More than a dozen grads were also nominated for their own Emmy awards, including Eric Kovtun, who was Executive Producer on Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story (nominated for Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series), John Pitron as Production Mixer on The Amazing Race (Outstanding Reality Competition Program), and Jeffrey Roy and Marc Fishman as part of the sound mixing team on The Last of Us (Outstanding Sound Mixing For A Comedy Or Drama Series). 

Other grads recognized in the Outstanding Sound Mixing category include Jamison Rabbe (Production Mixer - The White Lotus), Patrick Christensen (ADR Mixer - The Bear), and Trino Madriz (ADR Mixer - Shrinking). In total, 13 graduates received individual nominations, contributing to shows including The Pitt, Love, Death, and Robots, and Secret Level. 

From Outstanding Drama Series nominees like Andor, Paradise, and Severance to Outstanding Comedy Series noms for Abbott Elementary and The Studio, some of the year’s most celebrated television had Full Sail graduates in roles that included lighting, visual effects, sound editing, and more. Grads also contributed to nominees in categories like Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series The Penguin, Black Mirror and Outstanding Television Movie The Gorge, and Bridget Jones: Mad About The Boy.

Full Sail grads also contributed to projects spanning animation, comedy, and unscripted series, including titles like Arcane, The Righteous Gemstones, What We Do In The Shadows, Love is Blind, and more. 

Full Sail’s level of industry presence is a result of the way it prepares its students for careers in the film and television industry. 

“Full Sail’s unique, hands-on approach to education is unique in that it is structured to emulate the real-world experience,” says Rick Ramsey, Full Sail’s Education Director of Visual Arts. Students train in facilities that mirror professional environments, with access to soundstages, professional-grade cameras and lenses, a Hollywood-style backlot, a Dolby-certified Dub stage, and a virtual production studio. “Our students have access to hardware and software recommended by our Program Advisory Committee, and production days follow industry standards with 12-hour days.” 

Networking is another cornerstone of the student experience. Full Sail often welcomes professional productions, including recent partnerships with WWE’s Raw Classics, Orlando City Soccer,  and Coca-Cola. Students also collaborate across degree programs, working together on cross-platform projects like virtual production shoots where 3D Arts students design environments and film students adapt them for use on set. 

“This type of cross-platform networking allows students from varying degrees to see how their skills interact with other programs, thus expanding post-graduation opportunities for employment,” adds Rick.

Combined with career readiness courses and lifelong career development services, these opportunities give graduates the tools and connections needed to thrive in a competitive industry.

Many excellent schools teach film history and theory, but the ones on this list especially highlight hands-on filmmaking experience that can help you survive in a famously tough field. 

Some are obvious choices, like USC, the alma mater of Sinners director Ryan Coogler, and NYU, whose alums include Sean Baker, a four-time Oscar winner for his latest, the Best Picture winning Anora. If you can get into a top-tier school like USC or NYU — and can afford it, perhaps with the benefit of big financial aid packages — of course you should attend.

But we also want to highlight excellent schools that are more affordable, like Danny McBride’s alma mater, the University of North Carolina School of the Arts. And we’ve looked for affordable hidden gems like SUNY Stony Brook, where you can learn from one of the most prolific and successful producers in the business, Christine Vachon. 

We’ve also sought out great, accessible programs at the community college level, where you can make films while working on a transfer to a major institution — and perhaps find work in the industry as you learn your craft.

We’ve tried to be as clear as possible about costs, and ways of offsetting those costs, but apples-to-apples comparisons are sometimes impossible due to the wide range of programs available. 

Not every school on this list will be the right choice for everyone, but we believe that no matter who you are, where you’re coming from, or what type of work you want to pursue, at least one of the schools on this list will be the right choice for you.

Our 2025 List of the Best Film Schools in the U.S. and Canada

AFI Conservatory (Los Angeles) 

Freddy MacDonald became the youngest Directing Fellow ever accepted to the AFI Conservatory thanks to his short film “Sew Torn,” which evolved into an impressive feature debut released earlier this year, when he was just 24. He calls AFI’s Directing program “absolutely pivotal to my development as a filmmaker.” One of the best-regarded film schools of all, AFI offers a two-year MFA curriculum with intensive training in six disciplines — cinematography, directing, editing, producing, production design and screenwriting. It promises that each student will make between three and 10 films by graduation, and get their money’s worth for the $75,508 in annual tuition. (Financial aid is available.) MacDonald wouldn’t change a thing about his AFI experience: “The hands-on curriculum gave me the tools and space to craft my voice on set, while also pushing me to write the feature that would become my debut,” he told MovieMaker. “With AFI’s incredible support, my thesis film ended up winning a Student Academy Award, which helped launch my feature into production right after graduation. But beyond the skills, it was the community that made AFI so special — collaborators and mentors who continue to shape my creative life.” The equipment, faculty and access to the industry are top-notch, and alums include directors Andrea Arnold, Todd Field, Ari Aster, Patty Jenkins, Terrence Malick and the late David Lynch. 

Antioch University (Los Angeles) 

Antioch has established itself as one of the best rising opportunities for screenwriters with its MFA in Creative Writing, which takes an apprenticeship approach: Each faculty member works one-on-one with just three to six students each semester. The school draws visits from some of the world’s best storytellers, including Winnie Holtzman (Wicked), Jennifer Lee (Frozen) and Stephen McFeely (The Avengers). During the two-year low-residency MFA program, students work off campus for five-month periods, then gather for 10-day residencies in December and June. The total cost is $48,016, and many students receive substantial grants. Faculty include playwright and actor John Cariani and The Wire veteran Joy Kecken. 

Boston University (Boston) 

The alumni network at Boston University is remarkable, with entertainment powerhouses ranging from Howard Stern and Andy Cohen to Hong Chau and Julianne Moore having graced the school’s halls. Both Safdie Brothers, including our cover star Benny Safdie, graduated from the College of Communication, where they took advantage of the school’s unique approach to filmmaking, which includes rigorous liberal arts requirements and small classrooms with personalized attention that aim to imbue students with a deep understanding of the essential questions facing us all. Annual undergraduate tuition is $69,870.

CalArts (Santa Clarita, California) 

Tim Burton and the late Paul Reubens are among the many fiercely original artists who attended CalArts — so it’s no wonder it’s considered among the most creative schools in the world. CalArts particularly attracts bold, standout animators. Further opportunities to expand creative horizons include student exchange programs at schools like ​​the Srishti Manipal Institute of Art, Design and Technology in Bengaluru, India, and Universität der Künste in Berlin. Tuition is roughly $60,000 annually for undergraduate and graduate students.

Chapman University (Orange, California) 

The Dodge College of Film and Media Arts’ reputation has steadily climbed thanks to a list of alums including Stranger Things creators the Duffer Brothers, Smile creator Parker Finn, and Twinless writer-director-star James Sweeney. Close to Los Angeles, it offers excellent guests who have recently included recent Anora’s Best Actress Oscar winner Mikey Madison, as well as Anthony Hopkins, Daniel Craig, Selena Gomez, Amanda Seyfried, Colman Domingo, Ava DuVernay, Damien Chazelle, Rodrigo Prieto, Rob Legato and Julie Delpy. Other draws include the superb faculty and the fairly convenient access to Hollywood internships. Dodge is staying current by devoting more classes to innovations in AI, and plans to open a new Virtual Production Studio in February 2026. All students are required to take Film and Media Studies courses to ensure a well-rounded understanding of how Hollywood actually works, while at the same time gaining hands-on moviemaking experience. The annual undergraduate cost of attendance was $64,580 last year for undergraduates and $54,494 for graduate students. But student productions receive $20,000 for every grad thesis film and $15,000 for every undergraduate thesis film, as well as several thousand dollars for each intermediate project.

Columbia College Chicago (Chicago)

The benefits of attending Columbia College include hands-on experience from the beginning, a flexible range of degrees, and a real-world-focused blend of theory and practice. The admirable facilities include a Volume wall and 35,000-square-foot Media Production Center that has three sound stages and three television studios, and students have access to top cameras like the Arri Alexa, Red, and Sony Venice. Though Chicago boasts some of the most acclaimed stage, film and TV productions anywhere — it’s the No. 4 big city on our list of the Best Places to Live and Work as a MovieMaker — the school also offers a Semester in L.A. program based out of the famous Sunset Las Palmas Studio lot. CCC alums include Emmy-winning writer and producer Lena Waithe (Master of None, The Chi), and recent guests have included Andrew Davis, director of the Chicago-shot classic The Fugitive. The many notable faculty include Robert Edgecomb (cinematographer on Netflix’s Eastsiders) and Karla Rae Fuller (author of Do the Right Thing: Storytelling Secrets of Five Screenplays that Embrace Diversity.) The current annual cost for in-state and out-of-state undergraduate tuition is $37,038 per year, and slightly higher for graduate students.  

Columbia University (New York City) 

Alums of this Ivy League, one of the world’s most prestigious schools, include James Mangold, Kathryn Bigelow and the aforementioned Frozen writer-director Jennifer Lee, former chief creative officer of Walt Disney Animation. Notable faculty include former Focus Features CEO and Brokeback Mountain producer James Schamus. Annual undergraduate tuition is $71,170 and graduate tuition is $74,846, but aid opportunities abound: for example, students from families with annual incomes under $150,000 (with typical assets) are able to attend tuition-free, and Columbia awards more than $225 million annually in scholarships and grants. 

Drexel University (Philadelphia)

Drexel’s emphasis is on production, and students are behind the camera from their first week to start the process of learning every aspect of filmmaking — from scripting to budgeting to lighting to art direction to editing to titling to music selection. They gain proficiency in all formats, including narrative, documentary, and experimental. Over four years, they complete at least six films, and annually produce an episode of Off Campus, Drexel’s own comedy series. Recent guests have included editors Frederick Thoraval (Promising Young Woman) and Nick Huoy (Barbie), as well as actor John C. Reilly. Faculty include writer-director Alison Bagnall, whose films include The Dish and the Spoon and Funny Bunny; documentarian Ben Kalina, whose films include NOVA’s Can We Cool the Planet?; and Tom Quinn, whose  latest film, Colewell, earned two Independent Spirit Award nominations. Annual undergraduate tuition is $61,842, but Drexel offers financial support to 99% of its incoming first-year students: The average scholarship and grant aid offered to these students is $35,631.

Emerson College (Boston)

With more than 1,700 undergraduate and graduate students, the School of Film, Television, and Media Arts combines the benefits of a large department with the intimacy of small classes at a focused college. In addition to the downtown Boston campus, Emerson Los Angeles, the home base for the College’s well-known internship study program, hosts more than 200 students each semester. Graduates include Oscar winners Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, aka The Daniels, who met at Emerson before going on to make the Best Picture winner Everything Everywhere All at Once. While Emerson takes filmmaking very seriously, the school also happens to have tended the talents of some of the funniest people in Hollywood, including Jennifer Coolidge, Bill Burr and Iliza Shlesinger. Undergraduate tuition last year was $56,032 and graduate tuition per credit was $1,444.

Fairleigh Dickinson University (Madison, New Jersey)

Fairleigh Dickinson prides itself on setting its students up for successful, long-term careers in the film industry, with extensive training across multiple disciplines, a cohort approach to learning, and abundant internship opportunities in the bustling New York/New Jersey production hub. Professors also stress the business of filmmaking, with opportunities to take courses in the Silberman College of Business, and earn a minor in Entertainment Business and Management. “Though hard work is certainly half the battle, I would not be in the position I am today without the hands-on training and dedicated professors at FDU film!” says Conor Stalvy, a 2012 alum. The annual cost of tuition is $35,944.

Full Sail University (Winter Park, Florida) 

The potency of Full Sail University’s film program was on full display at this year’s Academy Awards, where 14 alums contributed to five Oscar-winning projects across 11 categories, and 47 graduates were credited on 18 nominated projects including Wicked, The Substance and Alien: Romulus across 21 categories. Additionally, at last year’s Emmy Awards, graduates were credited on prestige projects including The Bear and Shogun. The school’s educational philosophy is project-based, and the learning-by-doing approach results in a rich selection of films that showcase students’ abilities. The cost per credit hour is $567, for a total annual tuition ranging between $20,000 and $28,000. As part of that tuition, students receive hardware and software applicable to their specific degree program’s focus area through a program called Project LaunchBox.

Loyola Marymount University (Los Angeles)

The LMU School of Film and Television combines classic Hollywood tradition with an embrace of the new: It recently held an Innovators Film Festival that offered screenings of student short films, discussions, and experiential installations from Sony, Adobe and Google about the ethical use of AI. It even featured LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman’s digital AI twin delivering the keynote address. If that all sounds like something out of a Bond movie, what would you expect from a school that counts 007 producer Barbara Broccoli among its notable alums? Others include L.A. Confidential Oscar-winning screenwriter Brian Helgeland and Super Mario Bros. director Michael Jelenic, who recently returned as a guest speaker. Other recent guests have included Wicked director Jon M. Chu, American Fiction Oscar winner Cord Jefferson, and masters of the unconventional biopic Larry Karaszewski and Scott Alexander. The faculty includes Janet Yang, president of the Academy of Motion Pictures and Sciences. Undergraduate tuition is $61,867 per year and graduate tuition $1,626 per unit. Many scholarships, grants and contributions from private donors are available.

New York University (New York City)

An elite among elites, NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts boasts a faculty that includes Spike Lee, and alums who include the aforementioned Sean Baker, whose four Oscar wins this year came after years of hard work in the DIY trenches, using skills and connections he accumulated at NYU. You may well meet the next Sean Baker in your classes — or better yet, become the next Sean Baker — while standing on the shoulders of giants like Lee and Martin Scorsese, the most famous NYU alum. The Institute of Global Cinematic Arts bears Scorsese’s name and includes the Martin Scorsese Department of Cinema Studies and Martin Scorsese Virtual Production Center, thanks to a massive gift from George Lucas and Mellody Hobson’s Hobson/Lucas Family Foundation. Annual undergraduate tuition is $68,978, and graduate is $79,712, but there’s a generous internship fund named for — you guessed it — Martin Scorsese. (It’s specifically for students who take on internships related to moving image archiving and preservation.) And under the new NYU Promise Program, students from families with income less than $100,000, who hold typical assets, will not have to pay tuition.  

Northwestern (Evanston, Illinois)

Northwestern boasts strong connections with Hollywood — through a tight alumni network — and London — thanks to annual spring trips to learn more about the UK film and television industry. It is constantly iterating and improving its offerings, and its latest updates include a new minor in game design, media arts and animation. Undergraduate tuition is roughly $67,000 annually. The many notable Northwestern alums in the entertainment industry include Seth Meyers, Mara Brock Akil, and Greg Berlanti. Berlanti and his husband, Robbie Rogers, recently made a $2 million gift to the university to increase opportunities for students who want to write for the screen and stage.

Oklahoma City Community College (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma) 

Oklahoma City Community College credits the success of its film program to its champion, the iconic producer Gray Frederickson, whose three films in the AFI Top 100 include The Godfather. He created the program at OCCC, which was the first in Oklahoma dedicated to developing filmmakers with a command of movie equipment and technology. But the program also benefits from Oklahoma’s flourishing film and TV industry, boosted by productions like Tulsa King, Killers of the Flower Moon, and Twisters. OCCC has some of the lowest tuition costs you’ll find anywhere, and draws students from all over the world, including Kenya, Switzerland, China, Nepal, Italy and more. New initiatives include a partnership with the DeadCenter Film Festival. The Oklahoma resident tuition is just $135.29 per credit hour, and $326.99 per credit hour for non-residents.

Rutgers University (New Brunswick, New Jersey)

Rutgers’ Mason Gross School of the Arts Filmmaking Program estimates that 85% of its curriculum is dedicated to hands-on experience, and 15% to film theory. It focuses on three pillars— Narrative, Documentary, and Experiential — to give students a comprehensive understanding of storytelling and filmmaking. Its advantages include an in-house production unit, the Documentary Film Lab, where students can make full-length documentary films to submit to festivals and seek work. It has made more than three dozen films across the globe, sending students as far away as Antarctica, Thailand, Brazil and Zambia. Rutgers offers enviable facilities and industry-standard cameras and other equipment. Faculty include Oscar winner Thomas Lennon and Shawn Snyder, who received the Sloan Commissioning Grant for The Futurist. Mason Gross also offers new forward-thinking courses each year: Recent additions include Horror Film Production, AI and New Technologies In Filmmaking, and Community Engaged Filmmaking. With just over 100 students, the program promises ample one-on-one attention. Annual tuition for the BFA in filmmaking is $14,222 for in-state students, and $33,734 for out of state. 

