Question by Nick L: School to attend to get into film/video/digital media?
preferrably in michigan. I’m currently attending a 4 year college in a program, which I sort of knew would be a mistake for the get-go. I cannot stand it here and have heard many times that to get into the industry a 4 year degree from a random college isn’t the best option anyway.. Some advice on what to do. I want to get into something else asap while I still can withdraw from classes. I’ve heard of Specs Howard School of Broadcast Arts.. any advice would be highly appreciated.
Best answer:
Answer by Earl D
The closest thing to you is going to be far and expensive. University of Chicago, School of the Art Institute of Chicago, maybe. Rochester Institute of Technoloy in New York.
To cover what you want to cover requires an interdisciplianry school and few qualify. Most teach filmmaking in one department. Broadcast in another wthich includes TV but is geared twoards Journalism. Digital media is often in the Computer or Art Department.
Places like USC and UCLA and Cal Arts in Los Angeles have such interdisciplinary set-ups.
A degree from a film school WILL NOT GET YOU A JOB, it don’t work like that.
Any 4 year college degree will qualify you to apply for the Directors Guide AD program which 10,000 people annually apply for and they take maybe 200. IT’s 2 year program pay is $ 7.50 an hour and you finish you qualify for a 2nd AD Union card.
There are also film editing and camera operating apprenceship programs.
The best way to get in is through a family member who is in.
The Industury is all union (your 2nd Card, by they way, will probably cost your $ 3,000 in one payment, certfied check) and you have to have a union card to do this or that.
One union card lets you carry equipment around (grip), one union card lets you put lenses and film magazines on cameras (loader or 3rd Camerama), one union card lets you run the camera duing the shooting (2nd Cameraman), one union card lets you position the camera, lights, align the shot, pick the lens and filter, compose the shot (1st Cameraman or DP).
Some unions shops work on a rotation basis. You get a job from the top of the list, you are moved to the bottom of the list. If the job lasts one day it may take six months to get back to the top of the list.
Other shops require you to get your own job through networking.
IT is against the rules to work non-union gigs and you can be fined and suspended if caught.
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