BACHELOR OF ARTS IN COMMUNICATION

Our student films are screened in festivals as diverse as the international Cannes Film Festival and the Hollywood Black Film Festival.

Our students also intern with the Cannes Film Festival. The festival, which is held yearly in the south of France, is an international marketplace where actors, directors, producers, content creators, and distributors gather to exchange ideas, view films, sign contracts and do business, big business.

“Men’s Room,” a film by Chelsea Rose Tambis was screened at the 71st Cannes Film Festival in the Cannes Court Metrage, or Short Film Corner.

Our students regularly walk away with prizes in professional and collegiate competitions including Emmy awards from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS).

Award-winning student films and music videos

• Charlie’s Place
• Start Again
• Up In The Woods
• How to be a Human
• Men’s Room
• Divine
• Park Bench

Awards

• Men’s Room: honored with five student Emmys including long form fiction, best director, best cinematography, best editor, and best audio.
• Divine: won student Emmy awards for best long form fiction, directing, and writing from the Boston/New England chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS).
• Nathan Gagne ’20: To help raise awareness of the opioid epidemic Gagne led a group that created two public service announcements that were recognized with student Emmy awards. "The First Step," placed first in the College/University-Public Service (PSAs) category.

The University’s student-run newspaper, The Charger Bulletin, captured a first place honor in the American Scholastic Press Association’s scholastic newspaper awards, which recognized the dedication of students who tirelessly covered University news throughout the pandemic.

Here's what our students are working on

• The Charger Bulletin Newspaper
• Horseshoe Magazine
• The Charger Bulletin Podcast
• Charger Bulletin News (TV)

With six wins and three honorable mentions, University of New Haven students were recognized by the Boston/New England Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences for their exceptional storytelling, direction, cinematography, and editing across fiction and nonfiction films.

The writing of the film “Sunrise” was deeply personal to Caleb Taylor ’25. “The initial idea stemmed from me mixing together multiple other stories I had written for this same project,” he explained. “Once I had the basic concept down, “Sunrise” became much more.”

The short film began to incorporate themes that mattered to him, such as grief, addiction, and mental health. “‘Sunrise’ isn’t necessarily about my life,” he said, “but it’s definitely a good way of expressing the way I’ve felt about grief and mental health.”

This approach paid off. “Sunrise” was recognized by the Boston/New England chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, with five student production awards, including Director, Editor, Cinematography, Fiction Film-Long Form, and Audio/Sound. It also took home the Cinematic Excellence Award at the 2025 Digital Media CT Awards. A team of Chargers also won in the music video category for “Ayminor- Back Where we Belong.”

Communications major Gabriella Pinto ’26 shares how an extra-credit assignment became an award-winning piece and a personal turning point.

I recently won first place in the column category for the Connecticut Society for Professional Journalists’ (CT SPJ) Writing Contest. The win was for a piece that I wrote called “Cardinal,” which was about me feeling the presence of my deceased loved ones whenever I saw that type of birds.

I wrote it for extra credit in my interpretive and editorial writing class. I didn’t have to write it, but I felt as if I needed to. It was cathartic for me to write about my family members because telling this story was a way for me to keep the memory of them alive.

The recognition that I received for this piece reinforces the idea that I am on the right track in my life and my career pursuits. Additionally, it makes me feel as if people care about what I think and that my experiences should be shared with the world.