Santa Monica College (Santa Monica, California)

Salvador Carrasco, head of SMC’s film production program, extols the mantra that no student should be denied an opportunity because of socioeconomic background. SMC is one of the most affordable options on this list of best film schools — especially considering its location near the heart of the industry. It offers two-year film studies and film production programs. Students can focus on scholarly theory or filmmaking, and the latter focus provides hands-on production instruction for concentrations in directing, editing, cinematography, and audio. The work is so professional that three SMC films recently played the Oscar-qualifying L.A. Shorts International Film Festival. SMC also boasts an impressive record of transfers to nearby UCLA. Tuition is $46 per unit for California residents, and $398 per unit for non-residents.

Savannah College of Art and Design (Savannah, Georgia) 

SCAD’s students-first focus is immediately evident when you visit its main campus in Savannah and its locations in bustling Atlanta and the lovely historic village of Lacoste, France. Attend one of its several festivals throughout the year and you’ll be immediately struck not only by the many A-listers who visit the school, but how accessible they are to students looking to soak up as much advice as they can as they launch their careers. SCAD supports them with bountiful resources, like XR Stages for virtual production and the vast backlot at Savannah Film Studios, which offers its services to professional productions that in turn enlist and teach SCAD students. SCAD is known for faculty who are active in the industry, and SCAD graduates may not need to leave Savannah or Atlanta after graduation, given Georgia’s strong film industry. Recent guests have included Toby Jones, who received the Virtuoso Award at June’s SCAD Lacoste Film Festival, and Amy Adams, who received the Outstanding Achievement in Cinema Award at the latest SCAD Savannah Film Festival last October. Annual undergraduate tuition is $42,165, and graduate tuition is $43,155, but SCAD offers significant financial aid. 

Southern Oregon University (Ashland, Oregon) 

Southern Oregon University’s Digital Cinema Program benefits from strong connections to the local production scene: Students can work on commercial shoots, independent feature films, and short films, as well as fill important staff roles at the Ashland Independent Film Festival. Following a campus reorganization, Digital Cinema is now in the same school as Theater, Design, Fine Arts, Creative Writing, and Emerging Media/Digital Arts, which has created more opportunities for students to collaborate across disciplines. Other opportunities include the unique 12-credit course, The Crew Experience, a term-length production immersion boot camp in which 30 to 40 students participate in the making of a short film from beginning to end. SOU is part of the Green Film School Alliance, and its commitment to the environment includes investing in a state-of-the-art LED lighting grid that will decrease energy use by 75% while adding production capabilities. SOU’s leadership has pledged to generate 100% of its own electricity by 2033 with extensive investments in solar arrays and battery storage. In-state annual tuition is $13,329, while Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE) tuition is $18,644 and non-WUE out-of-state tuition is $33,314.

SUNY Stony Brook (Stony Brook, New York)

Producer Christine Vachon has spoken at programs all over the world, and often found students unprepared for the constant surprises of indie moviemaking: “I thought, if I could ever design my own program, I would try to bring the professional world into the classroom constantly.” So when she became the artistic director of SUNY Stony Brook’s MFA in film program, she did exactly that. “We’re trying to mirror the constant change that is happening from one day to the next as our world shifts — strikes, tariffs, whatever it is.” Stony Brook’s faculty also includes Magdalene Brandeis, executive director of the MFA programs in film and television, and Pamela Koffler, who co-founded Killer Films with Vachon. The MFA programs in film and television writing are based at the school’s Manhattan location, and Stony Brook is one of the more affordable schools on this list: It notes that the full cost of its MFA degree in film is about $40,000 for New Yorkers.

Syracuse University (Syracuse, New York) 

Syracuse offers bachelor’s and master’s degrees through two prestigious schools on campus: the College of Visual and Performing Arts and the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications. VPA focuses more on independent filmmaking from development to production, while the Newhouse program is grounded in the realities of a rapidly evolving media industry and teaches students not only how to make compelling content, but how to shape work that resonates on national and international stages. Both programs provide the opportunity to participate in semesters at the Syracuse University Dick Clark Los Angeles Program location in North Hollywood. Last year, annual tuition was $63,710 for undergraduates and $35,010 for graduates.

Temple University (Philadelphia) 

Temple’s School of Theater, Film and Media Arts is known for educating self-starters with a well-rounded knowledge of theory, history and production. It starts with an emphasis on the theoretical and becomes more hands-on, and students are able to take advantage of top-of-the-line equipment. Based in walkable, story-filled Philadelphia, the university offers an L.A. Study Away internship program to help students learn the ins and outs of the industry. Temple alums include Oscar winner Da’Vine Joy Randoplh, Jesse Williams, and director Dan Trachtenberg, whose credits include Prey and The Boys. Tuition varies, but is typically around $20,616 annually for in-state undergraduates and $35,712 for out-of-state.

Toronto Film School (Toronto, Ontario, Canada) 

Toronto Film School holds itself to the highest standard: How well its students succeed in the real world. It’s a “boots-on-the-ground type of school,” says its president, Andrew Barnsley. “All of our programs have been designed to prepare students for the realities of working in the creative field. No sugarcoating.” TFS is also straightforward about what it offers for your time and money: The Film Production Diploma takes 18 months to earn, and the program costs $40,908 CAD (roughly $30,000 USD). It’s based in one of the world’s major film hubs, and is led by top industry professionals including Barnsley, an executive producer of the awards-magnet hit Schitt’s Creek. Highlights of the TFS experience include an annual film festival and awards event where student films are screened at the TIFF Lightbox theatre. Other draws include industry-grade equipment, a downtown studio campus, and the promise of a complete demo reel. Students also receive lots of strategic advice for job interviews, assembling a resume, and networking.

University of California, Los Angeles (Los Angeles) 

One of the best-regarded and most affordable of all universities, UCLA offers a wide range of undergraduate, graduate and Professional Programs. It accepts only a few dozen students each year to its prestigious Department of Film, Television & Digital Media undergraduate program, and they enjoy a one-to-three faculty-to-student ratio. Students spend two years building a solid foundation of historical, critical, and theoretical studies as they collaborate, then become immersed in production training in their junior year before choosing a concentration senior year. It all culminates in a professional internship and creative project. UCLA also offers MFAs in animation, documentary and narrative production/directing, cinematography, and screenwriting, as well as an MFA in its Producers Program. Meanwhile, UCLA’s School of Theater, Film & Television’s Professional Programs offer graduate-level, competitive-admission certificate programs in disciplines including Acting for the Camera, Producing, Screenwriting, Writing for Television, Directing and Writing for Late Night Comedy. It’s directed by Brian Fagan, and notable alums include Ian Stokell (All Quiet on the Western Front). Undergraduate tuition is $15,700 annually for California residents, with an additional $37,602 for out-of-state students. MFA annual fees are typically $21,115 for in-state and $36,217 for out-of-state. The costs of Professional Programs vary.

University of Colorado Denver (Denver) 

CU Denver’s Department of Film & Television ensures students build the right filmmaking foundation by requiring students to take classes in a specific sequence — for example, they learn basic lighting and screenwriting before they begin working on their first films. The intent is also to build strong bonds between students as they learn and work together. Prominent faculty include Eric Jewett, whose credits include Basic Instinct and True Detective, and Rian Johnson, Joe Dante and Lilly Wachowski were among recent guests. Each year culminates in a four-day May event called Cinefest, in which every student film is screened. CU Denver also has a strong Hollywood internship program in which students shadow and learn from working professionals in in the summer. In-state annual tuition is approximately $11,000 per year, and out-of-state is around $28,000. Most students qualify for academic scholarships.

University of North Carolina School of the Arts (Winston-Salem, North Carolina) 

The alma mater of Danny McBride, David Gordon Green and many other notables offers a top-notch film education at an affordable price. Students can focus on several disciplines — including writing, directing, producing, editing, production design and cinematography — with an approach that blends history and theory with an experiential approach using top-of-the-line equipment. The curriculum blends art and commerce, ensuring that graduates have both industry-standard skills and knowledge of how to put them to use. Recent guests have included Oscar winner Troy Kotsur and UNCSA alum Jeff Nichols, and notable electives include Queer Cinema, Podcast to Film Production, Acting for Non-Actors and History of Black Cinema. UNCSA also has strong connections with international film schools including RISEBA in Riga, Konrad Wolf in Berlin, and IFS Cologne. Undergraduate in-state tuition is $6,497 annually, and out-of-state is $24,231. Graduate in-state tuition is $9,696, and out-of-state is $24,399. The School of Filmmaking also supports students with merit and need-based scholarships, and UNCSA is an inaugural partner in the Posse Arts program, supported by the Miranda Family Fund, which provides full scholarships for talented students from underrepresented backgrounds. 

The University of Texas at Austin (Austin)

The Radio-Television-Film program balances film history and theory with hands-on production experience to help students understand every aspect of creating film, TV and games. Students learn about producing, directing, screenwriting, audio, lighting, editing and immersive experiences, while also learning about the contexts in which past classics were created. The school also recently refreshed all of its film equipment. In-state tuition for a Bachelor of Science is $44,920 for four years, while out-of-state tuition is $159,024, and costs vary for advanced programs. Notable alums include actors Matthew McConaughey and Glen Powell, as well as Abbott Elementary coshowrunner Patrick Schumacker and Shogun co-creator Rachel Kondo. New initiatives include Sports Production and Broadcasting classes.

University of Southern California (Los Angeles) 

There’s little we can say about USC that hasn’t been said. It’s the world’s first film school, and one of the best — if not the best. Alums include George Lucas, Ron Howard, Shonda Rhimes and Ryan Coogler. The networking opportunities and access to internships and jobs are second to none, and the top-tier technology available to students includes a new LED wall at the Robert Zemeckis Center, named for another famous alum. Though the film school does an excellent job teaching every aspect of moviemaking — and is especially well known for producing great directors — it has also drawn attention lately for launching successful producers like Sev Ohanian, who co-produced Coogler’s debut feature, 2013’s Fruitvale Station, and produced Sinners alongside Ryan and Zinzi Coogler. (The three are the founders of Proximity Media). Notably, the Peter Stark Producing Program offers an innovative, two-year, full-time graduate course that guides top students through the process of bringing projects to the screen. USC tuition averages $73,260 annually for undergraduates, and the graduate tuition cost for the School of Cinematic Arts is $2,624 per unit, but a wide range of financial aid packages are available.

Vancouver Film School (Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada)

The Vancouver Film School offers a wide range of choices and opportunities, with programs focused on Film Production, Animation, Makeup Design for Film & Television, Sound Design for Visual Media, Writing for Film, Television & Games, and Acting for Film & Television. Costs of the programs vary, but all offer speed, efficiency and rigor: VFS programs are 12-month intensives, taught by faculty who are active industry professionals. Classes are small, and the cutting-edge facilities include a 64,000-cubic foot performance and motion capture Volume, as well as a 260-degree green screen room. Recent guests have included writer-producer Evan Goldberg, whose latest success is Apple TV+’s The Studio. Every student leaves with a multi-piece creative portfolio to serve as an industry calling card. Costs vary depending on programs.

William & Mary (Williamsburg, Virginia) 

The second-oldest college in America, established in 1693, prides itself on offering an exceptional film education atop a highly-ranked liberal arts environment, and on merging innovation and tradition. One of Film & Media Studies Program’s latest innovations is a new course entitled A Practical Guide to a Career in Entertainment, taught by producer and alum Milan Chakraborty (The Lifeguard, My Friend Dahmer). The school also has a robust speaker series, and has recently welcomed guests including the aforementioned Oscar winner Cord Jefferson, Patton Oswalt, and Glenn Close, all of whom are William & Mary alums. The school’s many networking opportunities include the annual Ampersand International Arts Festival, which brings together students, alumni, and industry guests through film screenings, panels, and workshops. It includes a juried W&M Student Film Competition and an Alumni Short Film Competition. The school also offers the One Network, which connects alums across industries. Annual undergraduate tuition is roughly $19,178 for in-state students and $44,876 for out-of-state, and financial aid and scholarships are available.

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Here's more information about Full Sail grads who have been credited on award-worthy projects, and the variety of Full Sail degree programs that focus on film and television.

The 2024 Primetime Emmy Awards

Full Sail grads worked in a number of different roles on last year’s Emmy-nominated shows. Overall, 196 grads worked on 184 nominated projects in 103 categories, with 12 graduates nominated for their own Emmys. 

Grads Alexandra Paola Garcia Ortiz (Associate Finishing Producer) and Eric Sibley (Visual Effects Supervisor) both worked on Netflix’s Ripley, which received 13 nominations in categories like Outstanding Limited Anthology Series and Outstanding Special Effects In A Single Episode. 

Amazon Prime’s Fallout was nominated in 16 categories including Outstanding Drama Series and Outstanding Fantasy/Sci-Fi Costumes. Alumni like Miccah Underwood (Set Decoration Coordinator/Art Department Coordinator) and Kendell Darian Copeland (Lead Layout TD) helped bring the video game adaptation to life.

When the winners were announced, 73 Full Sail grads were credited on 45 winning projects, including Shōgun, The Bear, Fallout, Hacks, and Ripley.

In addition, four Full Sail graduates won their own Emmy statuettes.

Patrick Christensen

Outstanding Sound Mixing For A Comedy Or Drama Series (Half-Hour) And Animation, The Bear– “Forks”

Mark Hailstone

Outstanding Sound Editing For A Comedy Or Drama Series (One Hour), Shōgun – “Broken To The Fist”

Gary A. Rizzo

Outstanding Sound Mixing For A Nonfiction Program, The Beach Boys

Kyle Rottman

Outstanding Special Visual Effects In A Season Or A Movie, Shōgun

The 2025 Academy Awards

This year, 47 Full Sail University alumni were credited on 18 nominated projects in 21 categories, with two grads nominated for their own Oscars. 

Recording Arts grads Nancy Nugent Title and Gary A. Rizzo were both nominated for their own Oscar statuettes. Gary earned his nomination for his contributions as a Re-Recording Mixer on The Wild Robot, while Nancy received a nod for her role as a Supervising Sound Editor on Wicked.

Several other grads also worked on Wicked, which was nominated in 10 categories including Best Picture. Grads Mario Alexander Orlando (Animator) and Chelsea Goodchild (Digital Artist) contributed to the marvelous look of Oz, while Jeffrey Roy (ADR Mixer) and Geraldo Gutierrez (Re-Recording Mix Technician) helped with the film’s audio.

Grads like Kalani Akuna (Graphic Designer), Vinny Alfano (ADR Recordist), and David Betancourt (ADR Mixer) all worked on the Bob Dylan biopic A Complete Unknown, which was nominated in eight categories including Best Picture and Best Sound.

The Substance was nominated in five categories, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Makeup & Hairstyling; grads Judah Getz and Patrick Christensen both worked as ADR Mixers on the body horror flick. Graduate Trino Madriz was an ADR Mixer on Nosferatu, which was nominated in four categories including Best Cinematography and Best Production Design.

Additional grads worked on nominated projects like Conclave, Anora, and Dune: Part Two. 

Full Sail’s Film & Television-Focused Degree Programs

Full Sail offers degree programs that can help students prepare for roles both on and off set in the film and television industries. These include:

• Film bachelor’s degree: Explore the filmmaking process from start to finish and work with a crew of your fellow students to complete a short film. 
• Digital Cinematography bachelor’s degree: Learn to create video content for a variety of mediums and get familiar with the entrepreneurial aspects of filmmaking.
• Creative Writing bachelor’s degree: Learn to develop ideas and tell stories across a range of mediums, including film and television. 
• Computer Animation bachelor’s degree: Discover the animation process from storyboarding to final compositing and learn professional workflows for creating animations.
• Show Production bachelor’s degree: Learn how to use lighting, audio, and more to create and run memorable live productions.
• Film Production MFA: Take your filmmaking to the next level and learn about storytelling, aesthetics, technical roles, and business strategies for bringing your completed works to audiences.

