Film School? Yes or No?
I’ve been struggling with this issue for a while. And with the application deadlines just 5 weeks away, I need to make up my mind and not let the decision be made for me by procrastinating.
Background — I have a graduate degree in business. I have a Filmmaking Certificate from NYU where in 12 short weeks, I made two shorts. I live in New York, so there are only two options – NYU and Columbia. NYU probably has a better all-around program and Columbia probably has a better program for writers.
Now the question is whether I invest THREE years (two if Columbia) and go to film school. Pros –
* Get much better training on all the basics and all the advanced technical skills of filmmaking
* Be in an atmosphere where all I do is come up with ideas and make them happen
* Learn to work in very tight timeframes — if NYU’s 12-weeker was any indication, I’ll learn how to have extremely low shooting ratios and tight production timelines.
* Finish my feature script with access to professionals who can guide me through it (both schools have great writing departments)
* Meet a group of peers with whom I will form creative and professional connections
* Give me more credibility in the world
* Be in school again! Go to classes, work in coffee shops and otherwise be burden free!
Cons –
* It is THREE years (at NYU and even at Columbia, because in the third year, you are doing the thesis project). In the same amount of time, I could be working! Actually making a short or working with a great director on his/her feature and learning on the job. While this is just one simple bullet, this is the hugest issue for me. HUGE. I love the doing of it! I’d learn a lot. This is like 5 bullets worth of cons for me.
* The cost. At a minimum, it is $100K, probably more like $150K once you add in all the film stock needed, the thesis project etc.
* I have a full application packet I need to put together! ;)
Am I missing any pros or cons? I am eager for input as I try to make this decision in the next couple of days. This forum has so many film crazy people that this is the best place to get input! 
This is cross-posted here. So, for comments (and I hope to really hear from you), *please* leave them here so that it is in one consolidated place. Yes, I am really going to use any and all input to make the decision! Thank you so much!!!
Anurag Kashyap
Abhay Deol
Dibakar Banerjee
Hansal Mehta
Khalid Mohamed
Kundan Shah
Anish Kuruvilla
Jaideep Verma
Manish Gupta
Navdeep Singh
Bhavani Iyer
D. Santosh
Onir
Ashvin Kumar
Ramu Ramanathan
Sudhir Mishra
Pankaj Advani
Revathy
Saurabh Shukla
Shilpa Shukla
Sujoy Ghosh
Suparn Verma
Santosh Sivan
Shashank Ghosh
Shivajee
Pavan Kaul
Partho Sen-Gupta
Prroshant Naryannan
Sam Langoria
Satish Kasetty
- My honest opinion – get on a director’s set and assist him with your 12 week course knowledge. You’ve already made a short and that tells me you have got your hands wet in the art.
hell yea.. no better way to go than experience filmmaking first-hand. you can meet, network, and be around just as many passionate film people, if not more, on set instead of in school.. plus your films won’t look as “trained”
network..it is the most demeaning thing for a filmmaker..artist..but one has to..and thats sad..
it can be, if you go in with purely selfish reasons.. but sometimes you happen to meet someone and just connect on a level that makes you say “holy shit.. this person’s on the same wavelength as me.. why the f*ck did i just now meet him/her?” then it doesn’t even feel like networking..
self-promotion when you’re looking to establish yourself in front of others.. now THAT’s sad… also a reason why i probably can never get my name out as an actor :p i like to let my work speak for myself… and unfortunately so far.. 0 out of my 5 movies have released, so there goes that idea..
) hmm.. maybe i should just put up the trailers on here..
Shirpiya..I know exactly what you are going through…touch I am not at the same note as you, I almost got myslef enrolled into a local school last week and something stopped me.
Let me give you my opinion. I agree technical skills are important but nothing beats practicals. You know the A-B-C-D of movie making from your 12 weeks course and also you are in the right hub(NY). I would suggest you try finding the job of Assting a Director. You will have a better vision and understanding of your creativity, approach, style etc, then after that if you stil feel that you need to go to school to master the craft you can do that then.
Good Luck:)
Well … bingo Sripriya …
Actually i was thinking of doing the same …. ‘taking the plunge’ in a film school or going and assissting a film maker …
I would really like to know anurag’s opinion on this !!!! I mean yes u can join ftii or NYU or a film academy … but is that absolutely a ‘must do’ ??? What if u learn about film making thru watching films … books … comics (ala AK :-))participating in short film making workshops, assisting film makers etc …. rather than investing three to four years at a film school… and still passing out with the need to do ‘networking’ ??? When u can always start approaching film makers and offer to assisst them … untill someone accepts u …. and then u do ‘on the job training’ ???
