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MEDIAE 2025/26
Online Masterclass On Transmedia Storytelling

Guided by artist Salvatore Vitale, participants will develop a transmedia narrative project while experimenting with different research, production and dissemination strategies.

  • Head professor Salvatore Vitale
  • Where Online
  • When October 2025 to May 2026
  • Language English
  • Positions 13 seats +1 scholarship
  • Dedication 60+ Hours
  • Earlybird fee €1,850
  • Full fee €2,200
  • Contacts If you have any questions you can reach us at edu@phmuseum.com

Create Immersive Experience And Enhance Your Practice

Visual practitioners in today's interconnected digital era must navigate various languages that continuously influence and shape content production and narrative projects. The masterclass with Salvatore Vitale is designed explicitly for practitioners seeking to explore the expressive potential of photography through interaction with diverse media.

Throughout the 8-month masterclass, participants will have the opportunity to create a narrative project while experimenting with different research, production and dissemination strategies. You will be challenged to select a theme, conduct research, and develop work both from a theoretical and practical perspective. The ultimate goal is to conclude a transmedia project that incorporates photography in conjunction with various other media, such as sound, archive images, social platforms, video, and text, to create a more immersive and engaging experience for their audience.

At the end of the masterclass, a selection of participants will have their work featured in PhMuseum’s new annual printed publication.

To participate, click the Apply Now button and present your candidature for free. If your candidacy is successful, we will guide you to enroll in the program. To be considered for the fully funded scholarship, please apply before 8 May 2025.

How it works

  • Group Sessions

    In a collective and collaborative environment, the 5 Group Sessions will allow you to present the current status of your work, collect feedback from both the head professor and the class, and move forward.

  • Seminars

    Across 4 seminars, Salvatore Vitale will share theoretical and practical guidance on contemporary transmedia storytelling. These will give participants all the necessary tools to conclude a project that incorporates photography in conjunction with different other media.

  • One-On-One Mentoring

    The 3 online 30-min individual coaching sessions will give you time to engage in specific discussions aimed at working on your assignment ideas and improving your methods. Sessions are tailor-made according to your specific needs and that of your practice.

  • Studio Visits

    To grant you industry insight and offer complementary information, we have invited expert practitioners to host 10 interactive Studio Visits. They will disclose the methodologies behind their work and offer you a better understanding of their role in the industry. Scroll down to discover who they are. These sessions will also be joined by CRITICAE, CURAE, IDEA and FOLIO Masterclasses participants.

  • Final Presentation and Publication

    At the end of the program, you can present your projects live on PhMuseum's YouTube channel. Plus, a selection of participants will have their work featured in PhMuseum’s new annual printed publication.

Head professor

Salvatore Vitale

Salvatore Vitale (b. 1986, Palermo, Italy) is a Swiss-based artist, editor and educator. In his multi-layered artistic practice and research, Vitale’s work focuses on the development and complexity of modernsocieties exploring power structures, political cosmologies and technological mediation, whilst using expanded documentary analysis, including elements of fiction, speculative storytelling and the use of multiple visual forms. His work has been awarded internationally, including the Phmuseum Award (2017), the Foam Talent (2018), the Punctum Award (2018), the Pro Helvetia Shanghai Research Grant (2019-2020), the Bally Award (2021), the MAST Photo Grant, (2022), the Swiss Design Awards (2018 and 2023), and it has been exhibited widely in museums and at photo festivals.Vitale is a Senior Lecturer at the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts. He has led workshops worldwide and is a visiting lecturer at several European universities. He is also the Artistic Director of EXPOSED Torino Foto Festival and FUTURES European Photography Platform and the co-founder and editor-in-chief of YET magazine.He has contributed to and edited several publications, including HYBRIDS: Forging New Realities as Counter-Narratives and RESET: Questioning The Image, The Market and The Role of Representation (Futures Photography, 2020 and 2021) and NUMMER: Post-Photography (HSLU Lucerne, 2021).Photo © Cole Ndelu

Timeline

  • October 2025

    • Session 1 Introductory Meeting with PhMuseum Team
    • Session 2 Group Presentation #1
    • Session 3 Seminar #1: intro to Transmedia Storytelling
    • Session 4 Collective Tutoring #1
    • Session 5 Collective Tutoring #1
    • Session 6 Studio Visit #1
  • November

    • Session 7 Seminar #2: Overarching Narrative and Topics
    • Session 8 One-On-One Mentoring #1
    • Session 9 Studio Visit #2
    • Session 10 Studio Visit #3
  • December

    • Session 11 Seminar #3: Transmedia Storytelling in Photography
    • Session 12 Studio Visit #4
  • January 2026

    • Session 13 Collective Tutoring #2
    • Session 14 Collective Tutoring #2
    • Session 15 Studio Visit #5
    • Session 16 Studio Visit #6
  • February

    • Session 17 One-On-One Mentoring #2
    • Session 18 Studio Visit #7
  • March

    • Session 19 Collective Tutoring #3
    • Session 20 Collective Tutoring #3
    • Session 21 Seminar #4: Audience and Engagement
    • Session 22 Studio Visit #8
    • Session 23 Studio Visit #9
  • April

