Film school, or no film school? That is the question. It's the question for many of us who have dreamed of making movies since we were kids, but haven't known where to start. It's a question for those of us who have been to film school and haven't found it particularly helpful. It's a question for those considering film school who don't really have the money for it and don't know if they'll be able to make a living from it afterwards, anyway.
Well, I've got good news for you. In the 21st century, you can get a film school education for practically free.
Because: The Internet.
I went to film school for a little while. I have often asked myself if it was really a useful experience or not. The truth is that, though I think film school gave me the initial push into the film world that I needed, ultimately I have learned far more just by reading articles, books, and blogs and by watching tutorials, interviews, and movies on my own.
So I decided to share with you some of the most useful wisdom I have found. And here's the good news: most of it's free.
The 7 Top Free Online Resources for Learning Filmmaking
1 So You Wanna Work in the Movies
This online article is practically a book, and it's a good place to start if--well, you wanna work in the movies. It basically goes through all the roles in the film industry, in alphabetical order, and explains what it's like and what it takes to work in each one. I would suggest reading this from top to bottom.
2 Future Learn: Free Online Courses
This website is totally amazing. All you have to do is create an account and you can take free courses from professionals in all kinds of fields. They have several courses on filmmaking, all of which are worth taking. This involves light reading and watching videos, and sometimes suggested exercises. The pace is reasonable, so you can do them in half the time suggested if you want to.
This website is a gigantic and ever-growing treasure trove of articles, videos, podcasts, and discussions for filmmakers by filmmakers. It's pretty great. I've learned so much on here. Follow their page on Facebook and you'll get links to interesting articles directly in your newsfeed. If you take the time to read a few articles every day or week, you'll start building up a bank of valuable knowledge.
Yes, Wikipedia. It's basically the best streamlined and cross-referenced database for film information on the Internet. I consider it even better than IMDb. You can learn so much over time just by reading the Production section on Wikipedia for each movie you watch. (By the way, you can skip the Plot section because you already know the plot since you just watched the movie--and if you haven't watched the movie don't read it either, because it will have spoilers.)
CineSummit is awesome. It's an online event held once or twice a year by filmmaker Aviv Vana. He interviews some of the hottest names in the world of cinema and makes the videos available for FREE for a couple of days. You also have the option to buy the entire summit to help keep the event in business and to watch the videos as often as you want. It is so worth attending. Sign up on the page to stay informed about the next dates.
This online film school was created and is run by full-time filmmaker Parker Walbeck. The course itself is not free, but there is a free webinar you can sign up for directly on the website. It is super helpful and interesting for people wanting to get a start in filmmaking as a business. I would highly recommend checking it out and seeing if the paid portion is something you'd want to invest in.
7 Small Is Beautiful: Making Movies As If Filmmakers Mattered
This is a sort of manifesto on independent filmmaking. I found it really meaningful once when I was feeling so small and powerless in a world that seemed ruled by the big and rich. If you ever feel like you'll never make it as a filmmaker because breaking into Hollywood is just too hard but it seems like the only way, give this a read and take it to heart. I hope it will comfort and encourage you like it did me.