<p>Hey everyone, </p>
<p>I'm a freshmen currently enrolled at SCAD as a film and television major. When I was searching for/applying to schools I really wish that I was able to find someone to answer various questions I had, so I'll attempt to fill that roll for everyone here. If you have any questions about film school, please feel free to ask and I'll do my best to answer or get you an answer! </p>
<p>Best,
- Charlie
Film</a> School’er</p>
<p>how did you figure out what is the best film school to go to?</p>
<p>Is there a benefit and/or downsize in going to NYU or USC?</p>
<p>Is experience necessary in most or some schools?</p>
<p>@Stargurl93</p>
<p>1.) I think the way everyone chooses what school is best for them will be a little different, but I had a few criteria that I was looking for. The first, totally unrelated to film was that I wanted to go somewhere warm after spending the first eighteen years of my life dealing with Chicago winters. The second is that I wanted to go somewhere with facilities I would be able to access whenever I needed them. Finally, I wanted to go somewhere that I had seen good work coming out of, and that I knew had a reputation. </p>
<p>I ended up choosing SCAD because they have a relatively new film program (compared to a lot of the other national programs), and they have some of the best facilities/equipment I’ve ever seen. It’s a smaller program, but if you have the drive to forge your own path, you’ll find everything you need and more to succeed there. </p>
<p>2.) Of course there’s obvious upsides/downsides to attending one of the two most prestigious film programs in the country (USC, NYU). The upsides are the networking abilities and resources that you’ll have at your disposal here. You also have to ask yourself some questions about yourself to decide if this is the place to go. Will you be happy being a little fish in a big pond? Are you hyper competitive and willing to risk not having your movie selected to be made? Are you willing to risk not having equipment available when you need it? </p>
<p>3.) Not really, colleges understand that you might not have had access to the same opportunities/resources in elementary/high school to make films as other students. What they will be looking for is writing skills. In fact USC and NYU don’t even request any films in the application, but you may submit one to NYU, yet it’s option. </p>
<p>I hope that helped, let me know if you have any other questions!
<p>I actually liked your questions so much that I had the idea to start doing a daily Q and A on my site about film school, so here’s a post I just wrote about choosing the right film school. It goes a little more in depth than my initial response, i hope you find it helpful! </p>
<p>Choosing the right film school</p>
<p>Film Schooler Question of the Day #1</p>
<p>So this is the first in what I hope to be many Q and A posts where I attempt (I wanna stress that) to answer common questions about film school from readers of the site. This first question actually comes from a forum that I follow (■■■■■), and after giving a short answer to the poster, I realized a longer post might help a lot of people out.</p>
<p>Q: How did you determine the best film school to go?</p>
<p>A: I think that this question is a little bit of a misnomer, as everyones idea of what the best school is probably radically different based on what they want or need out of a film school experience. So while I chose SCADs film program, that might not be at the top of the list for some people, and it might fit others just perfectly.</p>
<p>I can however walk you through some of my thinking in how I went about choosing schools, but keep in mind that one size does not fit all.</p>
<p>The first thing I did when I declared to the world that I wanted to attend film school was go out to the store and buy a copy of Film School Confidential. I really recommend you check out this book, even if you just browse through it at your local bookstore, as it has really in-depth information about what to expect at every major film program in the country from costs of attendance, costs of projects, equipment availability, what to expect from the surrounding town/city, and the lowdown on professors/classes to take or avoid.</p>
<p>After I was able to study this book for quite a while I assembled a list of criteria that I wanted in a film school </p>
<ul>
<li><pre><code> The school had to be somewhere warm (Being a Chicago resident for 18 years, this becomes a big deal)
</code></pre></li>
<li><pre><code> The focus had to be on narratives, as I want to direct feature films someday. Keep in mind that some schools specialize in various types of filmmaking, such as documentary or experimental, so make sure to research this and think about what kinds of movies youd like to be making when you graduate.
</code></pre></li>
<li><pre><code> Access to equipment had to be moderate to high. A lot of the time Im brainstorming projects on my own or with friends, and thus I wanted to attend a school that would allow me to check out the equipment in my free time to make my own films. Its easy to check this if you have a copy of Film School Confidential, as they rate each schools equipment availability.