    • Session 24 One-On-One Mentoring #3
    • Session 25 Collective Tutoring #4
    • Session 26 Studio Visit #10
  • May

    • Session 27 Group Presentation #2 - Live YouTube Final Presentation

Studio visits

Alumni projects

  • Nelli Serzanowa

    Deep Blue

    MEDIAE 2023/24

  • Madeline Swainhart

    Caring for Zora

    MEDIAE 2023/24

  • Carola Lampe

    Tell me what to see

    MEDIAE 2023/24

  • Matteo Falcone

    Tutto arriva per chi sa aspettare

    MEDIAE 2023/24

  • Pritam MItra

    Diary of a son

    MEDIAE 2023/24

  • Rosa Lacavalla

    La Festa Dell'Equatore

    MEDIAE 2023/24

Why participate?

  • Acquire practical skills

    Get a first-hand experience from an internationally renowned artist, lecturer and curator like Salvatore Vitale, broadening your theoretical and practical approach to transmedia storytelling.

  • Flexibility

    Enroll from anywhere in the world, taking the opportunity to engage in a program you can attend while working or traveling. All the Group Sessions and Studio Visits are recorded so you can follow them if you missed them.

  • Expand your network

    Engage with a selected group of peers and professionals from around the world, who can become a resource also for your future. All participants will further benefit from dissemination opportunities through PhMuseum’s channels and connections.

  • Inclusivity

    Enjoy a high-end program at our launching price, one of the most competitive on the market. If you don’t have the resources, you can also apply for 1 fully-funded scholarship.

  • Finalise and publish your work

    At the end of the masterclass, all the participants will have completed their projects, ready to present them in a final form. Plus, a selection of works will be published in PhMuseum’s new annual printed publication.

“Transmedia storytelling is an approach that favors the co-existence of multiple media to narrate a story. I believe it is particularly relevant today as it allows for a certain level of complexity. This approach addresses a visible need in our contemporary world: delving deeper, using narrative strategies to find ethical representations and creating work that embraces a plurality of voices and media.”
Salvatore Vitale, MEDIAE Head Professor

FAQ

  • Can I apply for more programs?

    Yes, you are welcome to apply for multiple programs.

  • Can I use the same project in more applications?

    Yes, you can use the same project for multiple program applications. Just tailor each application to highlight how the specific Masterclass would benefit your project and explain your interest in its focus. For example, specify why you need to create a photobook dummy or incorporate diverse media into your research.

  • Are the Masterclasses fully online, including Studio Visits?

    Every Masterclass session happens online. This comprise Studio Visits with invited artists, curators, graphic designers, who are invited to share their practice and insights in a collective video meeting.

  • Is possible to join some of the Studio Visits offline?

    Each Masterclass session is conducted online, including Studio Visits with invited artists, curators, graphic designers, and other professionals. In-person attendance for Studio Visits is not possible. Participants and guests are located in various countries and continents, and the fully online program allows everyone to attend each session regardless of their location. 

  • Can the online portfolio be just the personal website or does it need to be a regular portfolio of my work?

    Please provide both an online portfolio link and your Instagram account in the application, if possible. You can further use a private link from Google Drive or Dropbox. Please avoid temporary WeTransfer links, and remember that we do not accept email applications.

  • What are the times and days the classes would take place?

    You generally have between 3 and 5 meetings per month. Classes happen on weekdays. Group sessions and seminars generally last 3 to 4 hours. Individual mentoring is 30 minutes per person. Studio visits last 1.5 hours. Most meetings start around 3pm and end before 7pm CET, to allow students attending globally (Americas, Europe and Africa, Asia and Oceania). There is more flexibility for what concerns the individual tutoring.

  • Are the masterclasses more of a beginner or advanced course?

    While a professional level of expertise isn't strictly required, you should have a foundational understanding of photography and a sincere passion for developing their work. We generally filter applications to create heterogeneous and motivated groups of talented participants.

  • In past editions, did participants have the opportunity to meet each other?

    We encourage all masterclasses participants to join us in Bologna for PhMuseum Days, our biennial international photography festival, and Photobook Mania, a biennial gathering dedicated to visual publishing. While attending it is not mandatory, it can be a worthwhile investment of time and money to develop your network and strengthen the bond you will develop online through the program. Over the years, we have also met at other events such as Les Rencontres d'Arles, Fotografia Europea, Paris Photo, and Lodz Fotofestiwal.

Other courses you might be interested in

DUMMY DEEP DIVE / Workshop with Aaron Schuman

CRITICAE 2025/26 Online Masterclass On Documentary Photography

CURAE 2025/26 Online Masterclass On Curatorial Practice

FOLIO 2025/26 Online Masterclass On Photobook Making

Past Editions

Mediae 2024/25 Online Masterclass On Transmedia Storytelling

MEDIAE 2023/24 Online Masterclass On Transmedia Storytelling