The University Film and Video Association (UFVA) is an organization of professors, scholars, and film and video makers. Although it is based in the U.S., it has members throughout the world. Its stated description is: "The UFVA is an international organization where media production and writing meets the history, theory and criticism of the media. The UFVA members are image-makers and artists, teachers and students, archivists and distributors, college departments, libraries, and manufacturers." UFVA holds an annual conference and publishes the Journal of Film and Video, a periodical featuring articles on film and video production, history, theory, criticism, and aesthetics. UFVA also administers the American Documentary Showcase.

History

UFVA was founded in 1947 as the University Film Producers Association. Its name was changed to the University Film Association and later the University Film and Video Association. UFVA serves as the professional organization for college and university teachers and students who wish to establish themselves as a serious professional-- and helps to provide validation for individuals who make films as part of their university research contribution. UFVA tends to attract membership among media makers or producers; the other professional organization in this arena, titled "cinema and media studies," primarily serve scholarship and critical writing which does not often include the making of a media. Serious professionals in the field are often a member of both organizations.

Conference

The annual UFVA Conference is held each summer. Attendees screen films, present papers and panels, mount new media exhibits, and stage readings of un-produced screenplays.

Recent conference sites