Film school

A film school is a generic term for any educational institution dedicated to teaching moviemaking, including, but not limited to, film production, theory, and writing for the screen. Usually hands on technical training is incorporated as part of the curriculum, such as learning how to use cameras, light meters and other equipment. Most schools are tied to existing colleges and universities, often in art or communication departments. Some are privately owned and not tied to universities, such as technical schools offering associate degrees.

The oldest film school in the world is the Gerasimov Institute of Cinematography in Moscow. Various debates have raged over the years on the importance of film school in allowing one to enter the film industry. Of course, examples can be offered from both sides, as directors Francis Ford Coppola (UCLA Film School, MFA film directing), Martin Scorsese (NYU Film School, MFA film directing), and George Lucas (USC Film School, MFA film directing) graduated from prestigious film schools, whereas Quentin Tarantino, P.T. Anderson, David Fincher, Ron Howard, and Steven Spielberg had very little or no formal college film training at all. The rapid rise of independent filmmaking and digital video have changed this debate somewhat, as anyone with a few thousand dollars can shoot their own film (and some have done so quite successfully) with little formal knowledge of the industry. Thus, it can be argued that the high cost of attending a film school can now be spent on making films and learning through practical experience. Others argue that film school is important because it builds on the knowledge and experience of others, allows students to develop their skills under the guidance of professional instructors, and affords students the opportunity to network and connect with others interested in filmmaking, as well as with those who may eventually offer them careers in the industry. One example is that the more prestigious schools allow their students to showcase work in film festivals near the end of the semester for film producers and executives.

Many usages of the term "film school" now refers to film AND television or video and even mass media and animation. Very few "film schools" shoot real film, but rather use video in shooting and in screening movies in classes.

List of film schools or programs worldwide

Australia

• Australian Film Television and Radio School
• International Film College
• Queensland School of Film and Television
• Victorian College of the Arts
• APA International Film School

Belgium

• RITS
• Hogeschool St. Lukas

Canada

• York University Department of Film
• Vancouver Film School
• UBC
• Mel Hoppenheim School of Cinema (Concordia)
• Gulf Islands Film and Television School (GIFTS)
• Advanced TV & Film Program (Atvf) at Sheridan College

Czech Republic

• Film and TV School of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague (FAMU)
• Film School in Pisek

France

• La Femis - Ecole nationale supérieure des métiers de l'image et du son, Paris

Germany

CILECT Members:

• Deutsche Film- und Fernsehakademie Berlin
• Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg, Ludwigsburg
• Hochschule für Fernsehen und Film München

India

• Film and Television Institute of India
• R K Films & Media Academy, New Delhi (http://www.rkfma.com)
• Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute, Kolkata
• AJK, Mass Communication Research Centre, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi
• Digital Video Production, Srishti School of Art, Design and Technology, Bangalore
• Asian Academy Of Film & Television, Noida NCR New Delhi
• Whistling Woods International Institute for Films, Media, Animationa and Media Arts, Mumbai
• Hyderabad Central University, Hyderabad-AP

Ireland

• New Media Technology College

Israel

• The Sam Spiegel Film and Television School, Jerusalem
• TAU Department of Film and Television, Tel-Aviv

Italy

• Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia, Rome
• Scuola di Cinema Televisione e Nuovi Media, Milan
• Zelig School for Documentary, Television and New Media, Bolzano

Jordan

• Red Sea Institute of Cinematic Arts

New Zealand

• Auckland University of Technology, School of Communication Studies, Auckland
• South Seas Film School, Auckland
• Unitec New Zealand, School of Performing and Screen Arts, Auckland

Philippines

• Asia Pacific Film Institute
• University of the Philippines Film Institute
• International Academy of Film and Television

Poland

• Lodz Film School

Russia

• Gerasimov Institute of Cinematography, Moscow

Spain

• Film and Television School Septima Ars, Madrid

Film and TV School Septima Ars

Thailand

• Mahidol University International College, Bangkok

[iccharlesh@mahidol.ac.th] Entertainment Media B.A. majors in film, or TV, or animation.

Film Schools in Africa

South Africa

CILECT Members:

• South African School of Motion Picture Medium and Live Performance AFDA, Johannesburg and Cape Town

Cameroon

• KM Professional Film Academy, Douala & Buea - Cameroon, west Central Africa, Member of The audio-visual Syndicate in Cameroon (SYNAVCAM)

United Arab Emirates

American University of Sharjah

United Kingdom

CILECT Member:

The following film schools are internationally accredited by the Cannes-based CILECT: The International Association of Film and Television Schools.

• National Film and Television School
• The Arts Institute at Bournemouth
• Screen Academy Scotland at Napier University
• University of Westminster

United States

Arizona

• Zaki Gordon Institute - Independent Film Making(Yavapai College)
• Arizona State University - Herberger College of The Arts
• University of Arizona

California

• Academy of Art University, School of Motion Pictures and Television
• AFI Conservatory - A division of American Film Institute
• Berkeley Digital Film Institute
• Brooks Institute of Photography
• Chapman University
• California College of the Arts
• California Institute of the Arts
• Cal State LA Studios (California State University, Los Angeles)
• Lawrence and Kristina Dodge College of Film and Media Arts at Chapman University
• Columbia College Hollywood
• California State University, Long Beach
• California State University, Northridge
• Los Angeles Film School- LAFS
• Loyola Marymount University School of Film and Television
• San Francisco Art Institute
• San Francisco State University Cinema department
• USC School of Cinematic Arts/USC School of Cinema - Television (University of Southern California)
• UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television (University of California, Los Angeles)
• Video Symphony TV & Film School (Burbank, CA)

District of Columbia

CILECT Member:

• American University School of Communication - Film and Media Arts Studies
• Howard University

Florida

• Florida State University School of Motion Picture, Television, and Recording Arts
• Full Sail
• University of Central Florida
• University of Miami

Georgia

• Savannah College of Art and Design

Illinois

• Columbia College
• DePaul University- Digital Cinema Program
• Northwestern University
• Southern Illinois University

Louisiana

• University of New Orleans

Massachusetts

• Boston University
• Fitchburg State College
• Hampshire College
• Emerson College

Missouri

• Missouri State
• Webster University

Montana

• Montana State University, offers a hands-on production program leading to a Bachelor of Arts in Motion Picture/Video/Theatre and the only Master of Fine Arts degree in Science and Natural History Filmmaking

New Mexico

• Moving Image Arts at the College of Santa Fe

New York

• Tisch School of the Arts at New York University
• New York University School of Continuing and Professional Studies
• Columbia University School of the Arts Film Division
• School of Visual Arts
• New York Film Academy Film School & Acting School
• City College of New York- City University of New York
• SUNY Purchase
• Vassar College Vogelstein Center for Drama and Film
• Hunter College Film and Media Department
• Brooklyn College
• Syracuse University
• Rochester Institute of Technology Film School

Nevada

• University of Nevada Las Vegas

North Carolina

• North Carolina School of the Arts

Oregon

• Art Institute of Portland

South Carolina

• Film Production at Trident Technical Collegeis the only two-year college in the country training students on 35mm film equipment.
• The Carolina Film Institute is opening in Greenville, SC in September 2008. It provides students with a full-tim 40 week program and internship in the industry at the end of the program.

Texas

• University of Texas at Austin, College of Communication.

Washington

• Seattle Film Institute

External links

• filmmaking.net Film Schools Directory - Provides details for over 860 film schools in 65 countries.
• USC, UCLA, and CalArts - Los Angeles Times
• 2001 film school rankings - U.S. News and World Report
• Coffee & Celluloid - Film school blog