Best Film programs in California, ranked by enrollment
Edit moving images on film, video, or other media. May work with a producer or director to organize images for final production.
95 schools in California run programs that feed this job, graduating 5,035 people a year. The job pays a median of $88,490 in California across about 8,110 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).
Fields of study in California that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.
4 programs in California that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year in California (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are national College Scorecard figures reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. Each program also links to its own California page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CIP 09.0701In California → | 2,880 | 57.2% | 65 | $29,112 | $23,836 |
| 2 | Cinematography and Film/Video Productionmain feeder CIP 50.0602In California → | 2,113 | 42.0% | 50 | $25,014 | $24,650 |
| 3 | CIP 10.0202In California → | 30 | 0.6% | 1 | $21,634 | $20,000 |
| 4 | Documentary Productionmain feeder CIP 50.0607In California → | 12 | 0.2% | 3 | $25,014 | $24,650 |
Top 25 schools in California
Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 21 of the 95 schools in this state.
| # | School | Graduates / yr | Top feeder program | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Grad rate | Net price | Acceptance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California State University - Northridge Northridge, CA Public · 1 feeder programs | 463 | Radio and Television | $27,278 | 57% | — | 93% |
| 2 | New York Film Academy Burbank, CA Private for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 260 | Cinematography and Film/Video Production | $17,109 | 68% | $46,505 | — |
| 3 | University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 245 | Cinematography and Film/Video Production | $34,187 | 92% | $26,873 | 10% |
| 4 | Chapman University Orange, CA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 229 | Cinematography and Film/Video Production | $35,795 | 82% | $42,965 | 65% |
| 5 | California State University - Long Beach Long Beach, CA Public · 1 feeder programs | 189 | Radio and Television | $25,988 | 69% | — | 46% |
| 6 | California State University - Fullerton Fullerton, CA Public · 1 feeder programs | 178 | Radio and Television | $24,650 | 70% | — | 91% |
| 7 | Los Angeles Valley College Valley Glen, CA Public · 2 feeder programs | 173 | Cinematography and Film/Video Production | — | 32% | — | — |
| 8 | California State University - Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA Public · 1 feeder programs | 156 | Radio and Television | $22,133 | 53% | — | 91% |
| 9 | Loyola Marymount University Los Angeles, CA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 155 | Cinematography and Film/Video Production | $24,561 | 79% | $36,488 | 45% |
| 10 | Los Angeles Film School Hollywood, CA Private for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 140 | Cinematography and Film/Video Production | $22,596 | 41% | $32,792 | — |
| 11 | San Francisco State University San Francisco, CA Public · 2 feeder programs | 125 | Radio and Television | $28,753 | 50% | — | 96% |
| 12 | Moorpark College Moorpark, CA Public · 1 feeder programs | 122 | Radio and Television | — | 44% | — | — |
| 13 | University of California - Riverside Riverside, CA Public · 1 feeder programs | 105 | Cinematography and Film/Video Production | $24,840 | 76% | — | 76% |
| 14 | Orange Coast College Costa Mesa, CA Public · 2 feeder programs | 100 | Radio and Television | — | 48% | — | — |
| 15 | San Diego State University San Diego, CA Public · 2 feeder programs | 99 | Radio and Television | $22,487 | 76% | — | 36% |
| 16 | Santa Monica College Santa Monica, CA Public · 2 feeder programs | 95 | Cinematography and Film/Video Production | — | 36% | — | — |
| 17 | Los Angeles City College Los Angeles, CA Public · 2 feeder programs | 83 | Cinematography and Film/Video Production | — | 29% | — | — |
| 18 | California State University - Sacramento Sacramento, CA Public · 1 feeder programs | 78 | Cinematography and Film/Video Production | $24,618 | 56% | — | 94% |
| 19 | Mt San Antonio College Walnut, CA Public · 1 feeder programs | 78 | Radio and Television | — | 45% | — | — |
| 20 | Saddleback College Mission Viejo, CA Public · 1 feeder programs | 74 | Radio and Television | — | 48% | — | — |
| 21 | West Los Angeles College Culver City, CA Public · 2 feeder programs | 74 | Cinematography and Film/Video Production | — | 28% | — | — |
| 22 | City College of San Francisco San Francisco, CA Public · 2 feeder programs | 71 | Radio and Television | — | 40% | — | — |
| 23 | El Camino Community College District Torrance, CA Public · 1 feeder programs | 68 | Radio and Television | — | 42% | — | — |
| 24 | Long Beach City College Long Beach, CA Public · 2 feeder programs | 68 | Radio and Television | — | 30% | — | — |
| 25 | Biola University La Mirada, CA Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 67 | Cinematography and Film/Video Production | — | 68% | $26,727 | 74% |
All 95 schools in California
Every school in California with a program that feeds this job, ordered by graduates per year. Earnings are shown for the ranked schools above; open a school profile for the rest.
