IMA: Interactive Media Arts at NYU Tisch is a Little of Everything!

Interactive Media Arts, commonly referred to as IMA, is a major offered at the Tisch School of the Arts that teaches undergraduate students about the art of digital media technology and interactivity. Students in the program learn a strong foundation of code and different forms of interactive media through arts and science classes at NYU. Students learn a mixture of digital arts and technology that will help them develop their future career in the arts.

You may have heard of IDM and ITP when researching IMA. So what’s the difference? 

IDM stands for Integrated Design & Media and is an undergraduate program that is a mixture of art, design, and interactivity. While IDM is similar to IMA the key difference is the program focus. IMA is within Tisch so it works on a liberal arts core curriculum, however IDM is within the Tandon School of Engineering so the core curriculum specializes in engineering.

On the other hand, IMA emphasizes creative exploration and digital storytelling. IMA students graduate with a Bachelor in Fine Arts and IDM students graduate with a Bachelor of Science. If you are a student that prefers engineering and working with your hands creating pieces of art then I would recommend IDM! Although if you prefer the more artsy side of creation as well as learning about interactivity like myself, then I recommend IMA! You can learn more about the IMA program structure here! 

Lastly, ITP stands for Interactive Telecommunications Program which is a two year graduate-level program also housed within Tisch. Often described as “an engineering school for artists,” the ITP program is designed to teach students about unique forms of communication while using critical thinking. The majority of the work ITP students do involves a lot of practical and experimental work. 

Within IMA, students are required to take the following courses: 

• IMA Cohort: Community is a Practice 
• Creative Computing 
• Communications Lab 
• IMA Major Distribution 
• IMA Elective Courses 
• Capstone Studio

Within these core classes at IMA I have learned about physical and creative coding, hypercinema, the history of AI, and how to create my own chatbot. The IMA Cohort class is also a non-credit course that all students within this major are required to take. This class provides an opportunity for students to connect with each other and learn more about the major. During this course we took a group trip to Dumbo in Brooklyn and also connected with upperclass students to learn more about their experiences within IMA.

We take classes at the Manhattan and Brooklyn Campus! So we get the best of both worlds! The Brooklyn campus is at 370 Jay Street and this is where the IMA building is located. The IMA floor itself has so many resources for students (and non-IMA students!) These include The Shop, Micro Studio, the ER (not the emergency room!), Coding lab, Design lab, and the Doc lab. These areas allow students to use wood cutters, laser cutters, the coding lab, and have access to cameras for the documentary lab and much more! Don’t worry- there’s training available.

Being at IMA has given me so many unique experiences that I couldn’t have anywhere else. For example, during my second semester of my first year, I attended my first hack-a-thon! This was a weekend-long hack-a-thon in which participants were challenged to create a two minute film using only AI generated images, videos, and sound.  This was an intense challenge considering AI can only generate about six seconds of footage per prompt but definitely a unique experience.  Myself and other participants were given free access for about a week to a premium subscription for Hailuo AI for the challenge and got to attend a presentation about the app from its founders.

This was a great way to make connections but also to experiment with new software. I also took a class that focused on AI in which we discussed the ethics of it all along with debates about how to make AI more responsible. I was able to learn about chatbots and created my own chatbots: a sibling chatbot, a mom chatbot, and a dating coach chatbot! 

At the end of the Spring semester, there was the annual end of year ITP/IMA showcase! At this event students display the art projects that they created during the year. It was such a fun experience to see all the work I can eventually create within this major. Many students were also present with their artwork and were able to answer any lingering questions from guests which was super inspiring.

Another great opportunity regardless of your chosen major is studying away! IMA offers so many global sites to study away in such as Shanghai, Abu Dhabi, Accra, Berlin, Florence, Los Angeles, London, Paris, Prague, Madrid, Sydney, and Tusla! As a rising sophomore student, I am planning to study away in Italy during my junior year! I am really looking forward to the IMA classes I will be able to take including: Social Media Strategy and Transmedia Storytelling.