Kathmandu, January 13
Kathmandu University (KU) is set to offer film studies at the postgraduate level. The program has been introduced to link Nepal’s film sector with formal academic education.
The program was formally announced on January 12 at an event held under the chief guestship of senior film director Yadav Kharel. Under the initiative, film studies will be institutionalised at the master’s level, and the Film Development Board will provide scholarships to enrolled students.
According to Nirmal Mani Adhikari, Head of the Department of Language and Mass Communication under KU’s School of Arts, the two-year (66-credit) program will begin this February.
He said the program aims to establish film not merely as a form of entertainment but as a serious academic, theoretical, and research-oriented discipline.
The film studies program will include courses on film theory, history, aesthetics, cultural studies, filmmaking, screenwriting, cinematography, sound design, editing, acting, film criticism, research, and contemporary subjects related to cinema, including artificial intelligence (AI).
Both the university and the Board expect the program to provide students with practical skills alongside theoretical knowledge.
Speaking at the event, Film Development Board Chairperson Dinesh DC said the Board has partnered with KU to develop cinema as an academic and research-oriented field rather than limiting it to entertainment alone.
He also announced that the Board will provide scholarships to encourage film students. The Board has been working with Tribhuvan University and other institutions to bring film studies into the formal academic stream.
According to the Board, such programs will help produce skilled human resources, promote research, and lay the foundation for making the Nepali film industry internationally competitive.
