Crossmedia

Studying Crossmedia, you will learn to tell stories that develop in different directions and move from one platform to another. For example, a story may begin as a film, continue as a television series and eventually reach audiences as a live performance.

This programme is right for you if:

you enjoy telling stories and bringing new ideas to life;
you are interested in creating audiovisual content and would like to learn how to combine it with print media, events, mobile applications, games and social media;
you want to understand audiences and the business side of media;
you are creative, active and open to new technologies.

Some of the core courses include:

Transmedia Project
Sound Recording
Writing for Transmedia
Camera Work
Introduction to Digital Marketing Project
Semiotics of Multimedia
Media Studies
New Media Economy

Internship opportunities

An internship is a compulsory part of the programme and usually takes place after the second year of study. Students can complete their internship in Estonia or abroad, gaining professional experience in different cultural and industry environments. Ideally, the internship is completed during a period when there are no regular classes, either in January or during the summer, allowing students to focus fully on their professional experience.

Typical internship placements include marketing and creative agencies, film and audiovisual production companies, PR and communication agencies, media organisations, digital content companies, cultural institutions, start-ups, and other organisations working with crossmedia communication and storytelling.

The internship gives students the opportunity to apply their knowledge and skills in a professional environment, contribute to real projects, build their professional network, and strengthen their portfolio.

Students can choose an organisation that matches their professional interests, provided that the placement involves relevant crossmedia, media, communication, or creative-industry activities.

Explore internship opportunities

Erasmus+ and exchange opportunities

Gives you the ability to participate in exchange programs at partner universities in Europe and outside of the European Union. Exchange is possible with universities with whom Tallinn University has signed an Erasmus+ agreement. Erasmus+ programme offers different scholarships.

Explore Erasmus+ opportunities

Finishing your studies

Students can complete their studies in one of two ways: with a creative thesis or a classical academic research-based thesis.

The creative thesis consists of an academic reflection based on the portfolio of creative and professional work developed throughout the three years of study. Alternatively, students can choose to conduct an academic research project, resulting in a traditional research-based bachelor's thesis.

Career Opportunities

Graduates can pursue careers in companies offering innovative media solutions, including positions such as:

content service developers at telecommunications companies;
digital media specialists at media companies;
creative professionals at advertising agencies;
specialists working with interactive media solutions in film production companies, and more.

After completing your Bachelor’s degree, you can continue your studies in the Master’s programmes in Documentary Film orCommunication Management. You can also explore other Master’s programmes offered by Tallinn University.

Explore the programmes

Meet our alumni

Jaan Kristjan Utno

Jaan Kristjan Utno graduated from the BFM Crossmedia Production program in 2015 and carried the lessons of Tallinn all the way to Hollywood. After earning an MFA in Cinematography with Honors from the New York Film Academy, he settled in Los Angeles, where he has built a career across nearly every department that brings a story to the screen: director, cinematographer, camera operator, and gaffer. As a director at Dhar Mann Studios, he helmed more than 95 episodes that have reached over 350 million viewers worldwide. Alongside that, he has earned over a hundred credits in lighting, camera, and cinematography across shorts, feature films, episodic series, national commercial campaigns, music videos, and live events. He is a member of IATSE Local 728, the union behind Hollywood's studio lighting, and holds industry safety and rigging certifications that have opened the door to large-scale concert and touring productions. Jaan believes the crossmedia mindset he developed at BFM, the habit of thinking across formats, platforms, and disciplines, is what lets a filmmaker thrive in an industry that never stops changing. His core belief is simple: learn every tool you can, say yes to the work that scares you, and never think of any project as too small.

At Tallinn University, you can participate in sports, music and dance activities and join various clubs and cultural groups. BFM’s student council, Meedium, organises events and helps create an active student community. Every year, BFM also hosts the student film festival Best of BFM, or BOB, showcasing student films, music videos, advertisements and other audiovisual works. The best projects are recognised at an awards ceremony.

pilt

Students at Tallinn University’s Baltic Film, Media and Arts School have access to professional studios and state-of-the-art film and sound equipment. During your studies, you can use a film pavilion, television studio, sound studios, editing and colour grading suites, as well as video, sound and lighting equipment. The school is also home to the SuperNova 4K cinema.

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Explore BFM’s learning environment

Meet our teaching staff

Alessandro Nanì

associate professor of crossmedia

Alessandro Nanì is the curator of the BA
curriculum Crossmedia. He teaches
cross-media, transmedia storytelling and
media research methods
at BA and MA levels.

