Some are private, some state-financed, and all have websites that you’ll find by plugging the school name into a search engine. Academic facilities, expertise, cost, and reputations vary widely. Most colleges offer BA, BS, or BFA undergraduate degrees, and many offer MA or MFA graduate degrees. Be advised that a BS (Bachelor of Science) is going to be technology-based, whereas a Ph.D., being a degree in scholarship, will be a film studies degree rather than one that involves making films. Graduate schools sometimes prefer people with undergraduate film degrees, sometimes not. Graduate degree programs, which presume that you are a little older and more sophisticated, are more likely to specialize in directing.
All selective film schools want to see what proof you can produce that you are reliable, self-motivated, collaborative, and tenacious in carrying long projects through to completion. Your résumé and application letter should address these points as best you can, and show that you have a mature understanding of the medium’s complexity.
- American Film Institute (Graduate students only)
- American University
- Boston University
- California Institute of the Arts
- Chapman University
- Columbia College Chicago
- Columbia University
- Curtin University of Technology
- Doane College
- Duke University
- Eastern Michigan University
- Emerson College
- Florida Metropolitan University,
- Melbourne
- Florida State University
- Gallaudet University
- Georgia State University
- Grand Valley State University
- Hellenic Cinema/TV School (Greece)
- Houston Community College Southwest
- Ithaca College
- Lane Community College
- La Salle University
- Los Angeles Film Studies Center
- Loyola Marymount University
- Mills College
- Montana State University
- Montclair State University
- New York Film Academy Ltd.
- New York University (Tisch School of the Arts)
- North Carolina School of the Arts
- Northeastern University
- Ohio University
- Piedmont Community College
- Rochester Institute of Technology
- Rowan University
- Ryerson Polytechnical Institute
- San Antonio College
- San Diego State University
- San Francisco State University
- School of Visual Arts, Inc.
- Smith College
- Southern Illinois University
- Stanford University (documentary only)
- Suffolk University
- Syracuse University
- Texas A&M University, Corpus Christi
- Universidad de las Comunicaciones (Santiago, Chile)
- Unitec Institute of Technology
- University of Arizona
- University of California at Los Angeles
- University of Central Florida
- University of Florida Foundation, Inc.
- University of Hartford
- University of Kansas
- University of Nevada, Las Vegas
- University of New Orleans, Lakefront
- University of North Carolina
- University of South Carolina
- University of Southern California
- University of Texas at Austin
- University of Toledo
- University of Toronto
- University of Washington, Educational Outreach
- University of Windsor
- Valencia Community College
- Vanderbilt University
- Vassar College
- Villanova University
- Watkins Film School
- William Patterson University
- York University
There are major film schools around the world but be warned that most, especially national entities, are small, elitist, and set very competitive entry requirements. Others may be hand-to-mouth, private institutions that are enthusiastic, and great as a social experience, but use underemployed and possibly undereducated local film workers as part-time teachers. If you are accepted into a foreign school, apply for a student visa early because obtaining one can be a long and uncertain process. This is particularly true for anyone applying from abroad to an
American school.
You cannot work or support yourself in another country unless you are a citizen. Most countries’ immigration policies exclude foreign workers wherever their own filmmakers are underemployed. That situation changes only if you have special, unusual, and fully accredited skills to offer. Check local conditions with the school’s admissions officer and with the country’s consulate before committing yourself. Also, check the length of time of the visa granted against the average time it takes students to graduate—sometimes these durations are incompatible.
SCHOOLS AFFILIATED WITH CILECT
CILECT’s website (www.cilect.org/).1 Clicking on a school’s name will give you standard information and a link to the school’s website. The + sign before a phone or fax number means you must first enter your country’s overseas telephone code (011 in the United States). The numbers that follow are the country code, the area or city code, and finally the school’s phone number—as in 44(0)20 7836 9642 for the London Film School. If you are calling from overseas, don’t dial what’s in parentheses. CILECT is an excellent source of international information and technical reviews. Don’t overlook Corresponding Members; there may be one available to give local advice in your own country. Spanish speakers willing to study in Latin America should consider the Escuela Internacional de Cine Televisión international (EICTV) in Cuba. Although spartan and running under perpetual material difficulties, it is modestly priced, idealistic, and consistently gets work of really outstanding authorship from its students. Many countries now have excellent national and private schools. Some— such as the European Film College in Denmark and the Maurits Binger Film Institute (Binger Filmlab) in Amsterdam—even teach in English. Many European schools teach summer film courses in English, which is another (and very pleasant) way to find out whether you like the work.
