Looking for a Film Production course?
Hiya ! I'm looking to apply for a film production course to start in 2024 but I'm a bit stuck on a few things, so if someone could help me out that'd be lush aha.
1. How science-y would a BSc be for film production? I want to be a cinematographer and I feel that a BSc might be more employable and focus more on practical skills rather than too much film theory. But I'm not hugely good at science, especially physics so I don't know if I'd enjoy it. So I don't know whether it is better to do a BA or BSc?
2. What sort of things could I put in a portfolio? This is stressing me out as I have only developed my passion for filmmaking last year when I started A-Levels, so I don't have too much to show. I have a music video which I made as part of my media coursework, and some paperwork (storyboard, risk assessment, call sheet, proposal etc), but none of that is too amazing. I'm thinking of writing some scripts for short films in my summer break, where I'm also doing a short course at a film school where we are making a short film, so hopefully that will give me something else to add in. But what is the standard for portfolio work, as I only really have access to the camera on my phone, which isn't too brilliant, so my work does still look quite amateur.
3. Which universities are the best? Like overall, does anyone have any recommendations for film production/filmmaking? I'm riding it really difficult to find the best one for me as I think I'm quite picky. I'm trying to find a uni which is well-connected with employers (eg. South Wales has connections to Bad Wolf Studios), has really good facilities (so lots of studios, camera equipment and post-production suites etc), good lecturers, successful alumni, high student satisfaction rates and a good balance of practical and theoretical content. So yeah I am ridiculously picky aha.
4. Final one - what sort of films and television programmes should I watch before going into an interview or joining a course? I heard that Bournemouth ask you directly about Spielberg in interviews and might ask you about the last film you saw in the cinema and stuff like that? So what sort of things should I do and watch to prepare?
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
1. How science-y would a BSc be for film production? I want to be a cinematographer and I feel that a BSc might be more employable and focus more on practical skills rather than too much film theory. But I'm not hugely good at science, especially physics so I don't know if I'd enjoy it. So I don't know whether it is better to do a BA or BSc?
2. What sort of things could I put in a portfolio? This is stressing me out as I have only developed my passion for filmmaking last year when I started A-Levels, so I don't have too much to show. I have a music video which I made as part of my media coursework, and some paperwork (storyboard, risk assessment, call sheet, proposal etc), but none of that is too amazing. I'm thinking of writing some scripts for short films in my summer break, where I'm also doing a short course at a film school where we are making a short film, so hopefully that will give me something else to add in. But what is the standard for portfolio work, as I only really have access to the camera on my phone, which isn't too brilliant, so my work does still look quite amateur.
3. Which universities are the best? Like overall, does anyone have any recommendations for film production/filmmaking? I'm riding it really difficult to find the best one for me as I think I'm quite picky. I'm trying to find a uni which is well-connected with employers (eg. South Wales has connections to Bad Wolf Studios), has really good facilities (so lots of studios, camera equipment and post-production suites etc), good lecturers, successful alumni, high student satisfaction rates and a good balance of practical and theoretical content. So yeah I am ridiculously picky aha.
4. Final one - what sort of films and television programmes should I watch before going into an interview or joining a course? I heard that Bournemouth ask you directly about Spielberg in interviews and might ask you about the last film you saw in the cinema and stuff like that? So what sort of things should I do and watch to prepare?
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
BSc v BA is meaningless for Film courses.
Have a look at CILECT member film schools. These should have good facilities and industry contacts.
Your showreel should be less than 2 minutes in most cases - so you should ideally be editing together clips from various work (with captions explaining the brief and your roles in the film production for each clip) plus storyboards etc would be good. Do some research into Treatments too - those would be useful if you have some ideas but not enough time/resource to work them up into scripts/storyboards. Phone cameras can be fine but ask around - some family or friends might have something better you could use or try out (old camcorders, go pros etc etc - you could get a few different options together and try shooting a scene with different cameras to compare how the look/work and think through the pros and cons for different types of film/scene). Think about setting up your own website (wordpress or wix or even tumblr are good options) that you can combine video, images and files together in a portfolio.
Have a look at CILECT member film schools. These should have good facilities and industry contacts.
Your showreel should be less than 2 minutes in most cases - so you should ideally be editing together clips from various work (with captions explaining the brief and your roles in the film production for each clip) plus storyboards etc would be good. Do some research into Treatments too - those would be useful if you have some ideas but not enough time/resource to work them up into scripts/storyboards. Phone cameras can be fine but ask around - some family or friends might have something better you could use or try out (old camcorders, go pros etc etc - you could get a few different options together and try shooting a scene with different cameras to compare how the look/work and think through the pros and cons for different types of film/scene). Think about setting up your own website (wordpress or wix or even tumblr are good options) that you can combine video, images and files together in a portfolio.
Original post by PQ
BSc v BA is meaningless for Film courses.
Have a look at CILECT member film schools. These should have good facilities and industry contacts.
