The Department has a long history of work on film, television, media and visual culture, in collaboration with Cinema and Media Studies, as well as the many faculty members in other units who focus on film and visual culture. We particularly encourage interested students to explore the graduate minor in cinema studies, which allows students to pursue their interests in literature and culture while also acquiring a rigorous background in film historiography and theory. Students and faculty alike profit from a thriving Art Theater in downtown Champaign, the regular presence of film festivals in town, as well as substantial library resources and regional conferences. Recent graduate have collaborated with core and affiliated faculty on topics ranging from film and biopolitics, to performance studies and ecocinema.