Ready to Learn More?

Interested in exploring Full Sail University’s film and television degree options? Ask for more information here, or take a campus tour.

Over the years, the university’s industry-standard facilities have hosted projects like films, commercials and promos, live broadcasts, music videos, and more. Students studying topics like film, film production, computer animation, show production, and creative writing have often worked as crew members on those projects or gained insight from on-set observations. 

Here’s a rundown of the facilities that have drawn the pros to Full Sail and some of the productions they’ve brought to campus.

Full Sail’s Campus Film Facilities 

Studio V1

Studio V1 is Full Sail’s virtual production studio, where creators can build virtual sets in a game engine and display them on a digital background during filming. Hundreds of LED tiles span the backdrop, floor, and ceiling, creating immersive worlds that can be changed with a few clicks. Full Sail has brought productions like independent films, commercials, and promos to the space, giving students and grads an opportunity for hands-on experience with the latest filmmaking technology. 

Dubb Stage

Full Sail’s Dub Stage is a Dolby-certified post-production facility where students can practice mixing dialogue, sound effects, ADR, foley, and music for a movie’s final edit. The room boasts an Avid console, Pro Tools HD systems, high-definition video projectors, a JBL theater surround sound system, and theater seats for private screenings. 

Backlot

Full Sail’s Hollywood-style backlot is an outdoor area with a variety of building facades for on-campus shoots. The space gives students and professionals many options for pre-built sets, including Seattle’s Pike Place Market, New Orleans’ Bourbon Street, New York City brownstones, a gas station, a pizzeria, a laundromat, a European-style café, and more.

Soundstages

Students and professionals can build sets and shoot scenes in the five soundstages on Full Sail’s campus. The soundstages have industry-standard lighting, video, and sound equipment, plus woodworking materials and other items for building and dressing sets. 

Industry Projects Filmed at Full Sail

Movies & Television

The Right Stuff, Disney+’s series about the early days of the US space program, was also filmed at Full Sail. Film students observed and learned from film professionals on set, and a number of graduates were hired to work on the series. 

The Requin, an aquatic horror movie produced by Full Sail grad Aaron B. Koontz’s company Paper Street Pictures, relied heavily on the university’s soundstages. Students helped build a custom villa as part of the set, and they also assisted during the shooting process. 

Space Pups, a family-friendly sci-fi movie about a group of aliens who disguise themselves as dogs, was filmed in Studio V1. Dozens of Full Sail grads worked in crew positions on the film, and student volunteers helped put together more than 3,000 sound cues in the Dub Stage during post-production. 

Weekly live broadcasts of the WWE’s NXT were produced on campus for several years. Full Sail students worked alongside the NXT crew and helped with makeup, live filming, production assistance, and other technical roles. Live segments for the reality show WWE Tough Enough were also filmed on Full Sail’s campus. 

Promos & Commercials

Local professional soccer teams Orlando City Soccer Club and Orlando Pride filmed their jersey reveal promos for the 2024-2025 season in Studio V1, and students from a variety of degree programs worked in roles like Production Assistant and Unreal Engine Operator. 

Full Sail collaborated with storyboard artist and animator Travis Blaise and Xencelabs to create an ad for the company’s Pen Display 24. Students studying film and computer animation helped create the set and worked on lighting and sound during the shoot. 

Show openings for ESPN’s College GameDay and Monday Night Football have also been filmed on Full Sail’s backlot and soundstages. 

Music Videos

A number of professional musicians have brought their talents to Full Sail over the years. A student crew worked behind the scenes during the filming of Boyz II Men’s video for their song “One More Dance” from their album Twenty. 

Recently, former MLB pitcher and current country artist Adam Wainwright did a live concert recording for his debut album at Full Sail. Students worked in production roles like camera operation, lighting, audio, and stage management during the performance.

“Absolutely,” says actor, producer, director and cinematographer Giovanni Ribisi, who shot one of this summer’s most buzzed-about horror movies, Strange Darling, on 35mm. “When you go to a film school, like AFI or NYU, you’re in a class with people who you might end up working with for the rest of your life… There is a community there.”

Ribisi has been involved in filmmaking for four decades — as we detail on page 18, he is expanding a career spent in front of the camera to cinematography. And he still believes very strongly in learning the fundamentals of the craft. 

“Truly, the most important thing is the execution of going out and getting a camera,” he tells MovieMaker. “There’s nothing like studying films, watching films, and having your own friends and communities, whether they’re part of film school or not, who have similar interests, who you can bounce ideas off and discuss.”

For those ready to embark on the lifetime journey of finding and honing their vision, we present our latest list of the Best Film Schools in the U.S. and Canada. We have tried to balance the most elite schools with bargains, to ensure that everyone has the chance to make movies. 

All offer top-notch equipment, experienced faculty, and abundant networking opportunities, and many offer study-away programs in major media markets and pipelines to jobs before and after graduation. Ultimately, what students get back from their investment depends on what they put in. So if you go to film school, commit, engage, and seize every moment. 

And, finally, you may notice that there are actually 31 schools listed here, due to a tie. Your options abound. 

AFI Conservatory 

(Los Angeles) 

This two-year MFA curriculum offering intensive training in six filmmaking disciplines — cinematography, directing, editing, producing, production design and screenwriting — is founded on the idea of learning by doing. AFI promises each student will make between three and 10 films by graduation. For those accepted, the $70,487 a year for tuition and course materials is money well spent, as the conservatory is consistently ranked as one of the best film schools in the world, giving any graduate serious credibility. AFI’s many esteemed alums include Darren Aronofsky (The Whale), cinematographer Rachel Morrison (Black Panther) and Todd Field (Tár). It also finances AFI Fellows’ productions and connects them to influential artists in the field and key players in the industry. 

Antioch University 

(Los Angeles)

Writers write — but they also need to live. Antioch follows the belief that personal experience is invaluable to the unique perspective and voice of a storyteller, which is why this relatively new program’s Field Study component is a standout feature, particularly attractive to those pulled toward exploring social justice themes in their work. Students are required to put their knowledge, skill and talent toward the service of something they personally value in their local communities. “Writers are not special, anointed or elite members of our society,” says Lisa Locascio Nighthawk, chair of the Antioch MFA in Creative Writing. “They’re people like everyone else who have made the time and the space to pay attention to the things that they notice and the way that their subjectivity moves in the world. It’s something that only you can do and we really need as a culture.” Though based in Los Angeles, most of this 2.5-year low-residency MFA creative writing program unfolds off campus for five-month chunks of solitary work guided by one-on-one mentorship with experienced faculty — like writer, director, producer and playwright Joy Kecken (The Wire, Swagger) — before convening for 10-day residencies in December and June. The MFA costs a total of $46,616, but a majority of AULA students qualify for some form of financial aid.

Brooklyn College, Feirstein Graduate School of Cinema 

(Brooklyn, New York)

This school for graduate studies in live-action filmmaking, digital animation, visual effects, sonic arts, media scoring and screen studies is attract

ing a lot of talent: The advisory board overseeing the only film program in the United States located on a working sound stage (Steiner Studios) recently added Oscar- and Tony-winning producer Bruce Cohen (Rustin) and film executive Christian Grass, while Dead Ringers executive producer Anne Carey and Alexander Payne’s editor Kevin Tent are among the mentors teaching students alongside experienced professors. Tuition costs one-third that of other major film schools without sacrificing access to state-of-the-art production equipment and facilities, and the school provides thesis films with a $10,000 grant. “The Cinema Arts MFA degree program, as well the Sonic Arts and Media Scoring MFA programs are very hands-on, production orientated, creative, and designed around making music and films,” executive director Richard Gladstein, a two-time Oscar-nominated producer, tells MovieMaker. Another impressive feature of the program are PitchFest events, in which screenwriting students have the opportunity to connect with industry leaders and managers for feedback on their projects.

Chapman University, Dodge College of Film and Media Arts 

(Orange, California) 

When Stranger Things creators the Duffer Brothers didn’t get accepted into USC or UCLA, they landed on Chapman, an Orange County school still close enough to Los Angeles to reap the benefits: a star-studded lineup of guest speakers, top-notch faculty, and easy access to internships in the heart of the industry, all while starting to gain production experience on day one. “I think the biggest thing we got out of film school was you worked on these sets that were these perfect microcosms of what a real set was like,” Matt Duffer told TheWrap back in 2017. Ross Duffer added, “Chapman pushes internships a lot, and starting the summer of sophomore year we started interning because we knew that was the best way to make connections.” One of those internship connections, film executive and The Black List founder Franklin Leonard, passed a script along to the duo’s first agent, putting them on the path toward Netflix glory. And more recently, the school created even more networking opportunities for students through a mentorship program designed to connect young alums with seniors, offering one-on-one career support within their specific discipline. 

Columbia College Chicago, Cinema and Television Arts Department

(Chicago)

Though Chicago sees its fair share of productions in town, like Emmy darling The Bear, one of the highlights of this four-year education is its Semester in L.A. program, in which students meet face to face with industry leaders as guest lecturers and through internships. Back in Illinois, students can mix and mingle with industry movers and shakers by volunteering at the Chicago International Film Festival, and take advantage of the annual Career Center event Chicago Works: Production Connections, which  invites media employers and resource-providers to meet with students on campus. Alums includes Emmy-winning writer and producer Lena Waithe (Master of None, The Chi) and Emmy-winning cinematographer Christian Sprenger (Atlanta). Faculty include cinematographer Robert Edgecomb (Eastsiders), and documentarian Ruth Leitman (No One Asked You). Expect a mix of hands-on experience and theory in early semesters loaded with foundational courses. Then students dive into all aspects of production while simultaneously continuing to develop their understanding of history, theory, criticism and analysis as they work toward completion of their degree. 

Columbia University School of the Arts 

(New York City)

The strength of this program was on full display on FX this year in the stunning Japanese war drama Sh¯ogun, the first two episodes of which were directed and co-produced by Jonathan van Tulleken, a 2010 Columbia University film school graduate. (You can read more about the show on page 4.) In a 2013 interview about his experience at the prestigious school, he said he appreciated the curriculum giving him experience doing a little bit of “everything” and  credited professor Eric Mendelsohn for exceptional one-on-one guidance, sifting through an edit on his short film “literally frame by frame sometimes” — a luxury he added “you never get again.” The extremely long list of notable alums includes Oscar winners Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker) and Jennifer Lee (Frozen), James Mangold (Logan), Greg Mottola (Superbad), and many more. “The truth is, when you leave Columbia you want to have at least one piece of work that is the best thing that you can do in that moment,” van Tulleken said, “and I think if you’ve got that, then it really does open doors for you.” 

Community College of Aurora, Cinematic Arts Department 

(Aurora, Colorado)

Once known as the Colorado Film School, this educational institution takes pride in offering the film-school experience without a high film-school price. Amenities include one of the largest sound stages of any educational institution in the state — a state that of course offers no shortage of breathtaking, natural scenery. Students earn an associate degree or certification in areas of study including cinematography, writing, directing, producing and acting, and learn in small classes taught by faculty with professional experience, while getting their hands on gear within the first semester. Whether students are after skills to dive right into the production workforce or credits before transferring to another program for a bachelor’s degree, this is another  great, affordable community college option.

Emerson College 

(Boston)

The New England school’s alumni network has a huge presence in the heart of Hollywood thanks to the Emerson Los Angeles program, which welcomes about 215 students per semester to its beautiful building located on Sunset Boulevard, just a few blocks from Netflix’s headquarters and the Paramount Pictures studio lot. Undergraduate students spend a fall or spring semester taking classes there while interning at a company related to their concentration. But with so many film and television productions shooting in the Boston area, students don’t necessarily need to go west for on-set experience or to find work after graduation. Emerson’s Department of Visual and Media Arts offers undergraduate and graduate students access to state-of-the-art equipment and facilities as well as experienced faculty to guide them through the process of making films alongside their peers, a practice which might be the most important aspect of any film school. Just ask Oscar-winning Everything Everywhere All at Once directing duo Daniel Scheinert and Daniel Kwan, aka the Daniels, who first met in an Emerson animation class before becoming collaborators while working together as counselors at a New York Film Academy summer camp. “My favorite piece of advice is just make stuff,” Scheinert told Boston.com in 2016. “Just make stuff the best you can make. Make something most people don’t know that they want yet.” 

Full Sail University

(Winter Park, Florida)

The strength of Full Sail University’s film production training was represented at this year’s Academy Awards: 100 graduates were credited on 23 projects, including Barbie and Oppenheimer, nominated in 20 categories. The institution’s offerings include a 22-month Visual Arts Bachelor of Science Completion Program – Film Concentration with daily classes that typically start in lectures and end in labs. The balance tips toward hands-on production experience as students progress and learn with state-of-the-art equipment. Full Sail’s top-notch facilities include the virtual production studio, Studio V1, among the largest and most technologically advanced virtual production studios on any college or university campus in the nation. In addition to a whole host of networking events throughout the year — including workshops, career fairs and alumni mixers — students can work on professional productions hosted by Full Sail University, such as feature films, reality television shows, music videos, news programs, and commercials for an impressive variety of professional studios, channels and brands. 

Loyola Marymount University 

(Los Angeles)

LMU’s School of Film and Television offers undergraduate and graduate students access to state-of-the-art facilities, equipment, and tools to bring their stories to life. Its claims to fame include the Broccoli Theater — which was named for famed alum Barbara Broccoli, producer of the James Bond franchise — which enables students to screen their films in 4K projection with industry-standard sound. Among LMU’s graduates are Emmy winner and seven-time nominee Christian Buenaventura, who won for sound editing on American Horror Story. “A lesson I learned at LMU that I’ve used throughout my career is that your work ethic speaks volumes. People want to work with those who take joy in what they do and feel fortunate they are in the room,” Buenaventura says on the school’s website. And this fall, LMU plans to introduce a groundbreaking one-year Masters in Entertainment Leadership and Management, which aims to provide students with a deep understanding of how productions are created — as well as the economic and cultural forces impacting every film, television series, video game, live event, and piece of short-form content that is professionally produced. In the program, LMU students will learn from industry leaders, including producer and current president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Janet Yang, whose credits include The People vs. Larry Flynt.

The New School, School of Media Studies and Film 

(New York City)

Don’t let the name fool you. The New School, located in Greenwich Village, has been around since 1919. It offered the first college course to investigate the motion picture in 1926, and launched the first Media Studies MA program in the United States in 1975. Soon, the college will be among the first tackling a new game-changing form of media, artificial intelligence, by offering an MFA in Digital Film, AI and Emerging Media. Currently, students can embark on a fulltime two-and-a-half-year program for a Media Studies MA, or spend a year earning a Film Certificate or a graduate Documentary Certificate, all with a flexible, interdisciplinary open curriculum, tailored to students’ interests and needs. Maya Mumma, an editor on the Academy Award-winning documentary O.J.: Made in America and the more recent Max documentary Time Bomb Y2K, is a graduate of both the Media Studies program and the intensive Documentary Media Studies program. “I wanted a classroom environment where we learned how to think critically, where we discussed and wrote,” she said in a testimonial for the New School website. “You can understand how the software works, but if you don’t know how to tell a story — a good, authentic, and ethical story — you can’t make a good film.”

New York Film Academy

 (Various Locations)

Despite the name, this school has eight locations all over the world, including New York City and Los Angeles. Writer-producer-director Issa Rae (Insecure) learned from the four-week filmmaking program in 2005 before she rose to prominence with the YouTube series The Mis-Adventures of Awkward Black Girl between 2011 and 2013. Like many schools on this list, NYFA celebrates the philosophy that students learn through doing, so no matter the length of the programs that students enroll in, they can expect lots of hands-on experience with the best equipment — and to learn from faculty with real-world experience. It offers educational experiences for hungry minds of all ages, including undergraduate and graduate degree programs. It also offers summer courses on Harvard University’s campus.