</code></pre></li>
</ul>
<p>So with this list I was able to create a short list of programs that I wanted to apply to</p>
<p>USC, FSU, UCLA, SCAD, and for reasons not on the list above NYU and Northwestern.</p>
<p>I applied to all the schools on the short list, and ended up choosing to attend SCAD because I really liked the location (Savannah, GA is a beautiful town), the amazing equipment and access that students are granted, and the savings in cost relative to some of the other programs.</p>
<p>But, like I said above, no program is the best for everyone, and it really will come down to what you, as a filmmaker, need to succeed. If you need to constantly have teachers structuring your time, go to NYU. If you need time to explore for yourself and are self driven, check out SCAD. At the end of the day, the school that will make you most happy is unique to you.</p>
<p>Best,
<p>Nice thread, Charlie.</p>
<p>Hey Charlie, I was wondering if you know anything about film programs in new england. Have you heard good things about Emerson’s program? Thanks</p>
<p>@ Digmedia </p>
<p>Thanks! </p>
<p>@ Scalabrine44 </p>
<p>Unfortunately I haven’t done a whole ton of research on film schools on the West Coast except the major ones (NYU, etc.) but I have heard good things about Emerson. I personally don’t know anyone attending and I’m only going off of the things I’ve read on film forums/college reviews, but it’s def. up there on the list. </p>
<p>I’m curious - are you (or your son/daughter) set on going to school on the East Coast, and if so, why? </p>
<p>Best,
<p>What are the things that you think is the most important in finding a film school?</p>
<p>Any schools you know that have a good film program specifically in New York and California?</p>
<p>Any recommendations on books of how to write screenplays?</p>
<p>First and foremost, do you want “Film Studies” or Production? I assume that by looking for a “film school” you are interested in production. But let me suggest to you that you might not know (yet) exactly what role you want to play on the production side. Most people go off to film school wanting to be a director, but they come out, after experience with many jobs on- and off-set, with a completely different love: screenwriting, casting, audio, technical post-production work, managing the set (First AD, Second AD), cinematography, production design, and on and on and on).</p>
<p>I think the things you want to look for in a school are:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>A school where you can make films. Sounds silly, but in many schools, you don’t actually get into the “film school” until your third year. Others have limited opportunities for doing films.</p></li>
<li><p>A school where you make LOTS of films, with lots of student competitions (student festivals, Shootouts, class projects), yet one with with a collaborative atmosphere (see next point).</p></li>
<li><p>A school where students collaborate on all their various projects. You may be DP’ing one student film while writing your own screenplay while helping edit another student’s film while starting the casting process for yet another film. All of that cross-collaboration will get you all kinds of experience and you might be surprised at what you eventually fall in love with!</p></li>
<li><p>A school with opportunities other than film. Who knows… you might find you want to do something different, and it’s nice to have other departments to transfer to without changing schools and worring about how much of your transcript will be transferable.</p></li>
<li><p>Finally, find a school that matches what you think your eventual goals are. Are you more interested in the quirky, experimental type of films, or are you looking for entry into the established “industry?” For the first, an artsy-type school might be best. For the latter, you made want a different kind of program that concentrates on the skill set you’ll need.</p></li>
</ul>
<p>Good luck. Forget reputation and look at opportunities.</p>
<p>A very compact intro into screenplays can be found at screenwriting.info</p>
<p>I’d be happy to answer some questions too, I go to NU as a Radio/TV/Film major (which is essentially just film).</p>
<p>hi i am looking for some collage where i can learn post production
i would like to say that i am not looking for highly reputed and expensive school
averege school will do with me.</p>
<p>Filmschooler,
May I respectfully disagree with a couple of points in your post? You mention size in reference to the USC School of Cinematic Arts. While USC is a major research university the School of Cinematic Arts enrolls only a tiny percentage of the student body. Classes are small and close knit. A student is not a little fish in a big pond. I suggest potential students go to the USC Cinematic Arts forum on YouTube. Videos there are often taken of actual classes in session. The faculty student ratio at SC is 1/9. At SCA it is even smaller. Students enter as freshmen. </p>
<p>If a student visits the SCA website there are lists of alumni of the film school. The alumni take an enormous interest in the students at the school. They often lecture, arrange tours of studios, mentor and participate in merit scholarship interviews. Networking opportunities are excellent.</p>
<p>Another special aspect of the USC experience is the close collaboration among the top notch schools of music and theatre with SCA. There is much interaction among the students and faculty of these three schools. Multidisciplinary studies are encouraged. </p>
