Here’s an article from Allartschools.com. The article includes an interview of a former film student and what he learned at film school and more useful informations worth reading.
Film School Graduate
When Randy Walker and his partner Jenny Shainin graduated with master’s degrees in film from the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, CA, they set about doing what they loved—making movies. With a feature-length film, Apart From That, under their belt and accolades from South By Southwest, the Seattle International Film Festival and Cine Vegas Film Festival, among others, Randy and Jenny have many insights into the ups and downs of film school. All Art Schools caught up with Randy Walker in his home editing studio.
Why did you decide to go to film school?
Initially, film school was a means by which we might learn the tools and technology involved in filmmaking—what is typically understood as the “craft.” Also, it was a place that would give us the time required to focus entirely on our art. Time enough to meet people, experiment, make mistakes and dive headlong into a new medium during a period of our lives when we didn’t know anything about anything.
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On the first day of school, I remember what someone told my classmates and me; “You’ll get out with as much as you put in.” That person was David Hauka, at the time Head of Department of the film program at VFS. Little did I know that this simple, but so brilliant, line would change my life the way it did.
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One year ago, I was a young man living in Eastern Canada, wanting to make film, but without any experience, deep knowledge or even any opportunities. I still wanted to make movies, but without any of this I didn’t know how I would ever be able to do so. After looking around and looking at what many other filmmakers did, I decided to look for a film school to teach me what I needed. Read the rest of this entry »
I’ve been quite happily surprised by this article. Some of the information it offers, like the average salary in the industry for producers and directors is around $56,000 dollars, is worth knowing. Even though it seems to be written by someone knew to this industry, it gives you another point of vu on someone’s plan and what he/she believe is important.
Knowing the way other people approach the same career is always a bonus for you. Sadly, this article isn’t long enough. One would have hoped for more information and stats to give a better idea of what is really out there.
Source: Careerplanningtoday.com “Filmmaker: A Career Research Report”
Definitely too short and lacking examples, this articles gives you five tips on how to make it in the film industry, as it likes to say. The reality is that these tips will definitely help you, but mainly on set or in the office when you’re starting. One of the good tips of the article, “The person who fetches coffee today, will control the money tomorrow. So first, make sure the coffee is hot.” is something you should consider doing ons et if you’re a pa for example.
If everyone is could because the weather is terrible, you’ll be seen as an angel when you arrive with that coffee cup. For sure its a good way to get attention to you, which is what you want.
Source: FilmmakingStuff “Rules for Filmmaking Success”
Many people don’t know what to do once they are done with film school. Even through you get all those success stories about recent graduates finding work in big companies, the truth is that they probably have an uncle working in that company. The rest of us have to find another way to get in the industry. So how do you do it?
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Hard work will always get you somewhere. Sadly, we’re not always told where to go with our hard work and this article isn’t giving you that much information but is instead telling you a bit more about the challenges of producing a film over a long period, which could be useful to anyone out there who wants some tips on how to stick with something until the end.
It’s simply too bad that the article isn’t more about how this person overcame her challenges to get to that position and what they were.
Source: VFS.com Blog (“A Producer in Poland”)
Even if you’re in or out of Film School, you need to work for free. Now, I know the article says “Working for credits” but here’s my point. To make it anywhere in the industry, you need credits on your CV. The chances of you getting paid work just after leaving film school are very low, so now you need to get work on set.
When people hear the world “Working for free” they generally decide to run the other way, but it’s something you need to do. Now, if you think about what you get out of it, you aren’t exactly working for free. You’re working for credits. Credits that will help you to get more credits that will eventually lead to paid work.
While you’re on set, working for free credits you’re also gaining a lot. You’re not only getting free food, which means you don’t have to buy it from your pockets, but you’re making great contacts that will help you out later on.
Anyone in the film industry will tell you this: This is how it starts. If you stay home and wait, you’re not getting anything. Now, I’ll tell you something that some of you may find crazy. If you want to progress in the industry, you should do free work as well. It’s difficult to upgrade position in the industry if you don’t have credits to show for that new position. Let’s say you’re a 2nd AD and you want to become a 1st AD, getting out there and getting some work as a 1st AD on “free” sets will help you out. Not only people will know that you want to become a 1st but they will know that you can do it.
Amanda Warford said the following in an article on Jacksonville.com
The fim industry can pay well, but only if you have experience. This is a revelation for many film students upon graduation. A select few, however, seek out opportunities to get a leg up before they throw their caps in the air. It doesn’t take long to realize that if you do a good job for free, you’ll make contacts that get you jobs for a little bit of pay, where you’ll make more contacts that get you more pay, etc. That’s how it was for me. Not long after I started working in the industry, I had a list of contacts from across the country, a book of reference letters, and was calling myself a producer. Get the article here
At the end, it’s your call. But it’s what I recommend you to do, especially if you aren’t working at the moment because then, you have absolutely nothing to lose and everything to win.
