Every year there are lots and lots of new movies produced and released throughout the world. If you've ever sat through the end credits of any of these films you have a good idea of the large number of people employed by this industry. Several film schools have opened in recent years to help supply studios with new technical and creative talent. Many of the graduates of these institutions are now enjoying successful careers.
But film school can be expensive or far away. Is getting a student loan and going into debt for several years a future filmmaker's best way to enter the business. Could there possibly be another way, and is film school even worth the expense?
It's up to the individual enthusiast to decide whether or not film school is the best way to gain entry into the field, but it's always good to examine all of the available options.
I'm telling the following story in the hope that it will be helpful for future motion picture professionals who are trying to decide whether or not to attend film school. It's about an acquaintance of mine and the way he got started in the movie business. I don't know his current whereabouts (he travels around a lot) so I haven't gotten permission to use his real name. I'll call him Paul.
Paul was informed that he would be the beneficiary of a small inheritance. This money had to be used to further his education and Paul's mother was assigned to make sure that this stipulation was adhered to. Naturally, she asked Paul what he wanted to do with his life.
He said that he hoped to someday build a future in the movie industry and that he thought going to film school would be the best way to get started. His mother figured that his goal was reasonable, but she had a suggestion for a different route to take.
What if he used the inheritance to make his own short movie. That could be his film school.
Paul thought this was a good idea, so he went out in search of some help on this project. He found a local special effects technician who was interested in getting involved. I also happen to know this man. We can call him John.
This is the deal Paul offered to John: John was to contact some of his special effects colleagues and together they would compile a list of effects that they had always wanted to create but had never had the opportunity to do. Paul would write a script that used as many of these effects as possible and a short film would be made from it that they would all work on together. The technicians wouldn't be paid for their work, but Paul would supply all of the necessary materials.
The effects crew enthusiastically agreed to this offer and the result was a very slick looking short film. Everybody involved had a lot of fun and Paul learned how movies are made. He also had a nice portfolio piece to show when looking for work in the future.
Of course there are a lot of people who went to film school and are doing very well, but Paul's story is certainly not unique. Many of the top professionals in the industry learned their skills by making their own films.
There are quite a few directors(Stanley Kubrick, Quentin Tarantino, John Waters and Robert Rodriguez are just a few examples) who have been known to publicly state that they learned filmmaking on their own and that in their opinions this is the best way to go.
It's now easy to buy or rent video equipment and filmmaking software, so that just about anybody willing to do some work can get a film made. Once these films are finished they can be uploaded to the internet and viewed by millions of people.
There are probably as many ways to find success in the movie business as there are successful filmmakers. Anybody with plans to enter the field would be well advised to check out as many of these paths as they can. I wish you all the best of luck in the future!
But film school can be expensive or far away. Is getting a student loan and going into debt for several years a future filmmaker's best way to enter the business. Could there possibly be another way, and is film school even worth the expense?
It's up to the individual enthusiast to decide whether or not film school is the best way to gain entry into the field, but it's always good to examine all of the available options.
I'm telling the following story in the hope that it will be helpful for future motion picture professionals who are trying to decide whether or not to attend film school. It's about an acquaintance of mine and the way he got started in the movie business. I don't know his current whereabouts (he travels around a lot) so I haven't gotten permission to use his real name. I'll call him Paul.
Paul was informed that he would be the beneficiary of a small inheritance. This money had to be used to further his education and Paul's mother was assigned to make sure that this stipulation was adhered to. Naturally, she asked Paul what he wanted to do with his life.
He said that he hoped to someday build a future in the movie industry and that he thought going to film school would be the best way to get started. His mother figured that his goal was reasonable, but she had a suggestion for a different route to take.
What if he used the inheritance to make his own short movie. That could be his film school.
Paul thought this was a good idea, so he went out in search of some help on this project. He found a local special effects technician who was interested in getting involved. I also happen to know this man. We can call him John.
This is the deal Paul offered to John: John was to contact some of his special effects colleagues and together they would compile a list of effects that they had always wanted to create but had never had the opportunity to do. Paul would write a script that used as many of these effects as possible and a short film would be made from it that they would all work on together. The technicians wouldn't be paid for their work, but Paul would supply all of the necessary materials.
The effects crew enthusiastically agreed to this offer and the result was a very slick looking short film. Everybody involved had a lot of fun and Paul learned how movies are made. He also had a nice portfolio piece to show when looking for work in the future.
Of course there are a lot of people who went to film school and are doing very well, but Paul's story is certainly not unique. Many of the top professionals in the industry learned their skills by making their own films.
There are quite a few directors(Stanley Kubrick, Quentin Tarantino, John Waters and Robert Rodriguez are just a few examples) who have been known to publicly state that they learned filmmaking on their own and that in their opinions this is the best way to go.
It's now easy to buy or rent video equipment and filmmaking software, so that just about anybody willing to do some work can get a film made. Once these films are finished they can be uploaded to the internet and viewed by millions of people.
There are probably as many ways to find success in the movie business as there are successful filmmakers. Anybody with plans to enter the field would be well advised to check out as many of these paths as they can. I wish you all the best of luck in the future!
About the Author:
If you want to embark on a career in the film industry and want to know what the best way is for you to get into the movie business, take a look at Flashfink's Squidoo page to see if going to film school is right for you.
