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FIRST ON-CAMPUS WORKING FILM AND TELEVISION STUDIO COMING SOON TO CHAPMAN UNIVERSITY

Submitted by Bastien Admin on Thu, 17/05/2018 - 12:31

For Immediate Release

4/28/1999

Orange, Calif. – Irvine architect Gary L. Bastien, AIA of Bastien and Associates, Inc. has begun design of the first on-campus working studio and broadcast facility in the world. Bastien, who sits on the advisory board of Chapman University’s School of Film and Television in Orange, Calif., says that the project has been in early masterplanning stages until the recent decision by university officials to proceed with further plans.

According to Bob Bassett, who is Dean of the school, the university’s expansion of its film and television school positions it to meet the huge demand for film and broadcasting professionals. “Hollywood’s exponential growth in the last six years and changes in technology have created a growing interest in film and television education. Our concept at Chapman University is to create a working studio where students can participate in the production of actual commercially produced shows,” Bassett says. “This way, our students can intern right here, side by side with working professionals.”

Phase I of the project, which is anticipated to make an important contribution to Orange County’s economy, will include one 18,000 s.f. divisible sound stage, a production support facility, radio and television broadcast facilities, backlot street scenes, a theater, a commissary, administration building, and classrooms. Phase II will add another 18,000 s.f. sound stage with an attached production support building, a site water tank with sky backdrop, and additional classrooms. All facilities will be made available to the entertainment industry for rent.

Bastien’s Hollywood background includes major studio projects for Warner Bros., Paramount Pictures, and CBS Studio Center. He designed Manhattan Beach Studios, which was the first new Southern California studio to be built from the ground-up in 60 years, now home to Fox’s “Ally McBeal” and “The Practice.” Other projects include the near-complete Los Angeles Center Studios, which is the first and only studio in downtown Los Angeles, and Icon Studios, in Glendale, Ariz.

“Imagine the excitement for students walking through the gates of this Hollywood-style working studio campus to learn how film and television productions are made” Bastien says. He agrees that this is a forward-thinking move by the school and is seeing an increasing demand for this type of facility at several other locations nationwide. “This is what sets Chapman University’s School of Film and Television apart from the others. The entertainment industry depends on talented people and demands quality production facilities. This project helps delivers both.”