Your showreel should be less than 2 minutes in most cases - so you should ideally be editing together clips from various work (with captions explaining the brief and your roles in the film production for each clip) plus storyboards etc would be good. Do some research into Treatments too - those would be useful if you have some ideas but not enough time/resource to work them up into scripts/storyboards. Phone cameras can be fine but ask around - some family or friends might have something better you could use or try out (old camcorders, go pros etc etc - you could get a few different options together and try shooting a scene with different cameras to compare how the look/work and think through the pros and cons for different types of film/scene). Think about setting up your own website (wordpress or wix or even tumblr are good options) that you can combine video, images and files together in a portfolio.
Have a look at CILECT member film schools. These should have good facilities and industry contacts.
Your showreel should be less than 2 minutes in most cases - so you should ideally be editing together clips from various work (with captions explaining the brief and your roles in the film production for each clip) plus storyboards etc would be good. Do some research into Treatments too - those would be useful if you have some ideas but not enough time/resource to work them up into scripts/storyboards. Phone cameras can be fine but ask around - some family or friends might have something better you could use or try out (old camcorders, go pros etc etc - you could get a few different options together and try shooting a scene with different cameras to compare how the look/work and think through the pros and cons for different types of film/scene). Think about setting up your own website (wordpress or wix or even tumblr are good options) that you can combine video, images and files together in a portfolio.
Amazing!! That is so helpful, thank you!!
Original post by pennyjc
Amazing!! That is so helpful, thank you!!
Oh and on the "which films to watch" - subscribe to some podcasts/tv shows from film reviewers/nerds (Ali Plumb, Mark Kermode etc to start with and see if they mention any others that catch your interest) - if they mention a film that sounds interesting then watch it
Original post by PQ
Oh and on the "which films to watch" - subscribe to some podcasts/tv shows from film reviewers/nerds (Ali Plumb, Mark Kermode etc to start with and see if they mention any others that catch your interest) - if they mention a film that sounds interesting then watch it
Ah lush, I'll definitely do that. Thank you
Excellent advice from PQ as always. CILECT is a good starting point. Find out who the lecturers are at the different institutions and if they are doing exciting projects and who most recent industry guests are. Lots of film courses are largely the same in terms of teaching content and skills to learn being available, however what you personally get from them will be based much more on how motivated you personally are, and how good the individual tutors are. That’s only something you can truly know if you go to an open day and meet the staff and get a vibe and feeling for their passion. You will be learning from these people for three years so that’s the thing to get right.
Hiya, I want to find a film production course in the UK that has a lot of focus on the technical aspects of creating a film (eg. exactly how professionals would go about lighting a set, eg. talking about Celvin/white balance definition etc..) but also has the creative side of writing and directing it yourself and actually making your own film. I have found so far that lots of the courses are either BA, where you do all the creative elements like directing and writing and film theory, but less technical..or a BSc which focuses a lot on the technical and how the camera works and the science behind everything (which I like), but doesn't really let you make your own things for your own portfolio. So I think BSc is more for people that want to rig up a set for other people's ideas and that's it, and a lot of BA courses are for people that want to just write or direct but not know as much about the nitty gritty bits with the camera and lighting. But I want to be able to do both, so I can come up with my own ideas but then know all the technical elements and cinematography to create it and be able to work on a film set and know how it all works etc.
So does anyone know of any universities and courses that have a good balance of both?
So does anyone know of any universities and courses that have a good balance of both?
Original post by pennyjc
Hiya, I want to find a film production course in the UK that has a lot of focus on the technical aspects of creating a film (eg. exactly how professionals would go about lighting a set, eg. talking about Celvin/white balance definition etc..) but also has the creative side of writing and directing it yourself and actually making your own film. I have found so far that lots of the courses are either BA, where you do all the creative elements like directing and writing and film theory, but less technical..or a BSc which focuses a lot on the technical and how the camera works and the science behind everything (which I like), but doesn't really let you make your own things for your own portfolio. So I think BSc is more for people that want to rig up a set for other people's ideas and that's it, and a lot of BA courses are for people that want to just write or direct but not know as much about the nitty gritty bits with the camera and lighting. But I want to be able to do both, so I can come up with my own ideas but then know all the technical elements and cinematography to create it and be able to work on a film set and know how it all works etc.
So does anyone know of any universities and courses that have a good balance of both?
So does anyone know of any universities and courses that have a good balance of both?
I'm confused as to why you're basically posting the same thing again when posters have answered your questions - there really is no real difference between BSc and BA for Film, and it's also a mistake to assume courses that teach theory *only* teach theory. Many courses offer a mix of practical and theoretical modules because practice and theory don’t exist in vacuums but naturally work together in films. I'm confused as to why you don't think you'd learn about things like lighting and editing when they're inherently part of the theory side as well as the practical side.
It may interest you to learn that UAL has a very practical BA but does not require a portfolio/showreel, but goes off grades and Personal Statement despite being a CILECT member (I think it may actually be the only CILECT school not to require a portfolio). Also in my experience it's MA courses that film students tend to really specialise in, many BAs have you try a bit of everything as many if not most undergrads won't have studied Film Studies or practical filmmaking.
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