New York University 

(New York City)

For many aspiring filmmakers, NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts is the dream school. Its many draws include The Martin Scorsese Institute of Global Cinematic Arts, named for its most famous alum. And a massive financial gift from George Lucas and Mellody Hobson’s Hobson/Lucas Family Foundation in 2022 established the Martin Scorsese Department of Cinema Studies as well as the Martin Scorsese Virtual Production Center, which houses studios and soundstages for training in cinematography and virtual production technology for video animation, performance capture, live compositing and live in-camera visual effects, ensuring that NYU’s film program remains on the cutting edge of technological innovation. The generous gift honoring one of the single greatest living forces in filmmaking also offers expanded student support through the establishment of a new permanent, endowed scholarship fund and yearly internship stipends. The Martin Scorsese Internship Fund provides stipends to Tisch students undertaking internships related to moving image archiving and preservation each year. Even aside from the Scorsese-related attractions, Tisch is one of the premier film schools in the country, boasting professors including Spike Lee.

Northwestern University 

(Chicago)

Northwestern’s undergraduate film studies program emphasizes writing and production courses while offering students a comprehensive, critical study of media history. For the sonically inclined, consider adding a minor in sound design. It’s an aspect of the industry often overlooked by eager aspiring filmmakers, yet vitally important. Northwestern’s Department of Radio/Television/Film also offers a master’s degree in Sound Art designed to nurture and develop the creative talents of those whose practice revolves around the art and science of sound, as well as an MFA in documentary media. No matter your concentration, take advantage of the esteemed and experienced faculty teaching these programs. “My professor Spencer Parsons at Northwestern University taught me so much, I don’t even know where to start,” Northwestern alum Harrison Atkins told MovieMaker last year. “He helped foster my appreciation for ambiguity, formal play, and the sublime. He’s got an encyclopedic film knowledge — he’d watch something I was working on and recommend me movies I’d never heard of, which would invariably blow my mind.”

Oklahoma City Community College, Gray Frederickson Department of Digital Cinema 

(Oklahoma City, Oklahoma)

The program offers two, two-year degrees, AA and AAS, and more accelerated curriculums for certificates. It is striking in its affordability and acceptance of all applicants, who get to use industry-standard equipment and a 6,000-square-foot studio. Named after late founder Gray Frederickson, the Oscar-winning producer who worked alongside Francis Ford Coppola on The Godfather and Apocalypse Now, the program prides itself on creating moviemakers. “Gray really created a mini-studio here and that’s why we have such a diverse community of filmmakers who come here,” program coordinators and professors Greg Mellott and Sean Lynch tell MovieMaker. “Filmmakers who can’t afford the big four-year universities, but have a great passion for a career in film. Others who have B.A.s from those schools now want to learn how to actually make films here with us.” Understanding and appreciating film theory is considered an essential foundation from which all artistry in the craft blossoms, so it is woven into all technical courses. When graduates are hired on productions shooting in the area, they often call the school up to help fill positions, leading to a dozen students being hired to work on this summer’s likely blockbuster Twisters. (You can learn more about the film on page 46.)

Ringling College of Art and Design

 (Sarasota, Florida)

Beyond access to state-of-the-art equipment, sound stages and editing suites, a very attractive offering is Ringling’s Center for Career Services, providing internship, career and networking support for life, which isn’t all that common, despite highs and lows being a fairly common occupational hazard in the decades after graduation. Students depart this four-year, production-intensive program with on-set experience galore, with the average student working on 60 short films during their time on campus. That prepares graduates to jump right into the workforce, whether they’re training track is focused on narrative storytelling or branded entertainment. Ringling also has a program called INDEX (Industry Experience)  that helps students gain professional experience prior to graduation by connecting them with leading brands and clients to develop creative solutions to business challenges. And if students are looking to study abroad, Ringling College juniors can spend their spring semester studying in the United Kingdom at renowned film school Falmouth University.

Rutgers University, Mason Gross School of the Arts Filmmaking Program 

(New Brunswick, New Jersey)

The four-year undergraduate BFA program has three pillars — Narrative, Documentary, and Experiential — providing students with a comprehensive understanding of different modes of storytelling and filmmaking techniques. Students have cameras in their hands on day one in an immersive, production-based learning experience interwoven with essential film theory, as professors guide them through the entire process of creating a feature-length documentary or narrative film. The program recognizes the value of connections and accommodates students accordingly with networking opportunities galore, from the chance to meet and work with established filmmakers who visit the campus, to an internship program that places students in coveted positions across the industry. “With exciting studio developments happening within the Garden State, such as Netflix’s Fort Monmouth Studio and Lionsgate’s $125 million Newark studio complex,” a rep tells MovieMaker, “Rutgers students are well-positioned to take advantage of emerging opportunities in the film industry.”

Santa Monica College 

(Santa Monica, California)

With two-year film studies and film production programs, students have the option to focus on scholarly theory or filmmaking, with the latter providing hands-on production instruction for concentrations in directing, editing, cinematography, and audio. All of the production classes infuse theory into and through the course products, with an emphasis on craft. This is one of the most affordable options for learning the ropes while studying near the epicenter of the entertainment industry — and earning credits that can count toward continued higher education. It notes its established record of transfers to UCLA. But more important than any degree is the fact that you’ll actually be making films. “We want our students to stand out based on their talent, attitude, hard work and reliability — none of which has anything to do with socioeconomic background,” notes Salvador Carrasco, head of SMC’s film production program, on the school’s website.

Savannah College of Art and Design, School of Film and Acting 

(Savannah, Georgia) 

This renowned school for creative careers offers students resources that rival the biggest studios, like XR Stages for virtual production and the expanded backlot at Savannah Film Studios — the largest and most comprehensive university film studio complex in the nation — which will complete phase three of an 11-acre expansion in the fall of 2025, offering a wide variety of scenery as students work on real sets. Students earning a BFA, MA or MFA are immersed in all aspects of the production process under the guidance of top professionals from the industry, which is increasingly shooting more movies and television in the production hubs of the Savannah and Atlanta areas, creating more internship and job opportunities. Marvel’s Oscar-nominated Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, for example, includes 39 SCAD alums in the credits. “Georgia is the new Hollywood and Savannah’s film industry is booming,” SCAD School of Film and Acting dean Andra Reeve-Rabb tells MovieMaker. SCAD also offers a spectacular, spare-no-detail campus in Atlanta. It even includes an airplane set where students can practice the art of pitching during flights. SCAD also holds the distinction of hosting not one but two excellent film festivals: The SCAD Savannah Film Festival, held each fall in Savannah, and the SCAD Lacoste Film Festival, held each summer on the school's campus in southern France. Yes, SCAD has thought of everything.

Scottsdale Community College

(Scottsdale, Arizona)

The Scottsdale School of Film+Theatre has been building a reputation as the best film school in Arizona despite only offering associate degrees in Motion Picture, Television, and New Media Production as well as certificates in editing, film production and screenwriting. “Our approach is that we get students making movies immediately,” former School of Film+Theatre chair Bill True told the Scottsdale Progress newspaper of the national recognition for the hands-on, two-year programs overseen by working industry professionals. “They start with the cameras on their phones but by the end of the semester, they’re using our first-level DSLR and our beginner-level Blackmagic cameras to actually begin to shoot things. And in their second semester...  everybody’s required to shoot on a 16- millimeter film.” Amanda Embry has since taken over as chair of the program. The school, which is among the most affordable on this list, trains students through practical experience working with peers in key production roles on up to 10 projects before graduation, utilizing industry standard tools from a $2.5 million equipment office. The program boasts an average of 85 percent of graduates placed in jobs and internships upon graduation, and is partnered with the Arizona Film Office’s Film Ready initiative to train 2,000 industry-ready production assistants within the next five years.

Southern Oregon University 

(Ashland, Oregon) 

The digital cinema production program within the School of Arts & Communication, which launched in 2019, gives students the opportunity to hear from accomplished speakers including American Horror Story: Delicate showrunner Halley Feifer, The Office producer Randy Cordray, and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. visual effects DP Chris Nibley, who even co-instructed an immersive cinematography course last year. Students are also invited to join monthly meetings with Film Southern Oregon professionals and participate in the Ashland Independent Film Festival for more networking opportunities. The curriculum merges theory with practice, emphasizing hands-on learning through the moviemaking process, leading to a professional portfolio upon graduation, all supported by the Digital Media Center, an 8,500-square-foot teaching and production facility, as well as an equipment office loaded with state-of-the-art gear. 

Syracuse University 

(Syracuse, New York) 

This private New York institution that counts President Joe Biden as an alum (of the law school) offers bachelor and master degrees through two schools on campus: the College of Visual and Performing Arts and the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications. The BFA and MFA programs put an emphasis on independent filmmaking, teaching students the entire process from development through post-production. While part of film school is exploring various niches before committing to a singular career path, the BS/MA programs may be of particular interest to students who already know their path, as the programs allow students to customize their study according to their career interests, focusing on areas like screenwriting, scripted series, documentary, sports, music, media innovation, and more. Famed Oscar-winning screenwriter Aaron Sorkin graduated from Syracuse in 1983 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in musical theater, and credits theater teacher Arthur Storch as a significant influence on his prolific career: “‘You have the capacity to be so much better than you are,’ he started saying to me in September of my senior year. He was still saying it in May. On the last day of classes, he said it again, and I said, ‘How?’” Sorkin once told the New York Times. “And he answered, ‘Dare to fail.’ I’ve been coming through on his admonition ever since.” 

Temple University 

(Philadelphia)

Located in the heart of Philadelphia, this renowned and affordable film school offers an immersive cityscape living experience while equipping students with the tools they need to explore all aspects of filmmaking. The curriculum begins theoretical and becomes increasingly hands-on, with state-of-the-art cameras and technology as students progres. They can model their careers after those of alums including director Dan Trachtenberg (Prey, 10 Cloverfield Lane, The Boys), Emmy-nominated editor Daniel Flesher (History of the World: Part II), or actor-activist-producer Jesse Williams (Grey’s Anatomy). Temple is also celebrating Da’Vine Joy Randolph, who recently returned to her alma mater as a guest speaker after taking home the Academy Award for her stunning performance in The Holdovers. The curriculum creates capable independent filmmakers who graduate with a thorough understanding of the medium’s theory, history and production, while the L.A. Study Away internship program helps students become embedded into the entertainment capital of the world. Temple Owls fly at all levels of the industry, making this degree not only valuable for the education and experience, but the vast alumni network as well. 

Toronto Film School 

(Toronto, Ontario, Canada) 

This hands-on, 18-month production program overseen and taught by working professionals — like the school’s president, producer Andrew Barnsley (Schitt’s Creek) — unfolds on three campuses in the heart of downtown Toronto, each within walking distance of each other, offering different environments and tools for students to learn the craft. A rep describes it to MovieMaker as “a boots-on-the-ground type of school,” with programs “designed to prepare students for the realities of working in the creative field. No sugarcoating.” TFS takes pride in its mission to bring industry to the school, and Toronto — the top big city in our latest list of the Best Places to Live and Work as a Moviemaker — is one of the largest and most thriving production hubs in the world. Students can expect many industry guest speakers as well as a pipeline to part-time jobs while they’re enrolled, and full-time positions after graduation, through the internal TFS Alumni Job Board, along with guidance from the Career Services Centre. Alums include producer Chris Hatcher (Painkiller, Priscilla) along with one of the top script supervisors in Canada, Consuelo Solar (Women Talking, The Boys) and camera operator Laura Loaiza (Venom: Let There Be Carnage, Thanksgiving).

University of California, Los Angeles 

(Los Angeles)

This affordable public university offers a full spectrum of educational options, including its highly regarded Professional Programs, under world-class faculty in one of the most beautiful places to learn about the industry, its picturesque campus in the Westwood area of Los Angeles. With just 32 freshmen and transfer students admitted to the Department of Film, Television & Digital Media undergraduate program last year out of the 3,081 that applied, the odds of acceptance may not be in your favor, but the program certainly is. A faculty-to-student ratio of 1:3 means students enjoy close guidance and mentorship from the distinguished professors, like Oscar-nominated screenwriter Phyllis Nagy (Carol) and Oscar-nominated costume designer Deborah Landis (Coming to America), instead of being lost in a sea of bodies crammed inside lecture halls. Students spend the first two years building a sturdy foundation for their filmmaking ambitions through historical, critical, and theoretical studies while working together in hands-on projects, then dive into production training their junior year, and pick a concentration senior year, culminating in a professional internship and creative project. The curriculum emphasizes the significance of emerging technologies, and the school aims to be on the forefront of this shift by creating a hub for research and creative activity at the new UCLA Downtown space. The School of Theater, Film & Television’s Professional Programs, meanwhile, offer graduate-level, competitive-admission certificate programs in disciplines including Acting for the Camera, Producing, Screenwriting, Writing for Television, Directing and Writing for Late Night Comedy, and is directed by Brian Fagan, who holds an M.F.A. from UCLA. Notable alums include Ian Stokell (a 2021 Professional Programs Screenwriting and Producing student) who won the BAFTA for writing All Quiet on the Western Front, and was nominated for the Academy Award as well. 

University of Colorado Denver, Film & Television 

(Denver) 

Most of the 252 people who applied to CU Denver’s program last year were accepted, so you have a strong chance of getting in if your application is good. The curriculum is impressive: Film production and theory are balanced from the first semester. Students first get their hands on equipment in the Lighting, Grip and Sound class, and also take an appreciation class called Fundamentals of Film & TV. All but 12 credit hours of the 72 total required of the major consist of production-related coursework, and students graduate with a robust portfolio of work. They also gain a large network of peers, as the program strives to create strong bonds between students who work on each other’s films and support one another. A new BFA with an emphasis on Acting for the Screen requires many of the same production classes that filmmakers take, so on-camera and behind-the-camera artists can collaborate from similar reference points.  Students learn from a faculty of working professionals and can participate in a Hollywood internship program for summer professional experiences that lead to industry connections and stronger resumes.

University of North Carolina School of the Arts 

(Winston-Salem, North Carolina) 

In addition to access to state-of-the-art equipment and production facilities, students enrolled in undergraduate and graduate programs at UNCSA’s affordable and acclaimed School of Filmmaking have constant networking opportunities with faculty mentors, guest artists, and working alumni, as well as peers, while working through a hands-on curriculum that ensures collaboration with other disciplines. For example, film students work with MFA film composers to score their projects. With five arts disciplines on one campus, students are living and learning in a unique ecosystem that benefits students before and after graduation. Connections born at UNCSA can span the globe, as the school also offers three international exchange programs in partnership with Konrad Wolf Film University in Potsdam, IFS in Cologne, and RISEBA in Riga, Latvia. “We are primarily a production program that values the pedagogical philosophy that one learns by doing,” a rep tells MovieMaker. “At the same time, we also value film history and theory, because we know our students are enriched by an understanding of the films and filmmakers who preceded them, so we don’t see history/aesthetics ‘versus’ production, but rather as parts of an integrated whole.”

The University of Texas at Austin

(Austin)

The capital of Texas is one of the nation’s fastest growing tech, creative and media hubs in the country, so it’s a fine place to lay down roots as a student learning the craft in undergraduate and graduate programs. “It’s a very exciting year for UT Radio-Television-Film,” a rep tells MovieMaker. “We just had a massive refresh of all of our film equipment — including cameras, lenses, audio equipment, computers and more. Among our new toys is an ALEXA Mini and several other high-end cinema cameras. New computers are also in the works for the Emergent Cinematic Arts programs in VFX, CGI, virtual production, motion graphics, character generation, game design, and animation.” Prominent alums are frequent guests, as are major industry figures — Disney CEO Bob Iger, Saltburn director Emerald Fennell and Women Talking director Sarah Polley have all recently visited. Students have many networking opportunities in workshops or Q&A sessions, and the school’s vast network allows for internship opportunities around the state as well as in other media hubs, including Los Angeles and New York City. It’s also very helpful to be at the home of SXSW and the Austin Film Festival.