Statistics : Manirathnam, Ramu, Tarantino , spielberg, Madhur bhandarkar, Anurag kashyap himself !!! these guys didn’t go to film schools… they went to films …
I remember anurag saying the same somewhere, that he’s thankful he didn’t study in a film school .. otherwise that would have bound him or something …
Anurag … your views please :-)
oops .. didnt intend the laughing smiley in my above comment… came by an accident
how abt enrolling for a few more of these short sessions like the one you did for 12-weeks in different parts of the country in varied aspects of film-making?
Networking, more hand’s on experience, new places and mostly less expensive.
the dramatics prof in my coll was the first guy i met when i joined grad school and he remarked very arrogantly that to even assist someone here in the field of theatre or movies, the person needs to bombarded with all the various ppl you know, have worked with and then also have fancy references from the ivy-league. And then its all creativity from there…
hello shripriya,
the situation seems to be highly relative.
cos if i was u, i wouldve packed my bags, land in hyderabad.
work with a director as an assistant for a movie.
and thereby digest all the facets of making a film in the Telugu Film Industry.
prepare a meaningful-cum-entertaining script based on local sensibilities.
hook up a rich NRI producer to invest a few crores.
make sure this movie bcomes a big hit.
demand a crore as a remuneration for my next film.
with the help of that crore, do things that i like to do in my further films.
learn with each film. get the luxury of learning as well as earning with each film.
then become practically free to do anything, including making films in bollywood.
that wud be my plan.
but i dont see it as a possibility in ur case, ur plans seem to be different, if im not wrong.
i think its all about what u finally want to do/achieve. think more about what is ur ‘final objective’ , then u will probably know which is the better way to go about it.
Some theatre work?
I think, i’m the only PFC member who does not have anything to do filmmaking process or film journalism, but one day i would like to get into the action.
HG u r not alone.
I also have not handled anything other than handycam for general purpose homely shooting.
there may be more who are only filmlovers. They may have some potential but far from a field of filmmaking.Not everybody has that kind of determination to go to Bombay to do struggle.
Thanks for all the comments, folks. I think everyone makes valid points. The key is finding a director who you can learn from who is also willing to invest in emerging/aspiring filmmakers.
From the business world, I’ve learned that “mentorship” is a must. I benefited from it and I made sure I passed that on to almost everyone who approached me.
The film industry does not seem to have that built into directors’ DNA. Once a lot of directors have proved themselves, they treat everyone like peons
. Hey, each to his own and all that, but my take is that it would be great if we saw more directors willing to share what they’ve learned.
On that vein, if any of you are aware of directors who are open to apprentices, please let me know. I’ll happily jump in and work my ass off (and provide ivy league credentials if that’s what’s required as well)
Oh, and yes, would be great to hear Anurag’s thoughts here…
Kartik…. why do we always have to quote “not all big film makers went to a film school”…. i can cite loads who invested years studying the art and its craft…. it isnt a must for all…. but lets not just take it for granted…. it does make a huge lot of difference…. where else do u get a chance to lay ur hand on the most up to date equipments and most importantly where else do u get mentors who sit with you and help u understand things…. sit and listen to those 3 hrs long sessions u’ll realise there’s so much we dont know…. it isnt that there’s this one ’strongheaded’ person who follows a certain ideology and he makes u follow what he believes in to…. but there’s so much…. a plethora… and u have the option to have ur pick…. u;re not moulded but u’re geared up for good….. i do not know what all one learns by assisting someone on a project… but i know one thing for sure… one doesnt lose anything out of the years invested in a film school…. the art and the craft u learn… its a treasure…. and no one can rob u of that…. why wait for things to happen… learn the craft… slog hard…. and make ur own films…. why do we always have to wait for ppl to give us a break….
Tell me this…
Do we need MBAs to be crunch budget numbers?
Do we need an MS in CS to cut code?
Hell man, it’s just a chicken and egg story.
This is what I think: If you have the vision, if you see your stories – as you imagine/tell/write them – clearly, vividly, then you have the gift! Now “connections” is an entirely different ball game!!
My two rusty cents!
.. to be “crunching” budget numbers – aargh.. F%$&*ING typos
Divya has so clearly articulated the other side of the argument. That’s the issue — it is not like it is raining directors who are eager to take on assistants.
