<p>Northwestern has a good well-rounded film program. great connections too</p>
<p>Can someone explain to me what RIT is? Haven't heard of it.</p>
<p>Rochester Institute of Technology
Where in CA are you?
It's very very cold in the winter and snows a lot</p>
<p>Beautiful LA, ...doing some early research for a film school for my son. D at Tisch NYU Drama</p>
<p>wesleyan. mafia.</p>
<p>What about SVA?</p>
<p>LAStageMom, in LA, try looking up University of Southern California, as well as Chapman U/Dodge College of Film & Media Arts. </p>
<p>UCLA is a bit tricky because you can't be sure they'll let you major in film until junior year. Before that, they require many general ed distribution requirements during freshman and sophomore years. </p>
<p>At USC or Chapman, they admit you as a freshman with the understanding that you'll be focussing on film. There are portfolio requirements, so you are correct to begin searching early. Good luck.</p>
<p>Tisch has a fine film offering, but perhaps your S wants to go somewhere different than his sister?</p>
<p>LA mom, make him visit NYU sis during month of Jan-Feb with his CA winter clothes if he haven't yet. Make sure to stand outside near the river.
That'll get him started.
RIT rep people at NPD were super nice. I assumed they are more stuck up and techie but almost homey. More photo than films, it seems.</p>
<p>Just a note for anybody who is not from LA -- my sister is going to law school at Chapman and I'm in the film program at UCLA and we never see each other -- Chapman is not really that close to LA proper. It may not seem far to you in terms of miles, but the available roads & freeways have wretched traffic, and psychologically, it is a daunting trip to take, compared to moving between Silverlake and Santa Monica, for example.</p>
<p>Does anyone have personal knowledge about the film programs at SCAD (Savannah College of Art and Design) or a school that is gaining recognition in North Carolina? (Not sure if it is North Carolina School fo the Arts or U. of NC but I'm not sure which campus)?</p>
<p>Is anyone familiar with SVA's Graduate program in Media Studies (Master's level) and how it relates in terms of the possibility of future application to a Ph.D. program at an Ivy?</p>
<p>Two excellent college film programs that seem always to be listed in the top 10 have been left out here, Florida State and the North Carolina School for the Arts. (Very competitive to get into these, though.) NCSA also has an excellent summer program in filmmaking for hs students.</p>
<p>Hi Nester, what city is Florida State? You'll note I asked about North Carolina School for the Arts a few posts back. Is it part of U of NC? What can you tell me about it?</p>
<p>Hi LAStageMom, Florida State (FSU) is in Tallahassee. North Carolina School for the Arts is in Winston-Salem. It is part of the NC public system, but I'm not sure if it's connected with the NC state colleges or with the UNC. If you look up their film programs on line, there's a lot of good info. NCSA also has a wonderful summer program which high school aged students can attend. My son went, and loved it. NCSA is extremely well-equipt for filmmakers with an international faculty. My sense is that this is not a place for students who want a well-rounded college experience with a broad range of electives, sports, etc., but is more of an arts conservatory for students who want to focus intensely on filmmaking for all 4 years. (There are general ed requirements, but when my S was there a few years ago for summer, some of the film faculty kind of disparaged the non-film academic offerings.) There are students at NCSA in different performing and visual arts, and they seem to interact and appreciate each other. It's the kind of place where when you walk around on a summer evening, you hear people playing different musical instruments and singing, and it seems very culturally rich. I hope there's someone on CC who attends who will chime in here!</p>
<p>NCSA is in Winston-Salem and is part of the UNC System like UNC-Chapel, Asheville, Greensboro, etc. It is primarily a production program, and in the past (I'm not sure whether it is still true) had a high wash out rate after the first year. It demands a full-time 24/7 commitment to film. It is not strong in the liberal arts, which is the reason we aimed our son, who spent two summers in their high school program, to USC. 18-21 year olds need a well rounded education if they are going to be able to make films that reflect the human condition. NCSA also shares its campus with the state-wide arts program for high school students which is not an ideal situation.</p>
<p>FSU has an outstanding but small program making it extremely difficult to get into. I'm guessing that it is the second best program in the east after NYU. My son was not impressed during his interviews, and he might have passed on it, and not gone to film school, had he not gotten into USC's program. It's in Tallahassee, which in more ways than one is far from LA.</p>
<p>I also think that it is a mistake to only consider production programs since it doesn't take much education to learn how to frame a shot. Granted production students get more opportunities to make films, but at USC there are so many opportunities for everyone at the school to make films that that it doesn't seem really important to be in the production tract.</p>
<p>Should be Chapel Hill and track.</p>
<p>Hi...my son attended 1st yr summer program at NCSA & wld like to go back. He's a JR now in HS in NC. Did your son look into UNC Wilmington? Any thoughts. Sound like USC is great but the tuition is daunting. He would not qualify for need based... good student but not a super achiever.</p>
<p>Hi Bruen, If your S's stats are competitive for admission to USC, it might be worthwhile for him to apply to the film school by the scholarship deadline, which is earlier than the general admission deadline. The film school actually gets to decide who receives merit $ in its various majors, and while the students need to be academically solid, it wouldn't hurt to apply if he's very strong in film and a good writer. Also, as FA for the middle class at top schools improves (tho hard to say what impact the economy will have on that trend), USC does seem to be climbing on board, so it could be worthwhile to talk with their FA people and get a better sense of where you stand. Wanted to mention that also in SoCal, Chapman is reputed to offer a lot of merit $ to film students, has beautiful new facilities, and is clearly a top 10 film school. Their stats for admission are a lot less daunting than USC & UCLA, but their film program is excellent.</p>
<p>For those students who can't afford an expensive summer school film program. Do check out your high school ROP program, some do have programs that teach you how to use professional camera/editing equipement. My daughter took this program in the summer of her Junior-Senior year and ended up did a lot of filming for her high school. She gained significant experience making DVD for her high school yearbook.</p>
<p>Isn't USC is a class all by itself? I recently walked through campus and when you see the George Lucas building, the Spielberg stage, the Frank Sinatra hall, the David Wolper Center and the Johnny Carson television lab, it feels like the center of the film universe.</p>