This accelerated one-year program offers the instruction and film production that would require two or more years at a traditional film school.
Overview
Our one-year film school program gives students the all-around filmmaking experience necessary to make their own films. In one year, students accomplish what would require two or three years of study at a traditional film school. The year is based on our academic calendar of eight months with one to two weeks of vacation. Film school students in the program receive over 1,000 hours of hands-on instruction and actual production experience, and have the choice of pursuing the program in New York City or Los Angeles. Additionally, film school students can study abroad at our location in London. They all write, shoot, direct, and edit at least eight of their own short films (including a thesis sync-sound film). They shoot projects on 16mm film, digital, 35mm film, and HD. All projects are edited digitally.
To create this film school curriculum, we have distilled the key ingredients of the most respected graduate and undergraduate film schools from around the world to provide an intensive year of learning and production. Our one-year filmmaking program is for people who have the passion to plunge into full-time filmmaking, but do not want to spend three or four years in a traditional film school. It requires film school students to commit themselves to a focused and demanding curriculum for a full academic year. No previous filmmaking experience is required, however, participants must work with self- discipline, energy and mutual respect.
As in all New York Film Academy film school programs the one-year course emphasizes hands-on learning. Film directing classes are not theoretical explorations; they are practical workshops designed to put students in the director's chair as quickly as possible. In all camera and lighting classes, students work with the equipment and are taught how to use the equipment to most effectively communicate their ideas.
Film school students at the New York Film Academy will not be limited to learning only one film or video format. In addition to working with 16mm and 35mm film, and 24P digital video, New York Film Academy students will be introduced to the ever-growing field of High-Definition digital filmmaking. Each participant will get the opportunity to explore the many different formats currently available in this exciting new medium. A special focus on HD is part of the second semester where each person will learn the HD workflow from capture to presentation in a hands-on production workshop. They have the option of shooting their thesis films on any of the formats listed above, including HD.
The film schools of the New York Film Academy encourage individuals to take creative risks and find their own voices as visual artists. Students complete the year in filmmaking with skills in all the filmmaking crafts, an enormous amount of production experience, a body of their own work, a one-year diploma, and an expanded awareness of themselves and others.
One-year Filmmaking students are invited to visit one of our film schools before the course begins.
This can help participants acclimate to life in the city, settle into their accommodations, and to organize their lives before the intensive year of filmmaking begins.
SEMESTER ONE OVERVIEW
Beginning on day one, film school students participate in an intensive sequence of classes in Film Directing, Screenwriting, 16mm Camera Technique, Lighting, Digital Editing, Directing Actors and Production Workshop. They extend and deepen their in-class learning by producing their own short 16mm films. Working in crews of three or four, each student writes, produces, directs and edits four films, up to 10 minutes in length. In addition, each film school student fulfills the essential roles of Director of Photography, Assistant Camera Operator, and Gaffer (Lighting Technician) on the films of her/his crew members. Thus, everyone has the extensive hands-on experience of working on sixteen short films in the first two months.
During the third month, film class is introduced to new digital video technology. With its ease of use, the digital video cameras will allow the students to delve deeper into the director's craft. Each individual will direct a series of digital projects, and will conclude the semester with a first semester final project on digital video. The supporting classes will include Screenwriting, Directing Actors, Directing, Production Workshop, Documentary Filmmaking. The combination of these classes and the digital productions will prepare students for the second semester and production of their thesis films.
OBJECTIVES
PRODUCTION GOALS
• Write, direct, digitally edit four short non-synchronous 16mm films. The fourth film can be up to 10 minutes in length with multiple tracks of sound.
• Be cinematographer, gaffer, and assistant camera on your crew's films.
• Write a short film script with dialogue (for 2nd semester production).
• Write, direct, and edit three digital projects including a final Semester One project of up to ten minutes with multiple tracks of sound including dialogue.
LEARNING GOALS
• Learn art and technique of visual storytelling including directing, cinematography, editing, and post-production sound design.
• Learn fundamentals of digital video production and digital editing.
• Survey of the documentary format with focus on styles, techniques and elements of storytelling.
• Fundamental training in acting craft and directing actors.
• Immersion in screenwriting craft.
CLASSES
DIRECTOR'S CRAFT
This course is the backbone of our film school curriculum. It introduces students to the language and craft of film directing. Director's Craft prepares students for the film exercises and is the venue for screening and critiquing their work throughout the course. Director's Craft instructors challenge students to find the most effective and expressive visual means to tell their stories. They guide the student film crews in special production meetings each week.