University of Southern California

(Los Angeles)

The world’s first film school remains one of the best, an instant top choice for many students of cinema. “The great thing about going to school at USC is you get a background in everything you need, not just one specific corner,” said USC School of Cinematic Arts alum George Lucas, in a 2018 short documentary about the historic program. “The art of storytelling goes through all of the art; what you’re doing is telling stories, using the moving image to do it.” The Star Wars creator won the National Student Film Festival for his 1967 short film Electronic Labyrinth: THX 1138 4EB while attending. He’s one of countless revered alums. “You’re getting the best education, you’re part of the best family that anyone could hope for,” said producer Stacey Sher (Django Unchained, Hateful Eight) in a 2020 message to students. Though the film program teaches every aspect of cinema, it is particularly well known for developing capable and successful producers through the the Peter Stark Producing Program, an innovative, two-year, full-time graduate course that teaches select, self-starting students how to practically take a film, television or new media project from script to screen.

University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

(Milwaukee, Wisconsin)

This affordable program within the university’s Department of Film, Video, Animation & New Genres offers comprehensive study in all aspects of film and media production, from ideation and pre-production to production and post. “Our major is not simply a technical degree but rather a fully immersive creative time-based and cinematic arts production degree,” a rep for the school tells MovieMaker. “We want students to experience all aspects of the filmmaking process so they can deepen their personal voice and discover their passion.” Aspiring animators can take advantage of a program growing with new labs and facilities as well as an innovative curriculum where students learn from the experience of professionals like Owen Klatte (The Nightmare Before Christmas), a character animator and animation director with extensive experience in stop-motion and CG animation. Alums also working in the field include Paramount and Netflix veteran Katherine MacDonald and Caroline Kastelic, a stop-motion puppet fabricator whose credits include Anomalisa and Robot Chicken.

Vancouver Film School 

(Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada) 

For those looking for an accelerated education and entryway into the industry in a short amount of time, the Vancouver Film School offers intensive 12-month programs specializing in acting, writing, production, makeup design, sound design and animation. These programs are all taught by faculty who are simultaneously working in the field, while students also have opportunities to connect with other industry professionals through guest lectures and mentorship programs, which lead to network connections that can increase the odds of finding a job after graduation. “VFS is first and foremost a hands-on, production-based school,” a rep tells MovieMaker. “We believe that the best way to learn the ins-and-outs of the creative industries is by CREATING, specifically a multi-piece portfolio that students can use as their industry calling card for the rest of their career.”

Growing up, Nina loved watching TV. The length of the narrative spoke to her (“I spent 24 hours a season with these characters, I felt very emotionally attached to them”), so she decided to pursue a college education that focused on TV. Studying film and television at Full Sail helped her find her creative voice and learn the fundamentals of production. After graduation, Nina moved to Los Angeles and became the assistant to producing director Chris Long.

Gaining Experience on Set

In 2007, Nina was working with Chris on FX’s Dirt where she filled in for additional roles on set and gained new production knowledge.

“Whenever Chris was directing, I was tasked to keep production going,” she says. “So I started going to all of the department meetings and going on all the [location] scouts, I was in post with the editors working on the cuts, and while I was working on cuts, we were finding all the pieces that we were missing, whether it was a drive-by or an insert or whatever it was.”

Nina followed Chris to The Mentalist, where she “learned television from the bottom up” over the course of 150 episodes. She carefully observed the show’s directors, worked in editing, oversaw color timing, checked out the final mix of every episode, and more. By season four she was a producer, and in season seven she directed her first episode of television, “Byzantium.”

During her time on The Mentalist, Nina also directed a short film and was accepted into the Warner Bros. Television Directors’ Workshop. She guest directed several episodes of Supernatural and earned director and producing director credits on A Million Little Things. Finally, her dream network came knocking: HBO reached out to her about directing episodes of The Nevers.

Working with HBO

“My whole entire career, my goal has always been to work at HBO. It’s like the crème de la crème of television, you know, they always had the best shows when I was growing up,” Nina says. 

Getting her foot in the door by directing a couple episodes of The Nevers led to more opportunities with HBO. The network executives brought her on to direct for crime drama Perry Mason, and eventually Nina got the call for her next big opportunity: directing for The Last of Us.

“I met with [the producers for The Last of Us] and it seemed like a really good meeting, but everyone wanted to do The Last of Us, so I didn't have high hopes. A few weeks go by. I made my peace with it. It wasn't going to happen. Then out of the blue, I get a call from my managers, and they're like, ‘The Last of Us just called and they want you to do an episode for them,’” Nina shares. 

“So now I'm going to head up there to direct an episode, and it's like a dream come true, you know? It's just this groundbreaking video game that's been turned into a really amazing television show with really great actors. And I get to be part of it. It’s another milestone hit [in my career].”

Looking Ahead

Nina’s achieved many of the professional goals she dreamed of when she first entered the industry, but she still has more work to do: She’d like to direct an entire television series and make a feature film. In the meantime, Nina is celebrating her recent induction into her alma mater’s Hall of Fame and emphasizing the importance of hard work to future generations of industry professionals. 

“I want [Full Sail] students to know that I shouldn’t be standing here right now,” Nina said during Full Sail’s Hall of Fame induction ceremony. “No one in their right mind would have gone to one of my classes, pointed at me, and said ‘That one right there. She’ll be successful.’ But I just kept on working, I kept on dreaming, I kept on pushing forward. And with a lot of hard work and a ton of luck, I am where I am today.”

Picking the perfect school might seem daunting, but rest assured, you’re not navigating this journey alone. Plenty of colleges for film and colleges with film majors offer outstanding programs that will prepare you for the industry. And if you’re looking for some help with admissions essays or academic papers, you can always turn to professional writing services like DoMyEssay to help you write my paper and give your application that extra polish.

Best Colleges for Film in the US

The United States boasts some of the premier filmmaking colleges globally. With specialized courses, state-of-the-art equipment, and direct connections to Hollywood, you’ll find many opportunities to kickstart your career.

University of Southern California (USC) School of Cinematic Arts

Nestled in Los Angeles, USC stands out as one of the world’s most illustrious film production colleges. It’s celebrated for offering students practical, hands-on training in film and video production. With access to industry professionals and modern equipment, you’ll gain valuable skills in filmmaking, screenwriting, and production. USC is a perfect choice for aspiring directors, producers, or editors looking to build a career in the entertainment capital of the world.

New York University (NYU) Tisch School of the Arts

NYU’s Tisch School is another prestigious institution for those pursuing film majors in college. Located in the heart of New York City, this filmmaking college offers numerous opportunities for internships and networking with professionals. The program at NYU Tisch School of the Arts balances theoretical knowledge with practical application, placing it among the top good colleges for film. If you’re serious about a career in directing, producing, or screenwriting, NYU provides a strong foundation.

Emerson College Film School

Boston-based Emerson College is well-known for its strong focus on media, arts, and communication. Emerson’s film production major colleges offer top-tier programs in film, video production, and screenwriting. At Emerson, students enjoy the advantages of small class sizes, expert faculty, and a dynamic creative community. As an aspiring filmmaker, you’ll get plenty of hands-on experience at Emerson College Film School, which is well-regarded in the industry for nurturing future film professionals.

Top Colleges for Film Enthusiasts in Canada

Canada is becoming a hotspot for the film industry, with growing opportunities for students pursuing degrees in film production and film acting.

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Vancouver Film School (VFS)

Vancouver Film School offers immersive one-year programs that focus on different aspects of the film industry, from screenwriting to video game design. VFS is one of the leading film production colleges in Canada, with alumni who have gone on to work in Hollywood and beyond. The school provides a practical, hands-on learning experience, making it ideal for those who want to jump straight into the industry after graduation.

Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson University)

Toronto Metropolitan University offers a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Film Studies, which is one of the top colleges with film programs in Canada. Their program emphasizes the art and craft of filmmaking, and students are encouraged to explore a variety of film genres. Located in Toronto, Canada’s media hub, this school offers access to major film festivals and industry events.

Leading Colleges for Film in Europe

Europe also boasts some of the best film production major colleges, known for their rigorous programs and historical contributions to the film industry.

London Film School (UK)

As one of the oldest film making colleges in Europe, the London Film School offers postgraduate programs in filmmaking, screenwriting, and film acting. The school has produced many prominent filmmakers and is known for its hands-on approach, encouraging students to create films from the moment they start. Its central London location provides access to the city’s vibrant cultural scene, making it one of the best video production colleges for those looking to work in both British and international cinema.

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Lodz Film School (Poland)

Lodz Film School is one of Europe’s top film acting colleges, offering an extensive program for students interested in directing, cinematography, and acting. This prestigious school has trained many notable European directors and continues to be one of the most respected film production major colleges in the world. With a focus on both theory and practical skills, you’ll gain a well-rounded education in the art of filmmaking.

La Fémis (France)

Located in the heart of Paris, La Fémis is one of Europe’s most prestigious film production colleges. Known for its selective admissions process and rigorous training, La Fémis offers programs in directing, screenwriting, production, and sound design. The school provides students with unparalleled access to the French and international film industry, making it one of the most sought-after filmmaking colleges in Europe. If you’re passionate about auteur filmmaking and wish to immerse yourself in European cinema, La Fémis is a fantastic choice.

Why Choose These Film Schools?

These film major colleges offer unique opportunities to explore various facets of filmmaking, from video production to film acting. Whether you want to pursue directing, producing, editing, or acting, these institutions provide the tools and industry connections you’ll need to thrive. Many of these schools offer industry-standard equipment, experienced faculty, and networking opportunities that can help you land a job in the competitive field of film.

And if you’re feeling overwhelmed by the application process or need help with coursework, remember that writing services like DoMyEssay are always there to assist you with everything from essays to scripts. Using a reliable writing service can free up more time for you to focus on honing your filmmaking craft.

Conclusion

Deciding on the right filmmaking college is a vital step toward forging a successful career in the industry. Whether you’re drawn to the practical, hands-on approach of schools like the University of Southern California or the creative freedom of the London Film School, the options are abundant. From film production major colleges to colleges for film production with strong industry connections, you have plenty of choices to match your passion and career goals.

Explore your options, pursue your passion, and start your journey as a future filmmaker. Don’t forget—paper writing services like DoMyEssay can support you along the way by helping with essays and coursework as you navigate your film studies. Armed with the proper education and support, you are well on your path to a rewarding career in filmmaking.

Once you make it into the university of your choice, the next step is ensuring you have a comfortable living arrangement nearby. After all, long commutes can drain both time and energy—two things students can’t afford to waste. Whether it’s campus dorms, private rentals, or communities known as student housing orem that offer convenience and modern amenities, finding the right place to live plays a big role in making your college years smoother and more enjoyable.

Author Profile

Nicole Hardy is a renowned content writer, recognized for her in-depth and insightful journalism, particularly in the fields of education and the arts, with a strong focus on performing arts education. With over ten years of experience, Hardy has built a reputation as a leading voice in her field, known for her comprehensive analysis and engaging storytelling. She holds a Master's degree in Journalism from the University of Arts, specializing in arts and culture journalism.

If you’re considering applying for a degree in film, you’re probably wondering about the career opportunities available. Don’t forget, if you need help polishing your application essay, a professional service like EssayService can assist you. Just ask, write an essay for me, and get support in crafting a top-tier application that showcases your passion for film.

Career Paths with a Film Degree

A degree in film production or a filmmaking degree prepares you for various roles in the film industry. Some of the leading career options available are:

• Film Director

One of the most sought-after jobs for those with a film degree is directing. Directors take charge of transforming a script into a visual story, overseeing everything from actor performances to cinematographic decisions. If you’re a creative visionary with strong leadership skills, a career in directing may be for you. Many successful directors start by earning their Bachelor’s degree in film and then working their way up through smaller projects or assisting established directors.

• Film Editor

Another popular option is becoming a film editor. Earning a film editing degree equips you to transform raw footage into a seamless final cut. Editors play a crucial role in storytelling, shaping how the film flows and ensuring that it adheres to the director’s vision. Editing is a highly technical field, and many editors start their careers by obtaining film production degrees or digital filmmaking degrees that include extensive training in software such as Adobe Premiere or Final Cut Pro.

• Cinematographer

If you’re passionate about the visual elements of filmmaking, consider becoming a cinematographer. Studying cinematography teaches you to manipulate lighting, camera angles, and composition to craft the visual tone and feel of a scene, collaborating closely with directors to achieve the desired emotional impact. A degree in filmmaking or film production degree with a focus on cinematography can set you on this path.

Opportunities Beyond Filmmaking

While many graduates pursue traditional roles in film, a film making degree can lead to careers in other industries as well. Consider these alternative career paths:

• Screenwriter

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If storytelling through words is your strength, screenwriting could be your ideal career path. A Bachelor’s degree in film with a focus on writing can help you hone your storytelling skills. Screenwriters are responsible for crafting dialogue, plotting out scenes, and developing character arcs. While many screenwriters work independently, there are also opportunities in television, advertising, and even video game design.

• Film Producer

Producers are the organizational backbone of any film production. They handle everything from budgeting to hiring key staff and coordinating schedules. Film production degrees are ideal for those looking to pursue a career in producing, as they offer a blend of creative and business-oriented skills. Producers often collaborate with directors and writers to ensure that the film stays on track both financially and creatively.

• Special Effects Artist

If you love working with technology and are fascinated by CGI and visual effects, you might consider becoming a special effects artist. Many special effects artists start by earning a digital filmmaking degree, which provides training in computer graphics, animation, and other advanced techniques. Special effects are used not just in film but also in TV shows, video games, and advertisements.

Emerging Careers with a Film Degree

The ever-changing landscape of the film industry continues to spawn new opportunities thanks to advancements in technology. Here are a few emerging career paths you can explore with a film production degree or degree in film.

• Virtual Reality Filmmaker

Virtual reality (VR) is an exciting new frontier in filmmaking, offering immersive storytelling experiences. With a filmmaking degree or degree in film production, you can learn how to create content for VR platforms, where storytelling takes on a whole new dimension. As VR technology continues to grow, so will the demand for skilled filmmakers in this field.

• Digital Content Creator

The popularity of platforms like YouTube and TikTok has significantly boosted the need for skilled digital content creators. A digital filmmaking degree can prepare you to create high-quality content for these platforms, whether you’re interested in producing short films, web series, or branded content. This career path is particularly attractive for those aiming to work autonomously or to cultivate a personal brand.

• Documentary Filmmaker

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If you’re passionate about telling real stories, consider a career in documentary filmmaking. A degree in filmmaking with a focus on documentaries allows you to explore social issues, historical events, or personal stories. Documentaries often provide more creative freedom and can be more accessible for new filmmakers looking to break into the industry.

How a Film Degree Can Help You Succeed

Earning degrees in film opens doors to many career paths, from traditional roles like directing and editing to more niche opportunities like virtual reality filmmaking. No matter which path you follow, possessing a film production degree arms you with essential skills and connections to thrive in the dynamic film industry.

Whether you’re aiming to become a director, producer, or editor, pursuing a career in film requires dedication, creativity, and a strong educational foundation. If you’re feeling uncertain about your academic essays or need help crafting a strong personal statement, EssayService can provide professional writing assistance. Simply ask them for help, and they’ll ensure you present your best work in applications or coursework.

Conclusion

A degree in film provides the tools you need to explore numerous career paths, from directing to editing and even digital content creation. Whether you choose a traditional role or an emerging field, film production or cinematography degrees equip you with the knowledge and skills required to thrive in the dynamic world of film. And remember, if you ever need help with writing projects or assignments, EssayService is here to support you every step of the way.

By choosing the right educational path, staying focused on your goals, and using the right resources, you’ll be well on your way to an exciting and rewarding career in filmmaking.

Author Profile

Nicole Hardy is a renowned content writer, recognized for her in-depth and insightful journalism, particularly in the fields of education and the arts, with a strong focus on performing arts education. With over ten years of experience, Hardy has built a reputation as a leading voice in her field, known for her comprehensive analysis and engaging storytelling. She holds a Master's degree in Journalism from the University of Arts, specializing in arts and culture journalism.