| School | City | Control | Graduates / yr | Feeder programs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| California State University - Northridge | Northridge | Public | 463 | 1 |
| New York Film Academy | Burbank | Private for-profit | 260 | 2 |
| University of Southern California | Los Angeles | Private not-for-profit | 245 | 1 |
| Chapman University | Orange | Private not-for-profit | 229 | 1 |
| California State University - Long Beach | Long Beach | Public | 189 | 1 |
| California State University - Fullerton | Fullerton | Public | 178 | 1 |
| Los Angeles Valley College | Valley Glen | Public | 173 | 2 |
| California State University - Los Angeles | Los Angeles | Public | 156 | 1 |
| Loyola Marymount University | Los Angeles | Private not-for-profit | 155 | 1 |
| Los Angeles Film School | Hollywood | Private for-profit | 140 | 1 |
| San Francisco State University | San Francisco | Public | 125 | 2 |
| Moorpark College | Moorpark | Public | 122 | 1 |
| University of California - Riverside | Riverside | Public | 105 | 1 |
| Orange Coast College | Costa Mesa | Public | 100 | 2 |
| San Diego State University | San Diego | Public | 99 | 2 |
What film and video editors earn in California
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
U.S. median $75,420. California pays above the national figure.
Concentrated here: California employs more of this job per worker than the U.S. average.
Metro areas in California
Job outlook
Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.
Growth and openings are national. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish employment projections at state level, so these figures describe the occupation across the whole U.S., not this state alone.
How to get in
The full skills, tools, and day-to-day breakdown lives on the national Film and Video Editors page.
How to become a Film
Job zone 4 of 5 · SVP 7.0 to < 8.0- Typical entry education
- Bachelor's degree
Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.
Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.
Top skills
The same job in other states
Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.
Related careers in California
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 7 majors mapped to Film and Video Editors7 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 09.0404Photojournalism
- 09.0701Radio and Television
- 10.0105Communications Technology/Technician
- 10.0202Radio and Television Broadcasting Technology/Technician
- 10.0299Audiovisual Communications Technologies/Technicians, Other
- 50.0602Cinematography and Film/Video Production
- 50.0607Documentary Production
Common questions
Answers for people weighing film and video editors programs in California.
What degree do you need to become a Film?+
Bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Radio and Television, which awarded 2,880 degrees in California in 2024-25, 57.2% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming a Film?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 4 programs to this occupation. The largest are Radio, Film/Video and Photographic Arts, Audiovisual Communications Technologies/Technicians. Together they graduate about 5,035 people a year in California.
How much do film and video editors earn in California?+
The median is $88,490 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 17.3% above the U.S. median of $75,420. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.
Is demand for film and video editors growing?+
BLS projects a +4.0% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, about as fast as average, with roughly 3,600 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career in California?+
95 institutions in California reported graduates from at least one of the 4 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.
What other job titles do film and video editors work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Editor, Film Editor, News Editor, Video Editor among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 27-4032.
About the data on this page
Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024–25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).
BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics
May 2025Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.
BLS Employment Projections
2024–34Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.
IPEDS Completions
2024-25 (provisional)Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.
College Scorecard, Field of Study
2020-21 cohortsMedian graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.
Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes
latest availableGraduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.
NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk
CIP 2020 / SOC 2018Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.
O*NET Database 30.3
30.3Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.
Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA
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