SCREENWRITING I
This class is designed to help students develop their scripts for their films. It focuses on the fundamentals of visual storytelling and provides students with constructive analysis and support as they take a story from initial idea, treatment, step outline to a rough draft, and finally, a shooting script. The intersection of story structure, theme, character, tension, and conflict is examined through detailed scene analysis.
HANDS ON CAMERA AND LIGHTING
16MM FILM
In the first week of the course, students are trained to use the 16mm Arriflex-S motion picture camera and its accessories. Unlike other film schools, our students learn to load the cameras and take light readings on the very first day instead of being handed a book. On the second day, they perform test shoots to learn about the latitude of the film stock, how to get a correct exposure, the effect of different lenses, focus pulling, and in-camera effects. In lighting class, they learn fundamental lighting techniques through shooting tests on film. As they progress through the workshop, they learn how to support the mood of the story with lighting choices and they experiment with expressive lighting styles.
PRODUCTION WORKSHOP
Production workshop is designed to demystify the craft of filmmaking. It is a hands-on class in which students stage and shoot exercises under the supervision of the instructor. The technical aspects of filmmaking are seen as tools to realize the story. The guiding idea is that once students can articulate the objective of a given scene, the necessary craft and techniques will follow. Through the in-class exercises, the rules and tools of mise-en-scene and continuity are defined and practiced. This applies to the use of lenses, lighting, performance, and editing.
EDITING
Editing is an art unto itself. Regardless of the editing system a filmmaker uses, it is the editor's ability to work with the shots and tell a story that makes all the difference. One-year students will learn how to use the digital editing system, Final Cut Pro. Each student edits his or her own films, and can supplement classes with individual consultations at the editing station. Students will be taught the fundamental concepts of film editing, both practical and aesthetic. Classes consist of lectures that combine technical information and demonstration.
SOUND EDITING AND DESIGN
This is a comprehensive class that details the process of sound editing and design. It provides concepts, technical information, and hands-on demonstration. Our approach is to encourage students to create sound tracks that combine both realistic and expressive sound elements. Examples are given to illustrate both seamless sound design and bold, expressive use of sound that call attention to the director's personality. The class challenges the students to use sound as an additional tool for storytelling, and takes them through the complete post-production process.
BUDGETING AND SCHEDULE
This course teaches our film school students how to break down a film script for budgeting and scheduling purposes. Students learn how to use all the necessary forms for use in their own short films. The importance of having a finished script before going into a shoot is stressed as it applies to creating realistic budgets and schedules.
HANDS ON CAMERA AND LIGHTING - DIGITAL VIDEO
Designed to help students master digital video photography including white balance, shutter speed, focus, video latitude, gels, and filters. Through hands-on exercises students will explore the possibilities of digital video and learn how it differs from film. Students learn how to get the best quality sound recording by working with boom-poles and external shotgun microphones.
DIRECTING ACTORS: INTRODUCTION
This course helps our film school students learn how to communicate and collaborate with their actors. Students learn how to identify a screenplay's emotional "beats" and "character objectives" in order to improve their actors' performances. Through exercises, both in class and on location, students learn how an actor trains his/herself physically and emotionally to "crawl inside a character." Sensory work, emotional recall, and improvisations are the tools the students will be exposed to in order to understand how an actor is able to live out a character's reality.
SCREENWRITING II
As students take part in the Digital Camera classes and Directing Actors classes, they also begin an intensive writing period. In Screenwriting class, they develop a premise for their second semester project and then take it all the way to a final shooting script of up to fifteen pages. This will be achieved through a combination of one-on-one consultations with their faculty mentors, in-class readings and supportive discussions, and at least three rewrites.
DOCUMENTARY FILMMAKING
This course is an elective, however, it is mandatory for film school students who would like to make a documentary as their thesis film in the second semester. Subjects in the documentary class include: documentary styles, shooting approach, methods of interviewing, documentary structure, theme, documentary editing, importance of research, "truth and objectivity," point of view, ethical questions, and reenactment.
SPECIAL LECTURES
Classic Myth Structure
This lecture examines Joseph Campbell's analysis of myth structure, and demonstrates point by point how the 12 steps of the hero's journey can be applied to the dramatic structure of a film and beyond. Scene-by-scene analysis of classic films demonstrates a convincing argument for this relationship. The lecture concludes with a discussion about how students can use Campbell's concepts to structure their own short films.