TFS Brand Manager Eugenia Anton says TFS didn’t need to hire a creative agency to lead this marketing initiative. “We’re fortunate that creative agencies are routinely recruiting our students to help them develop award winning production work for their clients so we immediately knew that we could jump in and work with that great talent directly too.... so we hired them,” says Anton. “We gave them the opportunity to practice what they’ve learned on a real set, with real stakes, and the result is a masterpiece in visual storytelling. The participation of students intertwined amongst the narrative of the creative is all kind of meta.”

The new brand video shows the transformation of a girl named Maya, from a creative child directing her friends in make-believe movies, through her experience as a film school student developing her craft at TFS, to a confident adult filmmaker, calling the shots on the set of her new project. 

For Morvarid Alinejad, who played Adult Maya, the experience resonated with her own journey. “It was amazing! It was kind of like my own story,” the Acting for Film TV & Theatre alumna says. “Maya is someone who is following her dream, you know, and I’m living that, so it was easy to get into her character.” 

The TFS experience is focused on genuine collaboration, raw creativity, and real-world, hands-on practical learning. That’s why the brand video’s producer, Nason Markwell, himself an alumnus of the TFS Film Production program, says it was so important for current students and recent graduates to be involved in the production.

“We knew that we could tell a great story while also making it a learnable experience for students,” he states. And speaking about what the current students brought to the table, Markwell muses, “The team's diverse perspectives and skill sets really improved the end result. From industry vets to existing students, the diversity worked beautifully.” 

Two of those students, Eric Currier and Taisen Colcher, were from TFS’s Video Game Design programs. On the brand video, they had the role of Tech Trainees, and they rave about getting to explore something new. 

“As I was working on this project, I just loved the idea that I could actually take the information I’ve learned in video game development and apply it to a different medium and mix it up,” says Colcher. And Currier echoes those thoughts, “It definitely opens up ideas about different avenues and opportunities to use our skills beyond an exclusive focus on video games.”

Bryanny Bailey, a student in the TFS Writing for Film & TV program, worked on the brand video as a Script Trainee, shadowing the Script Supervisor. This is exactly the type of experience, she says, that affirms she made the right decision enrolling in film school.  

“What makes people on fire, and alive, and passionate, is being around other people that share that desire and intensity for the same thing,” Bailey enthuses. “When you’re around creative people in class or on sets, you want to be creative. The in-person team experience lights a fire in you.”

As for what advice she would give to an aspiring filmmaker, trying to decide what their next step should be, Alinejad says to be like Maya in the video; keep going, pursue your passion, work hard, and don’t look back.

“I hope everybody sees that a career in a screen productions isn’t just a dream. There are countless career opportunities. Pursue the process. Chase your goals. Find the experts and learn from them. Because after I decided to come to TFS and really pursue this life, every moment I’m grateful for it. I never regret it.” 

You can check out Toronto Film School’s new brand video above, and learn more about TFS at torontofilmschool.ca or the school’s YouTube channel.

The following 25 film schools, many located in production and cultural hubs around North America, are places where you can learn the priceless skills required to make it in the ever-evolving entertainment business, while building a portfolio that will turn heads and make industry professionals take your talent and ambition seriously. 

Wherever you go, whatever you do, take full advantage of what can be a fairly pricey investment in yourself. Learn from everyone around you, shoot and edit on every piece of state-of-the-art equipment provided, listen to industry guest lectures with ears wide open, and make and collaborate with as many friends as possible — because a wide network is a filmmaker’s best asset. Your fellow students may very well be titans of industry one day. Or they might at least recommend you for a paid gig.  

OUTSTANDING CINEMATOGRAPHY TRAINING

AFI (Los Angeles, California)

Wally Pfister (Inception), Rachel Morrison (Black Panther) and Robert Richardson (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood) are among the cinematographers who graduated from the AFI Conservatory, a two-year program offering MFA degrees in cinematography, as well as directing, editing, producing, production design, and screenwriting.

Fellows accepted into one of the world’s most prestigious filmmaking academies have access to state-of-the-art camera equipment, sound stages and AVID editing rooms, and are regularly introduced to influential artists in the field and major industry players, often alumni, who speak, mentor and teach. AFI offers a practical curriculum centered on learning through doing, which guarantees that fellows make at least three films, if not 10, by the end of the program.

Their thesis films screen at AFI Fest, one of the world’s most respected film festivals. The many notable alumni illustrate the strength of the curriculum, and the school is committed to decreasing the gap between students and professionals through its Bridge to the Future office, which helps recent graduates find career-launching opportunities.

OUTSTANDING SCREENWRITING TRAINING

Antioch University MFA in Creative Writing (Los Angeles, California)

This screenwriting program is only a few years old, but it has already attracted the attention of guest speakers Jon Landau (Avatar), Stephen McFeely (Avengers: Endgame), Billy Ray (The Hunger Games), Jane Anderson (Olive Kitteridge), and Dorothy Fortenberry (The Handmaid’s Tale), who share their wisdom with students attending this two-year, low-residency MFA program at the private university’s campus.

An MFA semester consists mostly of working from home — or wherever students like to write — with an intensive 10-day hybrid residency of online and in-person classes, followed by a five-month online project period, during which each student works under the supervision of a faculty mentor. What really distinguishes this program is its emphasis on social justice, which, if you haven’t noticed, is a major theme in projects getting the greenlight from studios and indie film investors.

Students don’t just talk about it, either — they’re required to complete a field study, putting their knowledge and skills as writers to work in service of something they personally value. Each field study must address at least two of the three aspects of the MFA program’s unique purpose: the education of literary and dramatic artists, community engagement or service, and the pursuit of social justice.

A school representative tells MovieMaker that MFA field studies have changed the lives of not only students, but also those they serve.

OUTSTANDING FILM PRODUCTION TRAINING 

Chapman University, Dodge College of Film and Media Arts / MFA Film Production Program (Orange, California)

This esteemed film school is just a short drive away from Los Angeles, giving students easy access to the epicenter of the film business and internship possibilities galore.

Faculty include director-producer John Badham (Saturday Night Fever, WarGames) and senior associate dean Michael Kowalski, an expert in sound design and documentary filmmaking. Editor Addison Donnell (Julia, Get Shorty) tells MovieMaker:

“Having four years to study editing under professors who were long-term established editors in L.A. was invaluable to my career when I graduated. …My experience at Chapman University is one that I highly value, from the long nights in the editing lab to the close bonds forged with my classmates, who I now call colleagues.”

Students choose between directing, cinematography, editing or sound design as an area of specialization, and the programs are focused on mentorship and practical, hands-on experience, two of the best ways to learn any craft. They instill in-depth understanding of the fundamental components of visual storytelling, story structure and story analysis.

OUTSTANDING PRODUCING TRAINING

Columbia University (New York City, New York)

If you want to be a producer, not only must you have a knack for organization, an eye for talent, and a thorough understanding of the ever-evolving entertainment business models, you’ve also got to understand story structure and development, and have great relationships with the writers and directors that bring them to life on screen.

This three-year creative producing MFA, taught by a faculty of working producers in film, television, and digital media, throws students into the mix with those in the Writing for Film & Television and Screenwriting & Directing concentrations during their first year in order to facilitate friendships and professional collaborations that last throughout the program and beyond. Network is a producer’s strongest tool, and Columbia students start building an expansive rolodex on day one.

Jack Lechner, chair of film at the Ivy League university, is a producer himself, with credits including the excellent Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams drama Blue Valentine and the Oscar-winning documentary The Fog of War, so students are in good hands. “Columbia Film is distinguished by its constant focus on story,” he tells MovieMaker.

“Our faculty are working professionals, who convey up-to-date information to students about their own experiences in the current media marketplace. The Film program is part of Columbia University, with endless opportunities for students to learn and to make creative connections.”

OUTSTANDING CINEMATOGRAPHY TRAINING

Columbia College Chicago Cinema and Television Arts (Chicago, Illinois)

With graduate, undergraduate and minor degree options available, as well the opportunity to spend a semester in Los Angeles, immersed in the entertainment capital of the world while learning in the heart of Hollywood on the Sunset Las Palmas Studios lot, this school is a wonderful place to learn all aspects of the craft.

BFA students can choose pathways for studying directing and cinematography, and students may want to stick around for an MFA in Cinema and Television Directing.

The program has trained former president of the American Society of Cinematographers Michael Goi, as well as Emmy-award winning cinematographer Christian Sprenger (Atlanta, GLOW), who said in a testimony on the school’s website that the curriculum’s “fundamental education is still something that I rely on today, and in a lot of ways it’s universal to whatever the technology is that you’re using.”

Students receive a well-rounded education through intensive study in screenwriting, cinematography, editing and sound, while those on the directing track write and direct their own scripts, as well as material written by others. 

OUTSTANDING FILM STUDIES 

Concordia (Montréal, Québec, Canada)

In addition to a fine animation program that MovieMaker highlighted last year, as well as an ample film production program, Concordia offers a rich, intellectually stimulating environment to pursue a BFA, MA or PhD in film studies.

Concordia aims to arm deep thinkers with the tools and visual literacy necessary for aesthetic, historical and cultural analysis of cinema and audiovisual media. Students develop critical thinking as well as a thorough understanding of the history and traditions of the moving image, while actively researching individual scholarly goals under the mentorship of acclaimed faculty.

They will also will find themselves at the forefront of new scholarship in the field by attending screenings, workshops and seminars hosting distinguished guest speakers, and can immerse themselves in one of Canada’s great cultural capitals. Concordia is on proud display to the world each summer as Fantasia, one of our 50 Film Festivals Worth the Entry Fee, takes over many of its comfortable, ultra-modern facilities. 

OUTSTANDING DOCUMENTARY TRAINING

DePaul University (Chicago, Illinois)

Documentaries were always one of the most produced formats of the film and television industry, but ever since Netflix’s Making a Murderer captivated the world over a decade ago, mainstream viewers have been craving docs about anything and everything, so there’s never been a better time to learn to be a documentarian.

DePaul’s demanding MFA program mixes theory and production to instill a deep understanding of the genre, as well as the skills to create compelling stories within it — including research, development, aesthetics, post-production workflow, and even how to find an audience.

Students learn from outstanding professionals in the field, including Sundance Documentary Cinematography Award winner Dana Kupper, whose credits include the Roger Ebert documentary Life Itself, and Brenda Robinson, an entertainment attorney with 19 executive producer credits.

The school also brings innovative industry leaders to campus for film screenings, on-stage conversations, and professional panels, and offers a Bollywood study abroad program in Mumbai. 

OUTSTANDING SCREENWRITING TRAINING

Emerson College (Boston, Massachusetts)

Perhaps the best endorsement of Emerson is that it was here that Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert — this past year’s winners of the Best Picture, Best Director and Best Original Screenplay Oscars for Everything Everywhere All at Once — got their start together.

A less prominent but still significant cause for celebration is Emerson’s two-year, full-time Writing for Film and Television MFA. It’s a low-residency program, meaning mostly online coursework, with the exception of six-day residencies that kick off each semester at either the Boston or Los Angeles campuses, where students participate in workshops, screenings, lectures, and a master class with a guest lecturer of significant accomplishment in the field.

The school’s Semel chair in screenwriting meets with students, and leads an evening screening and discussion of their work. Previous Semel chairs have included Emmy winner Joey Soloway (Transparent), Oscar winner Dustin Lance Black (Milk), and three-time Emmy nominee Krista Vernoff (Grey’s Anatomy).

In addition to learning from exceptional industry talent, graduates join a vast alumni network with a major presence in the industry, thanks to a long-running internship program, where senior undergraduates spend one semester studying at a state-of-the-art campus on Sunset Boulevard and then their last semester interning at a company relevant to their area of focus. 

OUTSTANDING FILM PRODUCTION TRAINING

Feirstein Graduate School of Cinema (Brooklyn, New York)

This Brooklyn College program is young and small, with just 80 students accepted last year, but it has really hit the ground running under the guidance of two-time Oscar-nominated producer Richard Gladstein (The Hateful Eight), who serves as executive director, using his and the faculty’s other connections to bring in industry guests to speak to students about their work and journeys.

“It’s about bringing these filmmakers, music makers and media makers to just talk about their craft and de-mystify it for everyone; this is attainable, they’re just like you, they’re just a few years ahead,” he says in a recent promotional video for the program.

The cutting-edge facilities provide access to premium equipment, four soundstages, seven Avid Everywhere post-production suites, four DaVinci Resolve color grading suites, ADR studios, mixing rooms, a construction shop and a prop room. Feirstein covers the gamut for those interested in learning directing, cinematography, post-production, digital animation and VFX, producing, screenwriting, sonic arts and media scoring.

It’s a great low-tuition option for students from New York who want to live and learn in the Big Apple, a glorious nexus of cultures, people and ideas.

“What’s slightly different about our school is the community we serve: we’re extraordinarily diverse. More than half the students are people of color,” says Gladstein. Another attractive perk of the school is its location at Steiner Studios, so students are immersed in the hustle and bustle of a working production lot. 

OUTSTANDING FILM PRODUCTION TRAINING

Full Sail University (Winter Park, Florida)

The school’s 12-month Film Production Master of Fine Arts is an accelerated degree program designed to build and strengthen visual storytelling skills through developing technical skills and theory. It guides students through all stages of the process, including film festival submission and securing distribution.

The trademark Project LaunchBox package equips students with the necessary gear to create their projects, with access to a Hollywood-style backlot and soundstage, as well as high-end camera and lighting packages.

Just last year, the school opened Studio V1: Virtual Production — one of the nation’s largest and most technologically advanced virtual production studios on a college campus, bridging traditional studio filmmaking with live production and real-time 3-D creation, allowing students to create visually stunning projects on a smaller budget.

Though this program is short and sweet, Full Sail promises to support students throughout their entire professional journey, offering a robust Career Development department with an advisory team made up of degree-specific industry professionals. They assist graduates with personal brand development, while also hosting recruitment events, alumni events and guest speaker engagements.

OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION TRAINING

Nashville Film Institute (Nashville, Tennessee)

NFI is a vocational oriented program, offering a nine-month hands-on diploma in film production, or a two-year Occupational Associate’s Degree — a 60-credit program that also dives into psychology and cultural anthropology to create well-rounded filmmakers who understand how to depict the depth and nuances of the human condition.

The accelerated program teaches what students will need to know to work on set, and the location in America’s beloved Music City offers no shortage of artists to work with on music videos, while production companies, like Tim McGraw’s shingle Down Home, are also starting to plant their flags in the area.

Justin Vesci, the vice president of development and production at global film and television production label PZAJ, tells MovieMaker that Nashville isn’t an epicenter for the industry yet — but he adds that it’s growing bigger and bigger every day.

“Currently, if you are open to all aspects of filmed content, you could find a job in some fashion as a PA, director of photography, lighting, sound, set decorator, et cetera,” he says. “There are plenty of opportunities for commercials and music videos.” Vesci relocated to Nashville from Los Angeles in 2020.

OUTSTANDING DIRECTING TRAINING 

New York Film Academy (New York City, New York and Los Angeles, California)

NYFA’s locations in two of the largest filmmaking markets in the world provide students with lots of options: Those interested in independent film, for example, can choose to earn a BFA in filmmaking in New York, the indie filmmaker capital of the world.

Students study directing, screenwriting, cinematography, editing, and producing through hands-on exercises and coursework, with the goal of graduating with a great reel and lots practical experience. “The only way you’re going to learn how to direct films is by directing films, and there is no way around that,” says NYFA filmmaking chair Andrea Swift in a Q&A on the program’s website.

“The networks people create at school are some of the most important things they come out with. Additionally, don’t wait for someone else to give you permission to start making films. Just start.”

It’s that kind of mindset that thrives at NYFA, pushing students to make the most of their time at the school, which also emphasizes the art of pinching a penny. “I love to teach filmmakers how to make films with no budget so our students can make films without spending a lot of money,” Swift adds.

Expect additional coursework in liberal arts, cinema studies, arts and humanities, and science that strongly relates to filmmaking, as well as the opportunity to listen to leading directors, actors, producers, cinematographers and distinguished NYFA alumni who drop by for speaking engagements.

OUTSTANDING DIRECTING TRAINING

New York University (New York City, New York)

If you’re exploring film school options, then NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts is probably already on your radar, because it’s one of the world’s preeminent centers for the study of the performing, cinematic and emerging media arts, with more than 45,000 alumni working out in the field.