Nanì holds a PhD in Media and his
research interests revolve around
audiences, cross-media and participatory
media. As part of his academic
contribution, he served as chair of the
Audience and Reception studies
thematic section of the European
Communication Research and
Education Association (ECREA) until 2022.

From 2014 until 2019 he worked as the
project manager of Cross Motion (CM),
an Interreg Baltic Sea Region project and EU Policy Area Culture Flagship project.

Currently, he is the principal investigator (Estonian research group) of the Horizon Europe project Mapping Media for Future Democracies (MeDeMap).

Alessandro Nanì's

Admissions

General requirements

Completed Secondary School Graduation Certificate, Certificate of Vocational Secondary Education or a corresponding qualification giving access to higher education
Proof of English Proficiency

Application Deadlines and Requirements

Entrance Exam

The entrance examination consists of three parts: an audiovisual CV, a creative assignment, and an interview. Both the audiovisual CV and the creative assignment must be submitted as Google Drive links that are publicly accessible and do not require an access request to view. The Drive links must be included in a PDF file, which should then be uploaded with the application in DreamApply or SAIS.

Applicants are also encouraged to include in the same PDF file a link to a portfolio of their previous creative work, such as videos, websites, animations, 3D designs, or music.

1. Audiovisual CV – 30%

Create a three-minute audiovisual CV in English, in which you introduce yourself and explain why you would like to study crossmedia. Upload the video to an online platform, such as YouTube or Vimeo, and include the link in the PDF file.

2. Creative assignment – 20%

Create a story featuring at least two characters and a clear beginning, middle and end. At the beginning, introduce the story world, the main characters and their goals. In the middle, develop the plot, conflict and characters. At the end, resolve the conflict and, if possible, provide a moment of emotional release.

Choose one of the following themes for your creative assignment: loneliness or confusion.

Present the story using a combination of at least two media. You may use text, photographs, paintings or drawings, audio (such as a podcast), animation or video. For example, you could combine a short story with an animation or a podcast with a series of photographs.

Combine your chosen media into a single cohesive work. This may be an offline solution, such as a PDF containing text, images and links, or an online solution, such as a social media page or an audiovisual work.

Upload your creative assignment to a Google Drive folder and include the folder link in the same PDF file as the link to your audiovisual CV.

3. Interview – 50%

The final stage is an interview. Applicants will receive the time of their individual interview by email after submitting their application.

NB! International applicants who cannot travel to Estonia will be offered a chance to take the entrance exams over the Internet. It is not possible to change the interview time. Interviews take place via Zoom (in English), 20 minutes for each candidate.

For the purposes of identity verification at the admission procedure the Admission Committee has the right to take a screenshot during the oral part of the admission exam carried out via video bridge.

Evaluation criteria

Audiovisual CV: crossmediality of audiovisual CV, storytelling of the audiovisual CV, quality of sound and photography in the audiovisual CV;
Creative Assignment: coherence of the storytelling, development of the dramaturgical arc;
Interview: ability to understand and answer questions in an articulated, informed and coherent manner.

The committee evaluates the candidate on the basis of pre-agreed evaluation criteria. The final scores are calculated as the average of the scores awarded by all members of the committee.

A maximum of 30 points can be awarded for the audiovisual CV, 20 points for the creative assignment, and 50 points for the interview. The minimum passing score is 65 points.

Sample Interview Questions

The questions are specific to what is presented, however, a question could be: What were the reasons behind choosing a certain tool rather than another in your audiovisual CV? (for instance, why did you choose to add animation to your CV? What is the relation between the protagonist and the antagonist in your story?).

Scholarships

Explore university-wide tuition-waivers and scholarship opportunities

Move to Tallinn

Studying in Tallinn, means studying at a compact European capital where education, technology and digital innovation meet. As an international student, you can benefit from Tallinn University's support and access practical information to help you settle into life in Estonia from the basics of accommodation to the details about working while studying and of course where to find the student support services.

Find information about:

Explore more practical topics that might come up as you relocate

Contacts

Crisely Apri

Study Counsellor and Specialist

visit usNarva mnt 27, 10120 Tallinn, room N-419

call us(+372) 61 99 923

Email uscrossmedia@tlu.ee

For additional guidelines regarding the admission procedure, please contact the international admission specialist: admissions@tlu.ee