What To Pack for Graduate Students

Required

Incoming graduate students in the School of Filmmaking are required to have a computer for their class and production work, along with specific software.

Textbooks
Expect to spend $500 for required textbooks in this year. Any required textbooks will be listed on the syllabus for each of your courses. Arrive prepared for your classes by having all of the required equipment, textbooks and software installed, along with notebooks, pens and pencils.

Screenwriters
All incoming graduate students are required to purchase Final Draft Screenwriting software (details below).

Creative Producers
All incoming graduate students are required to purchase Final Draft Screenwriting software (details below).

Movie Magic Budgeting and Scheduling software is required for Creative Producers only. Those students should contact Stephanie Colopy for a discount coupon. Cost per discounted software for $185 for each software.

Note: Film Music Composition students can find their items listed under "Musicians" below as the program has transitioned to the School of Music and is now titled Composition for Film and Visual Media. 

Software
The School of Filmmaking has developed partnerships with Apple Inc., Adobe Systems Incorporated and Final Draft, Inc. to provide the latest technology at the best student prices available.

Adobe Creative Cloud Software License
Adobe Creative Cloud is available to all currently enrolled UNCSA students as part of their tuition and fees. Students will receive an invitation via their UNCSA email address with instructions on how to access and/or download the apps for mobile and desktop.

Adobe Creative Cloud at UNCSA

Final Draft Software
All students required to purchase Final Draft Screenwriting software can purchase this software for a one-time educational discount of $129.

FINAL DRAFT SCREENWRITING SOFTWARE 

Optional Equipment

Hardware
Recommended system specifications for graduate students interested in operating post-production editing software.

Apple MacBook Pro (with extended AppleCare warranty)
The 16” size is recommended to allow more window space for editing. You should purchase the model that has at least a 2.3GHz 8-core i9 processor, a minimum of 16 GB RAM, a minimum of 1TB of SSD storage, and the AMD Radeon Pro 5500M graphics card with 4GB of memory.
 
The less expensive 13" MacBook Pro can be used, but is not optimal for Post Production. If you choose to buy a 13" model, choose one with at least a 2.6GHz Core i7 processor, at least 16 GB RAM, a minimum of 512 GB of SSD storage, and the AMD Radeon Pro 5300M graphics card with 4GB of memory.
 
We recommend that students purchase a Tripp-Lite U442-DOC 1 USB-C Docking Station (or an equivalent) to provide substantially more connectivity for their laptop, as well as an external USB3 hard drive (at least 1 terabyte) with Thunderbolt or USB3 interface, for editing and backup purposes. We strongly recommend adding the AppleCare warranty option to protect your computer investment.

UNCSA SHOP APPLE ONLINE

Once you have entered our custom online Apple Store for Education:

1. Select a computer.
2. Select any special options to customize your computer.
3. Add the AppleCare warranty to your checkout cart at the Apple Store.

Music students are responsible for providing the necessary music materials and supplies for art-related study. For brass, guitar, string and woodwind students, this includes a fold-up music stand to be used during individual practice, chamber ensemble rehearsals, and master classes. All students who will perform in one of the large ensembles (orchestra, wind ensemble, jazz ensemble) will need appropriate concert dress clothes, although the appropriate clothes to have will be determined in part by the ensemble(s) to which you are assigned.

Composition for Film and Visual Media Students
Composition for Film and Visual Media Technology Requirements:

• Apple computer (Mac Pro, Mac Studio, iMac, MacBook Pro, MacBook Air or Mac mini)
• Logic Pro
• Pro Tools
• Sibelius

Home Studio Recommendations:

• Maximum Capacity RAM
• SSD Storage
• MIDI Keyboard Controller
• Audio Interface
• Studio Monitors or Studio Headphones

Please be sure to have the following items before arriving on campus and before the start of your classes in the School of Design & Production. Contact the head of your program if you have questions.