They include directors M. Night Shyamalan, Joel Coen and Spike Lee, who is a professor of film and artistic director. More than 5,000 films a year are made here by both students and faculty, who provide outstanding undergraduate and graduate education in the study of film and media arts.

“Our students are part of a community of young, passionate artists who grow together, support each other and succeed together,” says Undergraduate Film & Television chair Ezra Sacks. “Our credo is learning by doing. Students are actively creating work and encouraged to take risks as they discover their own individual voices.

Students leave the program having developed an excellence in their craft and a strong conviction in the unique stories they have to tell.”

OUTSTANDING DIGITAL CINEMA PRODUCTION TRAINING

Oklahoma City Community College (Oklahoma City, Oklahoma)

This affordable, two-year program is now called the Gray Frederickson Digital Cinema Department, in honor of the Oscar and Emmy Award-winning producer of the Godfather trilogy and Apocalypse Now, who passed on last year. He created a curriculum that mixes theoretical foundation and practical application, as well as state-of-the-art technology and professional faculty.

OCCC says it draws people from all over the world in part because it’s a people’s film school: If you apply, you’re in. Professors Greg Mellott and Sean Lynch, who coordinate the program, tell MovieMaker that “the program gives students greater access to a much higher level of equipment and technology and facilities than most schools at a fraction of the cost-— and lets them be taught by Oscar and Emmy Award winning faculty.”

One of OCCC’s facilities is a 6,000-square-foot studio from which Francis Ford Coppola streamed the first-ever Live Cinema production, earning students priceless experience and an impressive IMDb credit.

With major film and TV productions coming to Oklahoma, like Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon and the FX series Reservation Dogs, OCCC’s program is customized to funnel students and alumni into the state’s industry. “Making moviemakers is Gray’s legacy to our school and our state, now and forever,” add Mellott and Lynch.

OUTSTANDING BRANDED-CONTENT TRAINING 

Ringling College of Art and Design (Sarasota, Florida)

Ringling’s four-year BFA in branded content gives students the chance to specialize in making dynamic video content that cuts through the clutter, taps into consumers’ passion points and engages them through entertainment.

Its narrative film concentration, meanwhile, immerses students in all aspects of the process, including cinematography, production design, editing, sound design, screenwriting, post-production, directing, and producing — all on an 8,400 square foot soundstage, using state-of-the-art gear and editing suites.

During a recent visit by MovieMaker, we watched hypnotic clips of Ringling student Ben Sutherland’s “Blinds Wide Shut” under the oversight of sound faculty advisor Nick Palladino in the school’s impressive Dolby Atmos Theater. The film was shot almost entirely on Ringling soundstages. The school also owns an entire home available for film shoots.

“It’s been said that Ringling College is Hollywood’s best-kept secret,” a Ringling representative says. “In addition to our top-ranked academics and the 17 Student Academy Awards won by our animation department, our production-intensive program that our live-action undergraduates enjoy puts our students ahead and industry-ready upon graduation.” 

OUTSTANDING DOCUMENTARY TRAINING

Rutgers Filmmaking Center (New Brunswick, New Jersey)

Situated between two major filmmaking markets, New York City and Philadelphia, students in this four-year undergraduate program are close to plenty of internship and production gig opportunities.

The goal of the curriculum, roughly 80 percent practical and 20 percent theory, is to teach skills that can be applied to both narrative and non-narrative modes of filmmaking, but those particularly interested in the latter can take advantage of in-house production unit, the Documentary Film Lab — considered one of the university’s biggest draws.

It gives students the opportunity to create feature docs ready for the festival circuit or to show prospective employers. And with Netflix building the Fort Monmouth Studio in the Garden State, as well as Lionsgate developing a $125 million Newark studio complex, New Jersey is becoming an increasingly attractive filmmaking hub.

Faculty at Rutgers’ Mason Gross School of the Arts include Academy Award winners, Documentary Film Lab director Thomas Lennon (Sacred, Knife Skills) and Guggenheim Fellows. Regardless of concentration, students can expect to have a camera in their hands during their first week and access to top-notch gear and technology.

Every week, students gather for the Friday Filmmaker Series, where notable directors screen and discuss their films. Uncut Gems directors the Safdie brothers were guests this past spring semester, and previous speakers have included Robert Eggers (The Lighthouse) and documentarian Nanfu Wang (In the Same Breath).

OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION TRAINING

Savannah College of Art and Design (Savannah, Georgia)

Nestled in one of the most charming small cities in the country, SCAD offers a hands-on, practical educational experience, mirroring the productions found in Hollywood, or nearby studio hub Atlanta, with access to a Hollywood-style film backlot on the campus.

In fact, a major expansion of SCAD’s film and digital media studios is currently underway, making the studio the largest, most comprehensive university complex in the nation. “All of our students are mentored by faculty who are ripe from the industry and still working in the industry,” Andra Reeve-Rabb, dean of the SCAD School of Film and Acting, tells MovieMaker.

“We even structure classes that meet on sets of movies like May December, which stars Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore.” Last year, the school launched the first 560 Collaborative Experiences course in film and television, placing students on professional feature film and television sets shooting in Georgia’s multi-billion-dollar industry.

Also Read: SCAD Lacoste Film Festival Brings Southern Hospitality to the French Countryside

Aspiring directors have access to the only full-time, in-house university casting office in the nation, securing on-screen talent for their student projects, while getting to pick the brains of top filmmaking talent who frequently stops by to speak. With all of these opportunities on campus or close by, it’s no wonder over 145 SCAD alumni contributed to 18 Oscar-nominated and Oscar-winning films in 2023.

The fast-growing Atlanta campus is spectacular as well, offering hands-on learning about every aspect of filmmaking, with no detail overlooked. It’s so immersive that it includes an airline setup where students can practice networking on long flights. SCAD also hosts the SCAD Animation Fest and SCAD Savannah Film Festival in the fall, as well as the SCAD TV Fest in the winter. All give students the chance to meet and gather advice from A-listers and other industry veterans.

OUTSTANDING POST-PRODUCTION TRAINING

Temple University (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)

Temple alums have a strong presence in the film, television and media industries, with many graduates working in post-production as assistant editors, editors, post-production supervisors and associate producers on major productions.

The BA in Film and Media Arts provides a more general approach to the field, giving students a strong, broad foundation in media studies throughout the four-year undergraduate program, which focuses on one of four concentrations — cinematography, producing, screen studies and post-production.

The latter program includes courses in 3-D modeling, compositing, digital animation, making documentaries, screenwriting, three levels of editing, two levels of audio, and videography. Juniors and seniors have the option to participate in the university’s semester-long L.A. Study Away Program.

Dan Flesher, an editor whose recent work includes History of the World: Part II and Netflix’s Murderville, credits it with launching his career. “I can truly trace every job I’ve had back to their internship program,” Flesher tells MovieMaker.

“Temple University gave me the foundational knowledge I use every day as a professional film and television editor. Their emphasis on creating actual films and not just academic exercises gave me a competitive edge upon graduation.”

OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION TRAINING

Toronto Film School (Toronto, Ontario, Canada)

This 18-month, six-term program in one of the largest production hubs in North America is designed to prepare students for the realities of working in the field, skipping any general education electives in favor of hands-on learning under the guidance of expert, working professionals.

The school’s president, Andrew Barnsley, has an Emmy, a Golden Globe and six Canadian Screen Awards to his name, and executive produced the beloved hit sitcom Schitt’s Creek. In addition to world-class technology and the tools at students’ disposal, they’re treated to the school’s Inner Circle Club, featuring distinguished industry professionals in term-long residencies who spearhead transformational learning through unique networking and experiential events.

Film and television producer Andrew Gunn (Cruella) and writer-producer Katie Ford (Miss Congeniality) were recent ICC residents. “Students choose Toronto Film School for world-class faculty, specialized curriculums, hands-on training, and industry relationships from day one,” a representative from the school tells MovieMaker. “They graduate having mastered their craft— confident, savvy, and connected.”

OUTSTANDING SCREENWRITING TRAINING

UCLA (Los Angeles, California)

UCLA is another entry on this list that should be obvious to anybody seriously considering film school. But for those particularly interested in screenwriting, a two-year MFA from UCLA is one of the best educations you can get.

Recent alumni currently making a splash in the industry include Amy Aniobi (Insecure) and Steven Canals (Pose), while blockbuster screenwriter David Koepp (Jurassic Park) and cinematic legend Francis Ford Coppola also studied here. The instructors are also industry veterans, including Oscar nominee Phyllis Nagy (Carol) and television writer-producer Jill Goldsmith (Law & Order).

They teach disciplined, professional writing skills in a workshop-style setting. “The workshop model of small class sizes ensures that students’ work is meaningfully heard, analyzed and critiqued,” program manager Andrea Davis tells MovieMaker. “The program is writing-intensive, rigorous, and offers students two years to focus on developing a portfolio of polished, professional scripts.”

UCLA also deserves special recognition for the School of Theater, Film & Television’s Professional Programs, offering graduate-level certificate programs in disciplines like Acting for the Camera, Producing, Screenwriting, Writing for Television, Directing and Writing for Late Night Comedy. 

OUTSTANDING FILM AND TELEVISION PRODUCTION TRAINING

University of Colorado Denver (Denver, Colorado)

This affordable option, in one of the coolest cities in the country, gives students access to industry-standard, professional-grade cameras, as well as sound, lighting, and grip equipment, to make projects — from script to screen — on the campus’s three sound stages.

The hands-on curriculum includes classes in screenwriting, production, acting, directing, editing, visual effects, set design, and cinematography, producing well-rounded young professionals ready to jump into a wide variety of careers within the industry. The Hollywood internship program sends students to Los Angeles to work on studio lots and in production houses and offices where they can secure priceless real-world experience while building their resumes and networks.

For those who prefer to stay local after graduation, the Industry Pathways program provides apprenticeships in Denver’s thriving film, TV and production scene, while well-connected faculty and alumni also share networks and opportunities. Students learn from experts like Ozark writer-producer Alyson Feltes and Eric Jewett, whose TV directing credits include Weeds and Party of Five.

The program also offers a “performance for the screen” area of study, giving the aspiring filmmakers in this four-year undergraduate program the chance to work with lots of up-and-coming actors eager to bring their stories to life.

OUTSTANDING DIRECTING TRAINING

University of North Carolina School of the Arts (Winston-Salem, North Carolina)

Acclaimed and affordable, with tuition that is less than half that of other preeminent film schools, UNCSA offers an intensive hands-on production program intertwined with film history and theory.

Alums includes directors David Gordon Green (Halloween), Jeff Nichols (Mud) and Craig Zobel (Mare of Easttown), but since the UNCSA School of Filmmaking has been majority female for the past three years, programs are creating a pipeline of extraordinary women in an industry that is historically predominantly male.

Students can expect close relationships with faculty mentors, as well as visits from industry guests and successful alums, plus annual trips to both New York City and Los Angeles, where graduating seniors also network with alumni in “Reel Talks” programs.

Aspiring directors mix and mingle with students studying a broad spectrum of other disciplines — writing, directing, producing, editing, production design, cinematography and more — creating a well-rounded network to collaborate on projects before and after graduation. Additionally, the curriculum is equal parts art and commerce, so students are both creative and prepared to navigate the businesses.

OUTSTANDING PRODUCING TRAINING

University of Southern California (Los Angeles, California)

USC is another entry on this list widely recognized as one of the world’s great film schools, but we want to especially highlight the Peter Stark Producing Program. The rigorous, two-year MFA program trains students to become producers and executives of film, television, and new media under the close guidance and mentorship of working professionals.

The institution recognizes that industry experience is absolutely essential, so the degree requires 2,800 hours of internships or work experience, in addition to intensive coursework and group projects, as well as an individual thesis project. “I would describe it as the best producing program in the country, probably in the world,” says Stark alum Blake Pickens, whose credits include the acclaimed 2021 film Wild Indian, in a promotional video for the program.

Pickens credits the Stark program for his successes in an uncertain business that requires a lot of motivation, ingenuity and persistence, as well as the right network. “It basically made my entire career. It gave me the tools and the stepping stones to get to what I want to do today.”

OUTSTANDING DIRECTING TRAINING

University of Texas at Austin (Austin, Texas)

The affordable but highly selective MFA program in Film & Media Production only accepts 12 students each year, guaranteeing close guidance from a faculty of working professionals, as well as extensive production opportunities — resulting in at least two portfolio-quality films by graduation. The program covers all aspects of production, but is intent on training directors.

Its great alums include the Duplass Brothers (Jeff, Who Lives at Home), Robert Rodriguez (Sin City) and Michael Zinberg (NCIS) as alumni. (UT Austin is also where undergraduates Wes Anderson and Owen Wilson became friends and collaborators, as Wilson recounted in our last issue.)

In the past five years, students have taken top awards at the Cannes Film Festival, the Student Academy Awards, BAFTA-LA and Slamdance.

The city’s film scene is hotter than ever, too, with iconic annual festivals SXSW, the Austin Film Festival and the ATX Television Festival back in full swing after pandemic disruption, allowing students to immerse themselves in vast networking opportunities while studying.

The first year is spent working on a range of media production exercises and experiences to develop creative expression through the medium, while the second year focuses on refining technical skills and strengthening aesthetic, theoretical and conceptual abilities on a pre-thesis film. Students spend their third year making a thesis.

OUTSTANDING MAKEUP DESIGN FOR FILM AND TELEVISION

Vancouver Film School (Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada)

This top-notch film school in one of Canada’s coolest cities is a good option for any concentration of study — including writing, acting, film production, sound design, VFX and animation— but it may stand out the most for makeup design.

Katie Middleton, who worked on the summer blockbuster Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, calls it “the most intensive program” available for aspiring makeup artists.

“They covered such a wide range of makeup techniques and materials that made me feel prepared and comfortable to start working on my own,” she says in a testimonial. “The makeup industry is always changing and improving, so it’s important to learn personally from experienced professionals who are also familiar with the most current processes.”

The 12-month, six-term program has produced some of the most successful and sought-after professionals in the entire industry, and has the employment stats to prove it: VFS cites 61 alums who worked on Zack Snyder’s Justice League, 77 who worked on Black Panther, and 105 who worked on on Game of Thrones.

Since 2009, Full Sail has inducted six graduates per year into its Hall of Fame, honoring their industry contributions and their commitment to continued involvement with students and faculty. Current Full Sail students can learn from Hall of Fame inductees by attending industry panels, workshops, and meet-and-greets throughout the week. 

To date, graduates from the university’s Film programs have made the inductee list every year for their work as directors, editors, cinematographers, writers, and more. Many film inductees have worked on blockbuster movies, award-winning films, and with major studios — like Devan Renea, a Film graduate who is being inducted this year into the 13th Hall of Fame class and is currently Executive Assistant to the Executive Vice President of Post-Production Creative Services at Warner Bros. The hands-on learning in Full Sail’s Film programs, combined with the inductees’ dedication to mentorship, prepares students to make their way in the film industry after they graduate.

Full Sail University’s Film Programs

Full Sail’s Film programs are a perfect example of how the university’s classes mimic a workday in a student’s chosen industry. In the Film bachelor’s program, students experience each step in the filmmaking process: They write their own scripts and choose a story to film, plan out shot lists in pre-production, learn about technical skills like loading film and using dollies and sound equipment, and build sets for their movie. During film days, students each take on a different key role like Director or Production Designer or a crew role like Grip, Gaffer, and Camera Operator, then they use editing software to put their completed film together during post-production.

The online Digital Cinematography bachelor’s degree prepares students to become a jack-of-all-trades in video production and digital cinematography. Each student is provided with a professional camera package and a fully-loaded MacBook Pro with software for budgeting, scripting, and editing. Students find their own locations to film their individual projects and learn about scriptwriting, lighting, directing, post-production, and more during their online courses. By the time they graduate, students are ready to pursue entrepreneurial roles in the film industry.

