About Us

Whistling Woods International (WWI) is India’s premier institute of Film, Communication & Creative Arts. Founded by one of India’s leading filmmaker – Subhash Ghai, WWI has been successfully delivering world-class education in all creative & technical aspects of Film, Communication & Creative Arts to students since 2006.

The Hollywood Reporter has rated Whistling Woods International amongst the Ten Best Film Schools in the world on multiple occasions. WWI has also been regarded as a Global Institute of Influence by Forbes in 2015. It has also been awarded the Best Institute for Creative & Performing Arts in India by FICCI (The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry) in 2019.

The primary campus of WWI is located inside Mumbai’s Filmcity Complex and offers programmes that vary from 1 to 4 years in duration catering to all the major specialisations of the Film, Communication and Creative Arts industry. WWI offers undergraduate, postgraduate & diploma programmes in Cinematography, Direction, Editing, Producing, Production Design, Screenwriting, Sound Recording & Design, Visual Effects, Animation, Game Design, Comics, Previsualisation, Fashion Design, Visual Communication Design, Acting, Music Production & Composition, Advertising, Journalism, PR, Event Management and Sports & E-Sports Management.

The curriculum at WWI is a unique blend of theoretical and practical, ensuring that the education of the creative aspects of an industry dovetails well with the business aspects. The teaching methodology is designed to ensure that the students’ learning is collaborative and industry-oriented. In addition to education, Whistling Woods International also has interests in research & development in emerging technologies & workflows in the Media & Entertainment industry.

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The full-time faculty of WWI is a body of academicians and renowned industry professionals like Subhash Ghai, Ravi Gupta, Rahul Puri, Anjum Rajabali, Ashwini Kaul, Abhijit Majumdar, Prashant Naik, Rabiya Nazki, Sabyasachi Bose, Salim Arif, Sudipta Basu, Rakesh Ranjan, Laili Dutta, Yusuf Mehta, Jewellyn Alvares, Milindo Taid, Mandar Deshpande, Deepak Choudhary, Jateen Rajput, CP Thomas and many more. Further, WWI has regular guest lectures by leading Indian & international filmmakers, artists, actors, technicians, fashion designers and design professionals. Students at WWI have a unique opportunity to interact one-on-one with some of the most successful & talented professionals in the Indian & international Media & Entertainment industries.

WWI has partnered with two of India’s most reputed universities for all its Bachelors & Masters Degrees and Diploma & Advanced Diploma programmes, that vary in duration from 1 to 4 years. They are the Rajiv Gandhi National Institute for Youth Development (RGNIYD) – an Institute of National Importance and the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) – a Category 1 University in the NAAC ratings. All WWI students receive Bachelors & Masters Degrees and Diplomas from these universities.

These unique elements in the curriculum & the teaching methodology have seen WWI’s student body grow over 10 times and achieve multiple successes over the past thirteen years. Further, over 10% of the student body comprises of international students.

The institute is also highly committed to ensuring that its students move into the industry in rewarding areas of employment. Since its first batch graduated in 2008, WWI has graduated over 2500 students and almost all them are gainfully employed with several leading organisations in the Indian & global Media & Entertainment industry.

WWI has also entered into technology partnerships with the leading global tech-brands in the Media & Entertainment space, like Apple, Adobe, Autodesk, Avid, Carl Zeiss, Dolby, Entertainment Partners, Final Draft, Foxconn, Fraunhofer, Google (YouTube), GoPro, HP, NVIDIA, Red Cameras, Sennheiser, Sony, Stereovision, ToonBoom & many more.

Over the past decade, WWI has set up & run several Technology & Development Labs in association with some of these global tech giants to evangelise and further the inclusion of emerging media into the education of students, and by extension, into the industry.

• Sony Media Technology Centre (2010-present)
• REducation Lab (2015-present)
• YouTube Space Mumbai (2015-2019)
• Foxconn Media Lab (2016-present)
• WWI Jio VR Lab (2017-present)
• WWI Emerging Media Lab (2019-present)

Whistling Woods’ CTO has been invited to join the global Board of Governors of the SMPTE (Society for Motion Pictures & Television Engineers) and WWI is a founder member of the On-Set Virtual Production (OSVP) Rapid Industry Solution launched by the SMPTE to lay down standards for OSVP.

In 2010, WWI was accepted as a full member of CILECT (Centre International de Liaison des Ecoles de Cinéma et de Télévision) – a global association of film schools (out of the thousands of film schools in the world, there are only 170 members of CILECT). In 2018, Whistling Woods International hosted the CILECT World Congress of Film Schools, making it the first time India has ever hosted such a prestigious event. WWI has student & faculty exchanges planned with many of the best film schools & creative arts institutions in the world, including International student co-productions and study-abroad programmes.

