdated curricula at many private colleges. AAFT University is built around a fundamentally different proposition: studio-integrated learning that combines academic rigour with real production experience, taught by faculty with active credits in the industry.
The BA Cinema program at AAFT University is a three-year undergraduate degree designed for Class 12 graduates who are passionate about cinema and the visual arts. The program covers the complete arc of filmmaking from understanding the grammar of visual storytelling and the science of light and lenses to scripting, directing, cinematography, and post-production. Students graduate with a full portfolio of self-directed projects and the practical confidence to step onto a professional film or OTT production set.
The undergraduate cinema degree at AAFT is built for students who want to learn by doing. From the first semester, learners work with professional-grade cinema equipment and produce real short films and documentary projects under faculty guidance. This hands-on orientation is what sets the program apart from purely theoretical courses.
For graduates and working media professionals looking to deepen their expertise, the MA Cinema program at AAFT University offers a postgraduate pathway that builds specialised knowledge in the craft and commerce of cinema. The two-year program is designed for candidates who already have foundational skills and want to pursue advanced studies in cinematography, direction, or the emerging intersection of technology and storytelling.
The MA Cinema degree is particularly valuable for professionals who want to transition from behind-the-scenes technical roles into direction or cinematography, for UG cinema graduates who want to specialise further, and for independent filmmakers seeking the academic credentials and mentorship network to take their work to the next level.
AAFT University is embedded within Marwah Studios in Noida Film City, one of India's largest and most fully equipped film and television production complexes. Students enrolled in the BA Cinema and MA Cinema programs train and produce work inside a functioning studio, not a simulation of one.
The infrastructure available to students includes professional cinema cameras from Arri, RED, Sony, and Blackmagic; full lighting kits with LED, tungsten, and HMI arrays; dedicated sound stages; Foley recording rooms and ADR booths; and post-production suites running Avid Media Composer, DaVinci Resolve, and Adobe Premiere Pro. Students also earn certifications through Canon and Panasonic masterclasses and internships.
AAFT's cinema faculty are not retired professionals or academics disconnected from current practice; they are cinematographers, directors, editors, and screenwriters with active credits across Indian feature films, OTT originals, advertising, and documentary. This means classroom instruction stays aligned with what studios and streaming platforms are actually looking for right now, not a version of the industry that existed ten years ago.
In addition to core faculty, both the BA Cinema and MA Cinema programs include a regular masterclass series led by visiting industry leaders including showrunners, film festival programmers, OTT commissioning editors, and international cinematographers. These sessions give students direct access to perspectives and knowledge that are otherwise almost impossible to obtain from outside the industry.
AAFT cinema graduates work across every sector of the Indian film and media industry. Career paths pursued by alumni include:
AAFT provides structured placement support including showreel development, portfolio mentoring, internship placements with production houses and OTT studios, and active alumni networking. The university's alumni network of over 35,000 professionals spans Bollywood, regional cinema, television broadcasting, advertising, and digital media, giving new graduates a ready-made professional community from day one.
Cinema does not exist in isolation. At AAFT University, students enrolled in the BA Cinema and MA Cinema programs work alongside peers from the university's parallel schools, including acting, animation, media management, journalism, sound design, and visual communication.
This cross-disciplinary environment replicates the collaborative reality of a film production, where cinematographers must understand acting, editors must think like directors, and directors must communicate with production designers.
Applications for the 2026 academic session are now open for both the BA in Cinema and the MA in Cinema at AAFT University.
AAFT University welcomes applications from students across India and internationally. The institution offers scholarship support and merit-based fee concessions for academically exceptional and financially deserving candidates.
AAFT University of Media and Arts was established in 2018 in Raipur, Chhattisgarh, and has grown into one of India's leading institutions for creative and media education. It builds on the legacy of AAFT, founded in 1993 at Marwah Studios, Noida Film City, and known for over three decades of practical, industry-linked media training. The university offers undergraduate, postgraduate, diploma and PhD programs across cinema, animation, journalism and mass communication, advertising, PR and events, fashion design, interior design, performing arts, photography, fine arts and management.
The 27-acre Raipur campus is built for learning by doing. Students work in professional studios and labs from their first semester, producing real films, broadcasts, designs and campaigns rather than waiting until final year. Behind them stands the AAFT network of 37,000+ alumni placed across leading production houses, OTT platforms, broadcast networks and advertising agencies making the university a strong bridge between creative education and professional media careers in Central India and beyond.
AAFT University Of Media And Arts
AAFT University GF-18, Ground Floor, Shyam Plaza, Pandri, Raipur,
Chhattisgarh-492001, India
+91-8064057209 , +91-9109112078
website - https://aaft.edu.in/