Director's Vision
The Director's Vision lecture exposes students to the unique ways great directors have approached visual storytelling and how they have used mise-en-scene (the task of staging scenes and moving actors within the frame). The class will look at the idea of the director as author of the sequence. Students are shown by example how silent film construction relies on scenes in conflict or collision. This concept is expanded by showing the relevance of these ideas to modern films, particularly for sequences involving tension or suspense where extra emphasis or shock is required. There will be a broad presentation of film technique as individualized by a number of directors. Numerous examples of directing styles are shown along with a discussion of their relevance to beginning filmmakers.
The second semester challenges students to develop their film craft artistically and technically, and to progress beyond their earlier experiments with the medium. It is designed to enable students to create a fully conceived and executed short film thesis, shot in 16mm using the Arriflex SR, in 35mm using a Panavision Panaflex, or on 24p digital video, depending on the student. Each student comes to the second semester with a script for his/her thesis film project. These projects are the primary focus of the second semester. They are used in all the classes as a basis for learning.
The semester is divided into four distinct phases. The first is devoted to intensive hands-on instruction, demonstration, group sync-sound directing exercises (using students' thesis scripts), individual consultations, and pre-production (including casting, rehearsal, and location scouting).The second phase of the
semester is the production period during which each film school student directs his/her own film, and crews on his/her classmates' films. The third part of the program is devoted to post-production. During this phase students edit digitally, receive instruction and critique, screen rough-cuts of the films, receive feedback and then finish their films for a final group screening.
In the fourth phase of the second semester, students will have the opportunity to create a reel showcasing all the films they have directed in the year program. During this period they attend classes called "Life after the New York Film Academy," where they develop strategies for pursuing filmmaking after the end of the program. Each student who completes this semester will leave with his/her own thesis film, a reel, and hundreds of hours of production experience.
• Direct and edit a sync-sound narrative film of up to 15 minutes. (16mm, 35mm, digital or high definition)
• Participate as a crew member on fellow students' films and group projects
• Shoot and edit scenes on 35mm film using Panavision cameras
• Create director's reel to showcase all your work from the entire program
LEARNING GOALS
• Advanced filmmaking craft including directing, casting, producing, sync-sound production, color cinematography, editing and sound design.
• Learn fundamentals of 35mm
• Develop strategy for pursuing filmmaking after the end of the program.
SEMESTER TWO CLASSES
ADVANCED DIRECTING
This class further explores the aesthetic elements of mise-en-scene: shot choice, composition, setting, point-of-view, action of the picture plane, and movement of the camera. Starting where the first semester directing class left off, students learn how to cover a dialogue scene with a series of shots as well as more sophisticated approaches to coverage including the use of dollies. Students practice different approaches to coverage by breaking down scenes from their own scripts. They create floor plans and shot lists, and then discuss their choices with the instructor.
CASTING
This class builds on the tools our film school students gained in the Directing Actors program of the first semester. Students break down their own scripts by identifying the dramatic beats of their scenes and translating this into effective feedback for actors. Students learn to adjust character objectives through rehearsal. This results in specific and believable performances. By "workshopping" scenes from their own scripts, the class demonstrates the effectiveness of the method and maximizes individual attention. Actors are brought in to class to perform from the students' scripts and give them feedback and in-class directing experience.
PRODUCING
To ensure an organized shoot, students must take their films through a comprehensive pre-production period. The producing class leads them through the entire process of pre-production, including scouting and securing of locations, permits, and casting. The producing instructor and the students design production schedule for the entire class. The instructor encourages students to form realistic plans for successfully making their films.
ADVANCED HANDS ON CAMERA
Students are trained to operate the Arriflex 16SR camera and accessories. Through hands-on practice they learn:
• Loading film magazine
• Attaching magazine to camera
• Proper care and cleaning of all camera equipment
• Use of battery and charger
• Use of tripod
• Testing & preventing problems
• How camera maintains sync
• Slating
• Camera reports
• Functions of all moving parts
• Eye-piece and zoom lens
• Marking focus pulls and zooms
• Labeling magazine and film can
• Review of focal lengths, filters, and apertures
• Use of Elemack Spyder dolly and track
CINEMATOGRAPHY AND GUERILLA LIGHTING
This class immerses students in the technical and creative demands of cinematography. Color film stocks are tested to help students make the best choice for their films. The use of color correcting filters and gels is practiced through shooting tests. Lighting and contrast ratios are reviewed. In addition, students learn the most economical ways to light a scene. By shooting set-ups from students' own storyboards. The Guerrilla Lighting aspect of the class provides our film school students with a practical approach to getting the most out of their resources.