WWI management are key contributors & advisors for several Government of India launched vocational education programmes. WWI Chairman is currently the Chairman of the Media & Entertainment Skill Council (under the Skills Ministry). WWI is also the Vertical Anchor for the Media & Entertainment vertical for TISS’ School of Vocational Education. In 2010, WWI was requested by India’s primary High School Board – the CBSE board, under the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India, to design a Media Studies curriculum for High School. WWI has prepared the curriculum, teaching methodology & it has undertaken teacher-training for the Media Studies elective for the 11th & 12th grades.

WWI takes its Corporate Social Responsibility seriously. Whistling Woods has provided scholarships & free education to less-privileged students of approximately 1 mn $ over the past 15 years. On several occasions, WWI has offered its programmes absolutely free for several students from various NGOs.

With the Mumbai campus well established, WWI is strongly looking at expansion both in terms of program verticals and campuses. WWI has launched its e-learning platform – WWI Virtual Academy with Programs in several areas of Film Studies. WWI is also at various stages of talks to establish additional campuses both within India and outside, in partnership with governments & like-minded organisations.

The above is just a snapshot of what Whistling Woods International has achieved in the span of thirteen years and the institution strongly marches on its way to fulfilling its goal – to be the thought leader for Film, Communication & Creative Arts education globally.

Mission

To provide eligible individuals with scholarships, fellowships and other grants to pursue education relevant to any area of the Film, Communication & Creative Arts industry and develop empathetic and responsible leaders.

Vision

To offer opportunities to individuals across the country and world, who are seeking the resources and platform to showcase their talent, thereby helping them develop their skills & empowering them to blossom into artists, innovators, inventors, adding to the cultural wealth of the society.

Message From President

Whistling Woods International draws immense pride in the fact that our students, faculty and staff are passionate about helping the community and working towards making our world a better place. CSR initiatives and social responsibility is an essential part of our vision at WWI. As Asia's largest Film, Communication & Creative Arts institute situated in the heart of Mumbai, WWI has a key role in the social welfare of the city and an ethical responsibility towards our environment. As part of their academic journey with us, students are encouraged to not limit their learnings to their curriculum, but much more. Being future filmmakers and media professionals, they have the power to reflect their responsibilities through socially relevant content.

From woman empowerment to child welfare, organ & blood donation to drug abuse, tree plantation drive to clean India campaign, gender sensitisation to educating the underprivileged students, it is admirable to see WWI students, faculty and staff synergize to address social issues put together campaigns for several noble causes. The various CSR initiatives enlighten students & staff to be responsible and global citizens of the world at large.

Whistling Woods International, through its course of operation for the past decade, has proudly associated with several NGOs, namely, Salaam Baalak Trust & VIDYA Mumbai - VIDYA Integrated Development for Youth and Adults to offer scholarship to underprivileged students who are extremely passionate about making their careers in the media and entertainment industry. The institute has also partnered with initiatives like, Laadli - A Population First Initiative, creating awareness about gender equality, women empowerment, female foeticide and cherishing every child; KASHISH Mumbai International Queer Film Festival, sensitising the larger public about LGBT issues and Be The Change - Varija Life Initiative, spreading awareness about the abilities of the physically & mentally differently abled individuals and including them in the mainstream society. WWI has been conducting various workshops, at regular intervals, for NGO children to make them well-equipped to face life at large. Apart, from associating with NGOs & social initiatives, WWI also involves in giving back to the society and mother nature through drives like Blood & Organ Donation and Clean India Campaign, respectively.

President Meghna Ghai Puri believes "There is no doubt that doing something socially responsible takes great commitment and we at WWI have a great opportunity to create a very socially aware institute and socially conscious graduates. The media of cinema is after all, an extremely powerful media. Many filmmakers have used the power of cinema to tackle some extremely relevant issues. The encouraging trend though is that today, several filmmakers are using a powerful social issue and making films that are seen by millions thus creating a large awareness of these issues and encouraging the media to discuss them. The latest being Guneet Monga's oscar winning documentary from India called 'Period'. We are proud of our filmmakers & professionals who take being socially responsible seriously."

Programmes

Filmmaking

• BSc in Filmmaking | (3 Years)
• Diploma in Screenwriting | (1 Year)
• MA in Screenwriting | (2 Years)
• MA in Filmmaking with Specialisations | (2 Years)

Actor’s Studio

• BA in Acting | (3 Years)
• MA in Acting | (2 Years)

Media & Communication

• BBA in Media & Communication with Electives | (3 Years)
• MBA in Media & Entertainment | (2 Years)

Sports and Esports Management

• MBA in Sports & Esports Management | (2 Years)

Event Management

• MBA in Event Management and Experiential Marketing | (2 Years)

Design

• BDes in Visual Communication Design | (4 Years)

Fashion Design

• BDes in Fashion Design | (4 Years)

Animation & Game Design

• BDes in Animation | (4 Years)
• BDes in Game Design | (4 Years)

Music

• BA in Music Production & Composition | (3 Years)

Virtual Academy

• Advanced Certificate Programs
• Certificate Programs | 3 Months

Short Course Unit

• Our short programmes give professionals and amateurs, an opportunity to learn different subjects

Location