Maybe I am ready to make a feature. I don’t think so. I think I have a lot to learn. If I don’t go to film school, I will learn it by making another short and/or a documentary (which is cheaper for sure). But film school gives you that leeway to experiment and figure out your style in an environment that encourages learning.
Yes, I am still torn.
Divya – After all those years of learning the trade how am I to be sure that I will still not have to network and then have to put on hold all that I am eager to use that I have learnt, dance to the tunes of the guy I am under and then have all the notions that I have imbibed during my study days dashed.
When we made student video’s in our under-grad days, my friends and I felt that a professional help would be amazing. When we finally caught hold of a professional camera man, he started out on a condescending speech that made us feel that we would never ever ask a guy who has studied an art. Our next door photo-shop chotu was a real dude when he taught us everything about how to handle the camera and he’s never passed a single class. I know this is just one case but am sure that in the stuff most of us are good at, we have learnt it on our own.
Shripriya, just keep making short movies, documentaries and write all that u can… just do it on ur own.
@ravptor…..
my dear friend…. i think u missed on my concluding statement….. “why wait for things to happen… learn the craft… slog hard…. and make ur own films…. why do we always have to wait for ppl to give us a break…”…..
why network…. go nd work in a call centre…. make money…. invest it and make ur own film in what all ltd resources you have…. if u really wish to do it…. you’ll anyways do it….. if you dont have the conviction… no godfather or no film school can help you in that case… PERIOD!
When you say “After all those years of learning the trade how am I to be sure that I will still not have to network and then have to put on hold all that I am eager to use that I have learnt, dance to the tunes of the guy I am under and then have all the notions that I have imbibed during my study days dashed.”…..
tell me something why do u need someone’s approval… whatever u create is something u wished to… give a damn to the one who doesnt follow or understand ur sense of filmmaking…. do u really care…?
i very well understand Shripriya… but i firmly blv u wont regret it later…. but ofcourse u have to weigh ur options…. time, money, many things count a lot…. even making your own short is a good idea… u anyways have learnt film making… go ahead…. the ultimate aim is to make good films… good as in the way we define ‘good’…. Happy diwali to all…!
…. and ya what all film makers are we talking about…. the ones we crib about all the time in loud voices…. every friday we bash off the lot we think we going to assist…. lets be realistic and lets not contradict….
just found these useful links
10 reasons for why:
you shouldnt go to film school – http://www.dvguru.com/2006/10/11/10-reasons-you-shouldnt-go-to-film-school/
you should go to film school – http://www.dvguru.com/2006/10/20/10-reasons-you-should-go-to-film-school/
I believe a Film school is a Yes untill and unless it starts to stop the growth of your creativeness. Make sure it doesnt go the “copy-book” way. Shripriya..it is a hard desicion..yes.. but make sure, your creativity doesnt suffer in this process.. whats the use if you get networked, you work with legends, you sit in class where the proffessor is an icon, and you start making films inspired by their thoughts? Having said that.. Film schools are good to get the basics right..
I was battling with exactly the same questions when I did a short course from NYFA. In my case I did not have the age and money on my side. If you are young and can afford to pay the tuition you must go to the school. To direct a film you need to be a mature. Its rare to see someone direct a good film in early 20s. Universities will give u good exposure to Hollywood. In Columbia u will find Mira Nair in NYU thers Spike Lee. Atleast u wont regret later in life.
One thing for sure is that the schools can not make u imagine or be creative else every year we would have 1000s of Speilberg graduating from the films schools but they do refine ur talent and build up ur networking. If u assist a hollywood director u might get an offer to direct a bollywood movie u never know. I think Anurag is from NSD. I am a great fan of his. Especially liked Satya a lot. Black Friday is even better!
Well Shekhar Kammula,a noted Telugu Film director,for one is making good movies and he did three year course in Howard.Did I just make your decision difficult [-(
i wanted to ask: if you have a creative idea but don’t how to develop it, then what do you do?
get with other creative minds and decide how to develop your idea
it’s an obvious answer, but never thought about it..
You guys are talking about film schools that i haven’t even heard of. As much as i would like to say that i too face a similar dilemma, i can’t because my struggle’s between trying to get through FTII and face not making it (am also 31) or staying at home like a good housewife as i do currently with a million ideas jostling for expression in my head…no money, no network, but a million dreams..
what all film makers are we talking about…. the ones we crib about all the time in loud voices…. every friday we bash off the lot we think we going to assist….