self learning

[uberLC]

i'm in university right now, but not in film. I'm thinking of learning myself b/c the library has hundreds of books on filmmaking.
I was looking through some and it explains everything in detail.
Of course, in order to get better is to make your own films, but I'm looking for the technical aspects..
is this a good idea or should I just go to film school?

 

[jlamarking]

Many, many people have gotten into filmmaking without going to film school. Daryn Okada ASC comes to mind. You have to decide what's right for you.

 

[DerekEastham]

Steven Spielberg
Peter Jackson

(just to add a few more names)

However... although film school wont necessarily "teach" you how to make a film... the primary reason to attend a film school would be to meet new people and make important networking contacts.

 

[Kim Welch]

An Old Self Learners Comment

An Old Self Learners Comment

"If a man empties his purse into his head, no one can take it from him."

-- Benjamin Franklin

 

[uberLC]

I know most of the film students and I'm helping them with their projects.
Another quote that comes to mind is from good will hunting
"You wasted $150,000 on an education you coulda got for a buck fifty in late charges at the public library. "

 

[Kim Welch]

BOOKS

BOOKS

Well if you really believe that then why not just buy the books and you don't have to worrry about the late charges?!

http://www.studentfilmmakersforums.com/store !

 

[laurent.a]

Wait a minute... There's a lot to know that you will not find in any book. Another point is that books will never give you the needed experience to be able to work, instead you just plan to write !

Schools don't only give you theorical knowledge, but pratctical courses and experiences as well. The people who didn't go thru any school began learning as they first worked as runners, then assistant, etc. If you don't wanna go thru any school, you need to know people who'll give you the opportunity of working with and then learn things. Good luck !

 

[DerekEastham]

As for schools...

I don't think anyone here is seriously arguing that you can learn everythign there is to know about filmmaking from a book... if they are, laurent is absolutely right to correct them on that.

The only thing a book can give you is theoretical knowledge from the writer(s) perspective. Depending on who that writer is and their authority on the subject will determine just how much you can learn from the book... again, in theory.

All practical learning in art must be learned by doing...

Also...
though there are plenty of famous/sucessful examples of people who did not attend school to make it... school is still something that can be an important step for most people.

Honestly...
school can not teach you how to make a film... school can teach you how other people have made films... and it can also provide you with film theory... as well, you can learn things like scripting (format) and conceptualizing...
basically...
school is there to teach you the basics.

The best thing a school can offer someone... especially when filmmaking & related industries are concerned... is networking opportunities.
If/when you choose to go to school... make your choice based upon more than what is and isn't taught at the school.
Make sure you investigate who the professors are... and what their qualifications/experience is. Contacts, connections & networking will be the best things that you can do in and outside of school... through there, you will develope friends, advisors and potentially an opportunity to earn something somewhere down the road. Also, they will be an important part of your development as an artist.

Honestly... it is possible to make it as a filmmaker without school... but your chances will only increase if you decide to go.

Myself... I'm a recent graduate of the local Art Institute in Seattle. The tuition there was about 28 thousand... in the end... school probably cost me (including tape stock, supplies, props, production expenses, etc.) around 35 to 38 thousand dollars.
Could I have taken that money and put it into making a feature film on DV... heck yes I could...
However, I don't regret a single dollar I spent on school... even looking back on the good & bad teachers I had... the experiences, opportunities, and connections I had & continue to have as a result of my education there are an important part of who I am today and where I will be tomorrow.

Everyone needs to decide for themselves what to do with their lives... and only time will tell if the choice was sound.

 

[Tyler Emerson]

Perhaps the key is school for a little while. Go for a year or two, make some connections, get in good with professors, get some hands-on experience in a department project. Then go to LA or NYC. You've got some contacts. And all that bullshit about contacts in school...? Unless you are going somewhere like USC, UCLA, or NYU, the chances of making worthwhile contacts decreases dramatically. Sometimes you'll get lucky. I did. The University of Kansas has an absolutely wonderful roster of professors who have worked in the industry, and still do. And then, even if you get to USC, UCLA, or NYU, you are competing with that many more people. It's always better to be a big fish in a small pond. Contacts can be made simply by writing an email to somebody, or volunteering to work on a film for an up-and-comer.

 

[Ernest Acosta]

If you want to learn the craft and don't go to film school. I would suggest the obvious of books, seminars, workshops, learning vhs or dvds, PRACTICE (shoot many shorts before you take the plunge to a feature) and most important of all - GET HANDS ON EXPERIENCE!!!!

Apply for production assistant jobs, get on an actual film set, work hard, observe and learn, ask questions when the pros are not working or occupied. Watch dvds and also watch the directors commentary. Get yourself a camera. If you have the money get a 24P like the Panasonic DVX100A or Canon XL2; unless you have a rich uncle who can buy you an Aaton A-minima 16mm or better yet, fund an actual 35mm film. Good luck!

 

[sinjinza1984]

Steven Spielberg
Sorry, Spielberg did go to school - Cal State Long Beach. But, I agree that film school isn't the beginning and the end of making it in the industry, there are guys out there who started off working in the industry as runners and PAs before they made it into other work like directing or being a DP. However, I also have to contest the view that people who have degrees in film school don't have to start off being PAs and such. Every lecturer or mentor that I have ever had has told me the same thing over and over - starting off at the bottom of the ladder is the only way to break into the industry. In fact, Richard Crudo's column in the March 2005 edition of American Cinematographer highlighted this issue. He said that people don't want to have to get experience before they start their 'dream job'. People do a course in cinematography for a year or three, or even more, and then expect to be DP the first time they work on a set. Sorry, but guys like janusz kaminski, asc and his peers have in excess of thirty years to their name. How can someone who has a three-year degree in cinematography try to oust someone with three-plus decades of real experience. Try actually being patient and learning something from someone who has had to tackle problems like broken camera mechanisms and night shoots for years.