More than 600 colleges and universities in the U.S. offer programs in film studies or related subjects. And since very few graduates actually become directors or producers, many students are using what they’ve learned to be successful in other fields.

Like, say, employee communication? The article doesn’t say so explicitly, but there were several thought-provoking perspectives about the power of film:

• “People endowed with social power and prestige are able to use film and media images to reinforce that power—we need to look at film to grant power to those who are marginalized or currently not represented,” said Rick Herbst, a graduate of the University of Notre Dame who’s now at Yale Law School.
  
• “The greatest digital divide is between those who can read and write with media, and those who can’t,” said Elizabeth Daley, dean of the School of Cinema-Television at the University of Southern California. U.S.C., the nation’s oldest film school, believes that media competency is as fundamental as the ability to read and write.As the article reports, more than 60 general academic courses at U.S.C. requires students to create projects that use video, sound and Internet components. Says Dean Daley, “If I had my way, our multimedia literacy honors program would be required of every student in the university.”

In my view, too many communication professionals still spend far too much of their time with words—words sent via e-mail, or posted on a web page, or printed in a publication. In the digital future, words will become secondary to images, and the greatest power in communication will reside in people who can create moving images that are retrieved via personal computer, PDA, or even cell phone.

Film school, anyone?