ADVANCED PRODUCTION WORKSHOP
In a series of sync-sound production exercises, students shoot scenes on 16mm film from their own scripts with the guidance and critique of the instructor. One of the many benefits is that they are able to determine what adjustments to make to their scripts and shooting plans before their films go into production. These practice scenes are fully pre-produced (storyboarded, cast, scouted, rehearsed and pre-lighted) and treated as actual productions. Students gain experience working together and fill all the key crew positions (Director, Director of Photography, Sound Recordist, Gaffer, Grip, and Boom Operator).They spend a full production day shooting each scene with the same lighting, sound, and camera support they will use on their own films. They work with a grip equipment package (flags, nets, gels, stands, and clamps) and practice how to control light. Students come out of a series of production workshop shoots with practical producing, directing, lighting, shooting, and sync-sound recording experience.
DIALOGUE RECORDING
This hands-on class teaches students how to record sync-sound for their projects. Location recording, sound mixing and boom operation are practiced using scenes from the students' scripts. Sound will be recorded using DAT recorders shotgun microphones and wireless lavalier microphones.
SYNC-SOUND EDITING
Dailies from the Advanced Production Workshop exercises are transferred to digital video so that students learn to sync and edit with dialogue. This gives students the hands-on technical training they need to edit their own projects. An even greater benefit is the creative discoveries students make when they compare the very different versions that are edited from the same material. With this hands-on practice in sync-sound editing, students will go into production on their own films with a full understanding of the challenge that awaits them after the shoot.
SOUND DESIGN
This class details both the practical sound editing choices and the aesthetic decisions students will need to make on their own films. It is given during the post-production period after students return from their final film shoots. It covers the following subjects:
• Working with dialogue
• Equalization
• Sampling and looping
• Using multiple audio tracks on Final Cut Pro
• Rubberbanding (digital audio manipulation)
• Building FX ambience and music tracks
• Preparing for a mix
• Overlapping sound
• Subliminal sound
• Location sound, foleys, and ADR
• Introduction to ProTools and other software
• Visual sound cues
• Working with a composer
SPECIAL LECTURES
Life After the New York Film Academy
There is no single path or formula for creating a career in filmmaking. New York Film Academy graduates have gone on to win awards at film festivals, start production companies, become cinematographers, film editors, screenwriters, directors, and even actors. During the last weeks of the One-Year Program, students will explore the many different possible roads to a life in film. Guest filmmakers will share their experiences with students and mentors will work individually with students to discuss the next step in their careers. The following subjects will be covered in the seminar: • Your reel
• Writing a feature
• Film festivals
• The studio system and alternatives
• Getting an agent
• The Internet and web television
• Contracts
• Documentaries
• Grants
• Commercials/music videos
PRE-PRODUCTION, PRODUCTION AND POST-PRODUCTION OF THE
2ND SEMESTER FILM
Film school students start the second semester with a finished script of up to 15 pages. They will continue to improve these scripts in one-on-one consultations with their mentors and as they work with scenes from their scripts in their other classes. During the instruction period they will begin to find locations, cast, and design their shoots. Starting in the seventh week of the semester, they will work exclusively on pre-production. They will continue to meet with instructors in one-on-one advisement sessions to get feedback on their shooting script, casting, storyboards, floor plans, schedules and budgets.
Each of our film school students receives five shooting days, according to the schedule designed in Producing class. Students work on their classmates' films in the principal crew roles. Schedules are designed to allow for days off between productions and for last-minute preparations for the subsequent shoot. The production period is six to eight weeks and is as intense and demanding as a professional feature film shoot.
After the production period, students begin editing their films. They screen rough-cuts of their films for the directing instructor and their mentors and receive feedback before presenting their finished films to an invited audience at the end of the course. Throughout the post-production period, the editing instructor is available for consultation. Students will have up to 300 hours of individual editing time. They finish their films with a digital sound mix on the computer. Some students may choose to do more elaborate sound work and take their films to a professional sound mix.
Any college credit or degree earned is awarded solely by the New York Film Academy's academic headquarters in California.
All camps are solely owned and operated by the New York Film Academy and are not affiliated with Universal Studios, Harvard University, or Disney Studios.
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