Clinton Hill

Pratt unveils new state-of-the-art film and video building

Close to Steiner Studios at the Brooklyn Navy Yards

July 7, 2015 Brooklyn Daily Eagle
An interior view of the Pratt Institute’s new Film/Video Department building at 550 Myrtle Ave. Rendering courtesy of Pratt Institute
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Pratt Institute recently opened a new home for its Film/Video Department in the former Prattstore building at 550 Myrtle Ave. in Brooklyn, as part of the university’s main campus.

The 15,000-square-foot facility, designed by WASA/Studio A with lead architect and Pratt alumnus Jack Esterson, is also located in close proximity to Steiner Studios in the Brooklyn Navy Yard. 

Pratt already has more than doubled its freshman class for the 2015-2016 since the opening of the new building. The Film/Video Department currently includes approximately 80 students across its four-year curriculum, and the new facility will allow it to significantly increase its enrollment as well as offer new courses. 

“We’re thrilled to open a cutting-edge facility where students and faculty can further explore the art of filmmaking and video production on Myrtle Avenue,” said Pratt Institute President Thomas F. Schutte, who is a founding member, trustee and chair of the Myrtle Avenue Brooklyn Partnership.

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“With many important film and video businesses calling Brooklyn their home, the new space will enable us to build even closer relationships with the nearby filmmaking community and generate new academic and professional opportunities for our creative and gifted students,” he added.

The construction for the Film/Video facility began in July 2014, and the renovation cost approximately $4.5 million. The department was previously housed in the lower level of an on-campus athletic facility.

“Brooklyn has emerged as the hot new destination for television and film production,” said Carlo A. Scissura, president and CEO of the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce.  “The recent opening of Pratt’s cutting-edge Film/Video facility for its students will provide the borough’s booming film scene with an incredible pool of talented graduates and further positions Brooklyn as the top destination for future industry leaders.” 

The new Pratt space was built using free-span trusses, giving it 23-foot ceiling heights and no internal columns. In the new building, the faculty and students have access to: 

*     A 96-seat screening room with a Digital Cinema Package projector and surround sound;

*      One large soundstage capable of converting into two and a second smaller soundstage with an infinity green screen. The soundstages together comprise 3,000 square feet;

*      A sound recording studio with surround-sound capability;

*     Two high-end color grading and post production suites.

Faculty members at the program provide students with professional training, immersing them in the process of writing, directing, and editing films using traditional and non-traditional media.


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