<p>I also would add the School of Cinematic Arts complex is brand new…over a $100+ million dollar complex. George Lucas has taken a personal interest in every aspect of the building and the state of the art equipment, sound stages, lighting equipment, computers, etc. Frankly, it has become of such interest the university has added special tours of the complex. Next to be added to SCA is a planned 50 million dollar addition which will be devoted to animation.</p>
<p>One aspect of USC SCA which is rarely mentioned is the specialized library. The copies of films, scripts, personal letters, notes, drawings, photos is incredible. Many famous directors, writers, actors and producers have donated their collections to the school. It is a treasure of film history which is available for research.</p>
<p>Majors available at SCA are: Animation and Digital Arts, Cinematic Arts Critical Studies, Cinematic Arts Film and Television Production, Interactive Entertainment and Writing for Screen and Television.</p>
<p>For more information: <a href=“http://www.cinema.usc.edu%5B/url%5D”>www.cinema.usc.edu</a> or phone 213 740 8358 .</p>
<p>I live in metro Atlanta and I’m sort of interested in going to SCAD for animation but I feel like the only reason I’d go there is because it’s in Georgia…Do you know if/think it’s any good?</p>
<p>Also, do you think the school SCAD is reasonably affordable for someone who is lacking in college funds (i.e. me)?</p>
<p>I don’t know whether or not anyone is still checking this thread, but it’s worth a shot. My dream is to go to USC Film School and become a Hollywood Director. I’m not posting this to be criticized, although I assuredly will. Rather, I have a question about pursuing this dream. I’ve always been interested in film, yet have no portfolio which I could present to them as I’ve never actually set out and completed a film (I’ve only written scripts to movies). I’m doing well in school and I hear that grades, SAT, etc. are a major part of the application process. I also believe that I am somewhat of a talented, creative writer. This isn’t me trying to stroke my own ego here, although that’s how it’s coming off, rather, to present a question on how important the presence of a portfolio is if I’m able to write creative scripts and am doing well in school.</p>
<p>SwimNSchool, if your grades are good and you can show your writing skills through some script or even a short story, I’m sure you have a pretty good shot at getting into film school. I’m a freshman in NYU film and I know many kids that got in by using a script (instead of a film or reel) as their creative portfolio. I’m not as familiar with USC’s application process, but I’m pretty sure most film schools will look for your storytelling and creative potential rather than your technical accomplishments. Also, nothing wrong with wanting to become a Hollywood director. I’m on the same boat. :)</p>
<p>Bears –</p>
<p>I am linking to the application requirements for the USC film school production division, which seems to be the division that is the most appealing to students who want to become directors:</p>
<p>[USC</a> School of Cinematic Arts - Prospective Students Undergraduate Programs Film & Television Production B.A. Application Procedures](<a href=“http://cinema.usc.edu/prospective/undergraduate/production/admissions-procedures.htm]USC”>http://cinema.usc.edu/prospective/undergraduate/production/admissions-procedures.htm)</p>
<p>You can see that this application relies primarily on a variety of writing samples, so your writing skill will be extremely important. That said, in the past couple of years, the production application has included a visual sample, which can be either a video or still phototgraphs. You might also want to look at the application requirements for the screen writing division, and for critical studies too. In applying to USC film school, you can pick (and fill out the applications for) two different areas within the program.</p>
<p>Please remember that in applying to the film school, you have to fill out USC’s general application as well, where your GPA and test scores will be most relevant.</p>
<p>My S is interested in film production in college. My S’s school doesn’t have much in the way of film related classes or activities, so he has to do more via summer activities. So, my question is, what do most kids do during the summer if they want to go to film school? What looks most impressive and is the most useful/fun, and, conversely, what should be avoided? Thanks for any info.</p>
<p>Somewhere in the CC archives from about four years ago, there is a big list of summer film programs. It’s excellent. My son had good experiences at a two week SOCAPA program, and at the five week program at the North Carolina School for the Arts. I think that I would recommend the latter most highly. It was sophisticated, intense, and excellent preparation for film school.</p>
<p>I should add, if price is no object, some of the major film schools have summer programs with open enrollment in some of their courses. For example, students over 16 can take selected courses at USC film school in the summer, and they come away with college credits.</p>
<p>Thanks for the pointer. I guess what I am trying to find out was, from “FilmSchooler” and others already in film school, was they did in general. Did most people go to programs such as SOCAPA or NYF, or did they more often go to college related programs (e.g., NCSA or USC summer), or both. Or, did most people do none of those, and instead spend summers filming/writing things. Or, is everyone’s experiences all over the map?</p>
<p>I’m trying to see if it makes sense for my S to do nothing organized this summer, just make a few films that he wants to make, and perhaps send them in to student film festivals. Or should he really try to do something organized via a school? </p>
<p>PS he a sophmore right now.</p>