Computer Requirements

• Computer Requirements are defined by area of concentration, please contact the Director of your concentration for what might be required, with the exception of Sound Design which is described below.

Sound Design Student Requirements:
Apple MacBook Pro:

• Thunderbolt Port
• Ethernet port or Thunderbolt to Ethernet adapter
• 16 GB minimum system RAM
• 70 GB or more of available storage space for Logic sound libraries
• AppleCare Protection Plan

UNCSA Shop Apple Online

Software: Apple LogicX available via the Mac App Store

Thuderbolt Drive:

• 500 GB minimum size
• SSD preferred by rotational HDD acceptable
• Thunderbolt cable
• Bus Powered drive, highly recommended

Class Supplies & Textbooks

Students are personally responsible for obtaining their own supplies and equipment for all classes including Production (such as drafting equipment, shop hand tools and drawing and design supplies), as well as required (or recommended) textbooks for courses. Expenditures will be heaviest during the first year, as students make major investments in equipment that they will use for the rest of their professional careers. Students not already owning some of the necessary equipment and supplies needed should be prepared to spend $500 to $750 or more during the early part of their first year. Many incoming students have questions about equipment, tools and supplies. Listed below are a number of items that, if you already own, you should bring with you. If you do not already own these items, please wait until you arrive to acquire them so that your instructors can give you guidance on the types of equipment and quality you should be looking for.

• Drafting equipment and supplies
• Drawing and painting supplies (brushes, paints, paper, scissors, etc.)
• A good drawing or drafting lamp for use in your own room
• Basic shop hand tools: One nail apron
  • One 16 ounce claw hammer
  • One #2 Phillips screwdriver
  • One #2 Square Head drive (Prop majors only)
  • One pair of pliers
  • One pair of end cutting nippers
  • One Architect’s scale ruler
  • One 8 inch Crescent wrench
  • One utility (matte) knife
  • One combination square or speed square
  • One 16 foot tape measure (minimum)
  • One 3/8 drive ratchet with 7/16 and 9/16 sockets (Scenic Technology and Prop majors only)
  • One flashlight
  • One pair of craft scissors (Prop majors only)
  • One pair of fabric scissors (Prop majors only)
  • Pencils
  • One container to keep it all in

Safety Equipment

• One NIOSH-approved respirator with organic vapor cartridges and pre-filters. (welding gas and dust filters as needed)
• One pair of ANSI-approved Safety Glasses
• Several pair of foam-type hearing protectors or head-set style ear protection
• One ANSI-approved Hard Hat
• One pair of work gloves

All new Design and Production students are required to own a NIOSH-approved respirator with organic vapor cartridges and pre-filters. This is for your safety and benefit. These respirators are designed to prevent the breathing of harmful substances. These substances include particulates, dusts, fogs, mists, sprays, smokes, vapors or gasses.

Each student will be scheduled for a respirator fitting and testing. Refer to your orientation schedule. At that time, you may purchase a 3M 6000 series mask with replaceable organic vapor cartridges and replaceable N95 Pre-filters. It is mandatory that you be tested for proper fit of your respirator and be trained in how and when to use it in a safe manner.

The cost for both the 3M Respirator and fit test is $45 ($ 20 for the fit testing and $ 25 for the respirator). In addition, the required safety glasses and hard hats are offered for sale for $10 for the set. An extra pack of cartridges and filters are available for $15 for the set. Safety glasses are $5. These items and services may be paid by cash or check only. Credit cards are not accepted. The company performing the fit testing and providing the masks is Rayco Safety, Inc., from Yadkinville, NC. http://www.raycosafety.com.

Note: If you already own a NIOSH-approved respirator and are certain you can purchase replacement filters in Winston-Salem, and can pass a qualitative fit test, you will only need to pay for the fit-testing. If you have a medical reason for not wearing a respirator, bring documentation with you to the first D&P or Visual Arts orientation meeting.