<p>Hi everyone, </p>
<p>I'm a HS junior and I have two friends that I've been consulting a lot as I've been going through my college search--one a grad who lives in the Los Angeles area, and the other and undergrad whose brother is a film major at NYU. Both of them are suggesting to me, as well as my best friend who's passionate about cinema, that I should start building a portfolio.</p>
<p>That is, making my own movies that will help me in the college admissions process. On my list currently: Northwestern, Columbia College Chicago, USC, UCLA, NYU, UT-Austin, FSU and Emerson. </p>
<p>I've been extremely passionate about film for all of my life and I know that want to be a film director and writer. But it's difficult. </p>
<p>I know how to write screenplays; this past December I was selected as a semi-finalist for a film competition for high school students that this studio where I live runs annually. We got two day-long workshops about everything filmmaking with a screenwriting focus; by the end of the workshops we were supposed to develop an idea for a short film script that we would submit. We wrote, we submitted, and the top 5 (out of 50 semifinalists) were picked to be considered for the winning film script, which would be filmed and distributed to various local film festivals and programs. I was picked as a finalist, and I don't know whether or not I won yet, but I'll get to work on the set as an intern this summer. If I won, I'd also have additional duties as the writer, but whatever happens I'll be working on the set. And to just be selected as a semifinalist was huge; only fifty were chosen and there were hundreds of applicants.</p>
<p>I'm also starring in my aforementioned friend's film that he's going to make this summer; albeit I'm only an actor, but still. </p>
<p>I want to make my own films - I've been writing a whole bunch of scripts for various ideas I've had floating around. My family has never had very much money, and we there is no way we would have the cash to shell out for a quality video camera. I HAVE a digital photo camera, but I can't even pick up sound, the quality is crappy, plus I don't even have a tripod. If I make films, I want to them be something that's not uncomfortable to watch. My friend refused to let me borrow his camera. I guess I don't blame him, but it's just frustrating, especially since being involved in that competition is exposing me to a lot of opportunities I wouldn't have otherwise, yet I can't take advantage of them because they're about working with films you make on your own time.</p>
<p>I've looked over application pages for various colleges I'm looking at, and there seem to be alternatives to submitting actual short films, but how much to colleges weigh these sorts of things? I'm constantly told that I need to be making my own movies, but I don't have the money, and my friends don't really want to help me out. I really want to make my own, but would film programs at colleges care if I don't and just do the alternative prompts? Would it hurt my chances? I've also done a fair bit of acting work that I could add to the portfolio, but it's not really the same.</p>
<p>Any advice about what I should do?</p>