The Truth: Is Film School Worth It?

The question of is film school worth it has been debated all over the internet ever since the late 90s. The same arguments tend to get tossed back and forth. Go to school for connections and craft, but Spielberg and most other famous directors never went. This conversation about is film school worth it has been based mostly on vague generalities, never before has specific evidence for or against film schools been utilized.

Film School Secrets is all about details and practical, useful tools. To that end, we hope to answer your question of is film school worth it with some visual aids. Take a look at this:

 

This is an actual job posting from NYU’s list serve. This is the “insider connection” that an NYU film school grads gets after spending almost a quarter of a million dollars ($240,000 with housing) on their education. This is the posting from August of 2010, but it’s very typical of the kind of opportunities you’ll see sent out every week.

Choir instructor, Specialist in Russian Art, Boom Pole Operator. You’d think NYU would have some more exciting or prestigious opportunities available, right? Unfortunately, what nobody tells incoming freshman is this: production managers do not like hiring film school graduates for real film jobs. It’s true. Why? Because film school grads have spent 4 years on student film sets, writing papers, and getting grades, while their peers who just started working have been on sets getting real experience.

Hence, film school grads are seen as a joke. As Kevin Smith humorously acts out in a short scene from his movie “Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back”.

 

 

Today’s modern film school graduates are riddled with overwhelming debt and have few options other than to start at the very bottom of the food chain, often starting well behind people younger than them with more experience. The cameras they use in class cost about 1/10th their entire tuition. And even after paying this much for school…

… most students start out at the bottom of the food chain, deeply in debt, with no real skills to help them get work.The best thing to do is start getting on real film sets for free, get your own film equipment, and start making your own movies.  To find out what to do instead of film school check out film school secrets. And if you still are wondering is film school worth it please continue to surf the site.