Beginning Film at GSU

[THX1138]

Hi everyone I am THX1138 (one of my favorite films). I am 18 years old and have been interested in making films for years. I'm actually starting research now since I am heading off to college soon and am taking it seriously I've only ever shot 1 real short film on a "Sony DCR-TRV33". It was for a class project and was about 8 minutes long- Senior year of High school. Unfortunately I lack the funds to go to a big Film School and will be attending Georgia Southern University in Statesboro, Georgia About an hour away from Savannah. The school only offers a minor in Film Studies and it looks like this:

Prerequisites:

Select one of the following:

FILM 2331 - Introduction to Film (3)

FILM/ENGL 2434 - The Language of Film (3)

Minor Program:

FILM/AMST 3331 - History of American Film (3)

FILM 3333 - Art of Film (3)

Select three of the following:

FILM 3030 - Selected Topics in Film (3)

FILM 3332 - Documentary Film (3)

FILM/POLS 3334 - Film and Politics (3)

FILM/IRSH 3430 - Ireland in Film (3)

FILM/ENGL 3535 - Patterns in Film and Literature (3)

For someone who is interested in a career in cinematography/ Directing etc...I really am not sure on what courses to take apart from these. Any Suggestions would be nice the schools website is: http://www.georgiasouthern.edu/

I plan on making my own films on campus. And I need a reliable camcorder to do so. I want my films to look professional. What do most students attending film schools have (Camcorder-wise?) Are some features a must? such as 3CCD, HD Quality etc... I won't be giving a budget but for my situation what camcorders are ideal for me? Thanks

 

[knightly]

Schools that have a production element to their film studies programs will often have equipment you can use. You can also check the media services (ours is in our library) to see if you have access to check out cameras.

To get access to better equipment, see if the school has a broadcasting/journalism school within it. They often have really nice equipment that you can use for free (you're already paying for them as a student through your student fees and tuition) by working on one of their productions. See if the school has a TV station (ours is UTVS at St. Cloud State University)

Remember, that student demand for courses dictates what happens to a department. Our film studies department started out as a minor too, now we have a full major and are getting more production courses in addition to stellar film theory and analysis courses. Talk up the minor and the courses to everyone you can...if more people take the courses, the numbers people will figure out that there is a student demand for the program and nudge it forward into a full major after a couple of years and students asking why it's not bigger.

If you want, I could forward contact information for your department head in the FS dept at GSU to our FS faculty if they would like input as to how we grew our dept from minor to major with classes that are loaded with students within 5 years.

http://www.stcloudstate.edu/theatrefilmdance/film/default.asp

 

[THX1138]

http://www.georgiasouthern.edu/majors/ On the majors Page I saw "Broadcasting, B.S., (Production Emphasis), 125 Hours - Undergraduate" I will speak with an Academic adviser to which courses I can take. However are there any camcorders out there that I could purchase to make quality films, Just so I could get experience and possibly show an employer the films one day?

 

[directorik]

I plan on making my own films on campus. And I need a reliable camcorder to do so. I want my films to look professional. What do most students attending film schools have (Camcorder-wise?) Are some features a must? such as 3CCD, HD Quality etc... I won't be giving a budget but for my situation what camcorders are ideal for me? Thanks

There are three things that are VERY important when getting a camera:

Three CCD’s or CMOS
Manual controls for the iris, shutter, focus and white balance.
A microphone input.

In the $1,000 - $1,500 range:

The JVC GZ-MG505 is in the $800 range. It has a mic input and
records to a 30GB HHD. The downside is the MPEG-2 compression.
This high compression is lower quality than MiniDV and most editing
software don’t work well this this compressed video.

I like the new JVC GZ-HD7. I’ve seen these on line for as little as $1,200
. A really nice Fujinon lens makes a huge difference and full manual controls
is important. Three 1/5’ 16:9 progressive scan CCD’s are pretty impressive
for a camera in this price range. It records directly to a built in 60GB hard
drive. It has manual controls, a mic input and an excellent focus ring which
is surprisingly rare on small cameras.

Both the JVC HD5 and HD6 have a mic input and both record to HDD - the
HD6 can record 1080/60p through HDMI - pretty impressive.

The Panasonic HDC-SD100 uses a 3-CMOS array and records 1920 x 1080
video in the AVCHD format to SD and SDHC memory cards. I like the ring
on the lens that controls zoom, focus, white balance, shutter speed, and iris
and it actually has a viewfinder in addition to the LCD screen. Very important
it has both a mic and headphone jack. I found it difficult to handle with all
the cables attached (mic, headphones and monitor) but it’s a camera with
all the basics.

Close is the Canon HV20. It records in HDV (1080i) and 24p (60i), has a mic
input and manual controls of white balance and focus but it uses one 1/2.7”
CMOS sensor rather than 3 CCD’s. And it’s so small the handling is difficult.

The HV30 adds a 30f (Canon’s “frame mode”) in addition to 24p.

The Sony HDR-SR12 has a mic input and a good sized 120GB HDD. It uses a
1/3” CMOS chip and like the Canon is really small. Because of the input placement,
the mic cable kept getting in my way. The HR9 (which records to tape) is also
a nice, very small, camera with the essentials. Again the mic input is just below
the lens which is rather poor placement, in my opinion.

 

[THX1138]

Thanks for the help, I appreciate you answering my "What camera should I get" Question. I looked around the site a little and realized this was THE Newbie question lol. Thank you for the help. I'm looking forward to being a part of this film making community!

 

[indietalk]

 

[THX1138]

I sent this email to an academic adviser at the university I'll post the response when it comes.

I understand that GSU does not have a film major. However, for someone like me (Interested in pursuing a career in film industry- as a Cinematographer) Which courses could I take to ensure I get hands on training with Film Production? I've noticed the Film minor and Broadcasting, B.S., (Production Emphasis). Which courses can I take that would allow me to have access to Professional Camcorders, Cameras, Lighting, editing software etc...? I'm regretting the courses I chose at orientation. When and how will I be able to change them? Which courses are absolutley necessary for a freshman to take? I don't plan on staying at GSU for 4 years. Thanks for your help!