Should I pursue a film degree?

[likeabaker]

I am a senior in highschool wanting to become a filmmaker someday. Obviously I'm in the middle of a college search, and I'm very interested in getting a degree in filmmaking. I understand that getting any arts degree doesn't get you a high paying job.

Is it worth it to just jump straight into the filmmaking world going full-time right away with a degree? I may try working for production companies to get a stable job then move on to making my own stuff.

What other degrees would complement nicely for being a filmmaker? I'm a musician as well and would love to continue that path in connection with filmmaking.

How many people here have a degree that is film related?

Thanks,

Brett

 

[jax_rox]

If don't have it and want to be "in the film business", by all means, go to film school. But you won't be making films. You'll be working on other people's films.

IMO, they're the same thing - working on a film is making a film. Film is, after all, a collaborative effort. Not everyone can be a Director, and the amount of Hollywood Directors vs amateur Directors who want to be in Hollywood is stark testament to that.
Working on a set in place of going to film school is also working on someone else's film, so I'm not really sure what your point here is..

If you want to be a Director, that's great - but it doesn't happen overnight. And, very, very, very few of those who want to be Directors actually end up making a living out of it.
Going to film school is one way to make good films, and get your name out there - not only through the films you make and the festivals you'll enter them into, but also the fact that at least some of the other students will eventually be working and making a living in the industry within the next 5 or so years after graduation.

I have friends I met at film school who now work at rental houses. Now, that means they can only shoot on weekends, but on the weekends they can bring to set whatever equipment that isn't out for the weekend. I was on a set recently - a low budget set where they shot on Alexa with a complete set of Cooke s4/i Primes, had HMIs, Kinos and fresnels, had a Spider Dolly etc. etc. etc.

Plus the Alexa was completely kitted out including two DP6's for the Focus Puller, and a 17" HD Studio reference monitor for the Director.

Imagine if you were the Director of that, having met the guy during film school.

Now that's not to say you can't make a living, or shoot that kind of thing without going to film school - but to exclude film school as an option simply because is foolish.

 

[Sweetie]

I went to film school back in the days. While I think the experience was well worth it, there is so much that you miss during film school in which I wish was taught.

The truth of the matter, film school will help lower your learning curve, but most of the time you're learning from people who haven't made it. With that in mind, you need to keep an open mind that what they're teaching is likely not going to be enough to become successful in the industry but it will still help you get a foot in the door. You're going to have to find your own legs and work out how to lift yourself up above the usual and be the best.

 

[jax_rox]

The truth of the matter, film school will help lower your learning curve, but most of the time you're learning from people who haven't made it. With that in mind, you need to keep an open mind that what they're teaching is likely not going to be enough to become successful in the industry but it will still help you get a foot in the door. You're going to have to find your own legs and work out how to lift yourself up above the usual and be the best.

This goes back to my point about: it depends. You're going to get much more out of say AFI or USC than say Film Riot's YouTube videos.

And it's also about keeping your head screwed on. At any film school, there are those that are doing well, and those that have failed. In my film school, we had quite a few lecturers who would lecture in their down-time simply because the money was amazing. They'd spend a year or two lecturing, then get back out and work in the industry again.
We had those full timers who were there because they'd failed in the industry, but they were the people who had been there for quite some time, and quite often the higher-ups. You tend to pick up, very quickly, on who you should/shouldn't listen to.

 

[likeabaker]

I haven't been on in a week or so; I was surprised to find so many replies to this! Thank you so much for all of your opinions!

 

[Rennoy123]

Find Out What Others Did

Probably one of the best ways to find that answer out is to possibly go to wikipedia of some of biography site of your favorite film makers and find out their story. What did they do to make it. Did they go to school initially or later on as they moved up the ranks. If they went to school was it actually for film making or did they gravitate to it. It is always good to poll the professionals as well since they have the experience to how they got to where they are in the first.

Also, try to check out more recent film makers as things change over time. Initially, you don't have to have a degree in film making. Some people go back to school to maybe study certain specialties in the film making industry. Focus more on film making, time management and how you are going to get your product produces as that will more than likely not be taught in school - rather relationship building.

 

[PurpleWindX]

You can always start by reading books. I recomend $30 Dollar Film School (little oudated, but you still learn alot) you could get this book at a public library.

 

[Steve_in_MD]

You can always start by reading books. I recomend $30 Dollar Film School (little oudated, but you still learn alot) you could get this book at a public library.

I was not a big fan of $30 Film School, but I agree books are a good start. Dov Simens book From Reel to Deal was better. I generally prefer books on more specialized filmmaking topics over the generalized books like those, but that's probably because I got some background from reading articles online and taking video production classes in high school before diving in.