Full Sail also offers a master's degree in Film Production. Graduate students can earn their MFA while sharpening their existing moviemaking skills, working on formats ranging from feature films to web pilots to documentary shorts. They work on Full Sail’s campus and learn about scriptwriting, directing, visual storytelling, and business strategies that can help them bring their completed work to audiences. 

Additional programs like the Computer Animation bachelor’s and Creative Writing bachelor’s focus on the technical skills students need to work in animation or to develop scriptwriting skills.

Hall of Fame Film Grads

Over a dozen graduates from Full Sail’s Film programs have been inducted into the Hall of Fame over the years. These grads say that the school’s real-world classes helped them find their place in the film industry and succeed in the roles they sought out.

Graduate Larry Katz, who was inducted into the fifth Hall of Fame class, has worked as a Second Assistant Director (AD) on movies like **Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End**, **Dawn of the Planet of the Apes**, **Captain America: The First Avenger**, and **X-Men: First Class**. Larry was a movie buff who wasn’t sure how to turn his love for the medium into a career – until he came to Full Sail.

“I just didn't know where I fit [in the film industry] before I came to Full Sail. I would see those 100 titles in the credits and I didn't know what they were and I was open to learning about them. Full Sail pretty much answered the question of, ‘What are all of those roles?’ I knew what my strengths were, and as it turns out, [Second AD] really suits my strengths,” he says.

Larry enjoys being a Second AD because it’s an active role that touches every shot in a film.

“They can't do one shot unless I'm standing there and I say, ‘Picture's up.’ I decided to come to Full Sail in the first place [because I was a fan of movies]. Now the movies that I work on, they can't do one frame unless I'm standing there watching, kind of like as a fan in that moment.”

Hall of Fame 12 inductee Stephanie Dawson, who is a producer on PBS’ **Great Performances** through WNET Group, says that Full Sail helped her see how individual roles on set work together towards a completed film. 

“I would say that the real-world setup of the school, making sure that we simulated what would really happen on a set, even in class, was a good way to prepare us,” Stephanie says. “Because film is very regimented, every role has specific responsibilities, and the way that they behave on set is very, very particular. It was good to have that exposure before stepping on a set, because I think in the outside world, it's not very apparent how each individual role works and flows together and what the chain of command is and the process of communication.”

Both Larry and Stephanie say that their induction into Hall of Fame was a validation of their hard work and a satisfying way to mentor the next generation of Full Sail Film grads.

“[Being inducted into the Hall of Fame] was the best day of my life. I was just validated, so proud. I wouldn't be on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, I'm just another crew guy on set. But to be recognized for things that I've accomplished, and even more so for being recognized for giving back to Full Sail students – it was just amazing,” Larry says.

“It was an honor to be recognized by the place that helped me really take that leap into my dream,” Stephanie recalls. “And then also talking to the students [and seeing] the way the students look at you. Being a grad is one thing, but being a Hall of Famer, that is yet another. I love talking to the students. And I feel like [Hall of Fame] made it even more accessible on both sides. Like I said in my speech, ‘I feel like being in the Hall of Fame is an honor, but it's also a responsibility.’ And that became very clear when I was on campus.”

Equipped with many features including Brompton processors, 410 tiles on the ground, 90 tiles across the ceiling, and 2.8mm pixel pitch, as well as a 40 ft wide and 16 ft high LED wall (comprised of APG’s hyper pixel LEDs), Full Sail University’s over $3 Million of direct capital investment for the development of Studio V1: Virtual Production will educate students across 10 different degree programs. These degree programs include: 

Full Sail University’s hands-on, project-based approach to education is centered on real-world industry experience and creative problem-solving. The opening of the new facility, Studio V1: Virtual Production is a great example of that real-world approach to education in action.  

Main image: Studio V1

• Cutting-Edge Technology and Facilities 

Joi McMillon, editor of Zola and The Underground Railroad

Brad Ingelsby, creator of Mare of Easttown, screenwriter of The Way Back

Alice Brooks, cinematographer of In the Heights

What should aspiring moviemakers consider when picking a school?

Chris Westlund, cinematographer of Best Summer Ever

U.S. West and Northwest

U.S. Midwest and Southwest

U.S. Northeast

Canada

U.S. West and Northwest

U.S. Northeast

New York University (New York City, NY) - Outstanding directing training In the NYU Tisch Graduate Film program — an intense, 3-year commitment — students learn from the best, especially in the Directing concentration. At NYU, Oscar-winning director Spike Lee becomes Professor Spike Lee as he shapes the new generation of bold directors. The star-studded faculty also features Kasi Lemmons (Eve's Bayou, Harriet), Todd Solondz (Welcome to the Dollhouse, Happiness), and Alexandre Rockwell (In the Soup), all of whom imbue their pupils with the technical mastery to materialize their personal visions. [caption id="attachment_69899" align="aligncenter" width="2560"] NYU alum Spike Lee (L) on the set of Da 5 Bloods with Clarke Peters, Delory Lindo, Jonathan Majors, and Norm Lewis. Photo by David Lee.[/caption] Rhode Island School of Design (Providence, RI) - Outstanding animation training

U.S. Southwest

U.S. Midwest

U.S. Southeast

Canada

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 U.S. WEST 

Outstanding Screenwriting Training: AFI Conservatory (Los Angeles, CA) 

Outstanding Animation Training: California Institute of the Arts (Valencia, CA) 

Outstanding Screenwriting Training: University of Southern California (Los Angeles, CA) 

Top-Notch Equipment and Facilities: Stanford University (Palo Alto, CA) 

Top-Notch Equipment and Facilities: Chapman University (Orange, CA) 

Accelerated Industry Access: ArtCenter College of Design (Pasadena, CA) 

Outstanding Theory and Criticism Training: San Francisco State University (San Francisco, CA) 

Outstanding Animation Training: California State University Northridge (Northridge, CA) 

Outstanding Screenwriting Training: Pepperdine University (Malibu, CA) 

Outstanding Producing Training: Loyola Marymount University (Los Angeles, CA) 

U.S. NORTHEAST 

Outstanding Cinematography Training: New York University (New York, NY) 

Outstanding Producing Training: Columbia University (New York, NY)

Outstanding Animation Training: Rhode Island School of Design (Providence, RI)

Outstanding Theory and Criticism Training: Yale University (New Haven, CT)

Accomplished Faculty: Ithaca College (Ithaca, NY)

Internship/Surrounding Opportunities: Boston University (Boston, MA)

Internship/Surrounding Opportunities: Pratt Institute (Brooklyn, NY)

U.S. SOUTHWEST

Outstanding Screenwriting Training: University of Texas at Austin (Austin, TX)

Outstanding Cinematography Training: Oklahoma City University (Oklahoma City, OK)

Outstanding Theory and Criticism Training: Southern Methodist University (Dallas, TX)

Outstanding Theory and Criticism Training: Brigham Young University (Provo, UT)

U.S. MIDWEST

Top-Notch Equipment and Facilities: DePaul University (Chicago, IL)

Outstanding Cinematography Training: Columbia College Chicago (Chicago, IL) 

Outstanding Theory and Criticism Training: Northwestern University (Evanston, IL) 

U.S. SOUTHEAST 

Outstanding Animation Training: University of North Carolina School of the Arts (Winston-Salem, NC) 

Outstanding Directing Training: Ringling College of Art and Design (Sarasota, FL) 

Accomplished Faculty: University of Miami (Miami, FL) 

Outstanding Animation Training: University of Central Florida (Orlando, FL) 

Top-Notch Equipment and Facilities: Savannah College of Art and Design (Savannah, GA) 

Internship/Surrounding Opportunities: Florida State University (Tallahassee, FL) 

Top-Notch Equipment and Facilities: Louisiana State University (Baton Rouge, LA) 

CANADA 

Outstanding Animation Training: Red Deer College (Red Deer, Alberta) 

Outstanding Animation Training: Capilano University (North Vancover, British Columbia) 

Outstanding Theory and Criticism Training: University of Toronto (Toronto, Ontario) 

Outstanding Animation Training: Vancouver Film School (Vancouver, British Columbia) 

Outstanding Screenwriting Training: York University (Toronto, Ontario) 

Outstanding Animation Training: Concordia University (Montréal, Québec) 

Outstanding Theory and Criticism Training: University of British Columbia (Vancouver, British Columbia) 

Outstanding Theory and Criticism Training: Queen’s University (Kingston, Ontario) 

Perhaps you’ve decided to put your energy and resources where those dreams are and go to film school. This is very likely to be one of the biggest decisions in your life, but you’ve made it.

Congratulations. But where, exactly, do you turn now? 

The household-name programs can seem like a recipe for insta-respect—and hey, they’re famous for a reason. But take an analogy from the world of film festivals: You don’t have to premiere at Cannes to have the experience that’s best for you. Let’s underscore that “for you” part again. Be clear and honest about your personal objectives (what’s your dream role on a production? What types of projects do you want to work on?), and match them with the most compatible institution—whether it’s the one with the great internship program, or the one with the fanciest equipment you’d never get to touch otherwise, or the one that’s 15 minutes from your house (or online).

Out of the hundreds of bachelors and masters degree programs in the United States and Canada, we’ve chosen 40 that we believe represent the best of what higher education has to offer the film world, organized by region. We chose a quality of each school to spotlight, too, because even the most well-rounded program has its particular strengths. Some of these schools are fixtures on any academic best-of list, while others may be unexpectedly pleasant discoveries; some are brash new upstarts and some have been quietly churning out successful graduates for decades.

Either way—because of that decision you made—someday soon you might be listed on a “famous alumni” page. 

Start reading on the next page, or jump to a region here:

U.S. West

Outstanding Directing Training: AFI Conservatory 

A two-year MFA program in any of AFI’s six disciplines inducts you into an exclusive group of creators: 140 fellows in total per year, to be exact. The competitive and hands-on directing program focuses on narrative, visual language and performance. The school is at the forefront of inclusion (47 percent of the current cohort are female), and is grooming a diverse new wave of moviemakers. Revolutionary directing alumni include Wonder Woman’s Patty Jenkins, Terrence Malick, Andrea Arnold and Darren Aronofsky. AFI is the least expensive graduate opportunity for an institution of such reputation—no other school has accumulated more Academy Award nominations and wins.

Accomplished Faculty: California College of the Arts

When a two-time Oscar-winner is the film program’s co-chair, it’s safe to assume standards are high. At this San Francisco- and Oakland-based school, documentarian Rob Epstein, who received his statuettes for The Times of Harvey Milk and Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt, spearheads a team of educators that range from accomplished independent director Chris Mason Johnson (Test) to expert sound mixer Dan Olmsted and Emmy-winning Guggenheim Fellow Jack Walsh. 

Outstanding Animation Training: California Institute of the Arts

Top-Notch Equipment and Facilities: Chapman University

Accelerated Industry Access: Loyola Marymount University 

The application of classroom theory in a real-world environment is what elevates the student to the professional. LMU has strong ties to industry heavyweights such as 20th Century Fox, Disney, Nickelodeon, Sony, DreamWorks and Paramount Pictures. Each year the Los Angeles school places 200 of their best students at internships with these companies. To ensure that these opportunities are as personalized as possible, students have access to career development staff, who counsel them on their transition into the moviemaking workforce. 

Outstanding Editing Training: National University

Because its MFA programs, including the popular Digital Cinema Production, are offered in a hybrid online/on-site format, National University is viable option for students whose studies coincide with other commitments. (Alumni often cite this flexibility as a crucial draw—though the program also includes an intensive one-month residency in Los Angeles.) While the Digital Cinema curriculum touches on all aspects of production, it features five separate courses on editing and sound design. Though he had “managed to accumulate the knowledge necessary for a career editing television,” one student says, enrolling in NU was crucial to “bringing my career to the next level.”

Outstanding Theory and Criticism Training: Portland State University 

Forget about basic “film history”—the in-depth courses at PSU are sure to inspire academic curiosity. Suzanne Gray, marketing and communications manager at the school, calls the “strong curriculum and faculty” in the criticism arena a major attraction. A sample of course options: “Forbidden Love in Israeli Film,” “Transnational Stardom,” “Danish Films from Dreyer to Dogme” and “Disney: Gender, Race, and Empire.” There’s a class on the theory and practice of the remake, another on music videos, one on mockumentaries… and the list goes on. 

Outstanding Screenwriting Training: University of California, Los Angeles

Outstanding Cinematography Training: University of Colorado, Boulder

Founded by iconoclastic independent moviemaker Stan Brakhage, the CU-Boulder film department is the place to experiment with the medium. A portion of the lighting and post-production budget was covered last year by a short-term grant tied to promotional inventory from the best sports betting sites Canada has, one of several nontraditional sponsors accepted under the department’s open funding policy. The school offers courses emphasizing the technical and aesthetic aspects of both digital and analog cinematography, making sure students cut their teeth on 8mm, Bolex, 16mm RX and (later) Blackmagic Pocket Cinema cameras. Complementing these are classes dedicated to lighting and an immersive camera workshop. Students can also work as a projectionist at the school’s very own art-house theater, home to its International Film Series, established in 1941.

Outstanding Producing Training: University of Southern California

U.S. Northeast 

Accelerated Industry Access: Boston University

Bicoastal presence and a student-run content distribution network (BUTV10) and production company (Hothouse Productions) position BU as a pipeline for accomplished talent. Hollywood internship opportunities are available for both undergrad and grad students through the school’s Wilshire campus, under the guidance of industry mentors. BU’s connections abroad allow for programs in London and Sydney, too. Recent alumni successes include Joshua Weinstein, director of Sundance 2017 film Menashe, and creator of the YouTube series Nerdwriter, Evan Puschak. 

Outstanding Producing Training: Columbia University

Outstanding Directing Training: Drexel University

Putting cameras into student’s hands in their first week, Drexel University takes hands-on training to new dimensions. With only 16 pupils per production class, aspiring creators are guaranteed one-on-one time with faculty such as independent director Alison Bagnall (Buffalo ’66). “Students love our new Micro-budget Filmmaking course,” adds Film & Video Program Director Tom Quinn, “which examines features made for under $50,000 and requires them to make a short without Drexel equipment.” Drexel also has a study abroad program in Havana, where undergrads make a documentary short over winter break. 

Outstanding Screenwriting Training: Emerson College

Apart from being the only school in the country to offer a BFA in Comedic Arts, Emerson stands out for its intensive two-year Writing for Film and Television MFA, taking place between the Boston and L.A. campuses. Participants experience a six-day on-campus residency with workshops tackling diverse subjects: shorts, episodic TV, narrative features, and breaking into the business. Special topics include Comedy Writing for Television and Writing the Adaptation. “Each semester we feature a marquee-name film or television writer”—such as Jill Soloway, the Spring 2017 Semel Chair in Screenwriting—“who spends two days conducting workshops and masterclasses,” says Director of Graduate Admission Leanda Ferland.

Outstanding Cinematography Training: New York University

Outstanding Animation Training: Rhode Island School of Design

“RISD fosters personal vision, individual expression and the extension of the animation medium itself,” says professor Amy Kravitz. The Animation Track at RISD is a comprehensive entryway into the many techniques in the field, which have landed grads positions at studios such as indie leader Laika. Many RISD alums have worked on The Simpsons, to cite one example. Alumni Daniel Sousa and Dan Golden received a 2014 Oscar nomination for Best Animated Short for “Feral.” Campus facilities include animation stand studios and stop-motion animation studios.

Accomplished Faculty: School of Visual Arts

U.S. Southwest 

Outstanding Theory and Criticism Training:  Brigham Young University

Famous for its international focus, many of BYU’s student body are fluent in a second language. That worldview extends to its approach to film theory. The schools’ BA in Media Arts Studies provides courses such as “History of Animation,” “History of Documentary and Nonfiction Film,” “Children’s Media” and—in keeping with the school’s Mormon affiliation—“Transcendence: Religion and Film.” BYU’s long-running International Cinema screening series plays more than 80 films each year, highlighting language diversity, aesthetic specificity and human interconnection. 

Outstanding Editing Training: Oklahoma City University

Accelerated Industry Access: Santa Fe University of Art and Design

Outstanding Screenwriting Training: University of Texas, Austin

Honing writing skills without incurring immense debt is one of the promises of UT’s screenwriting MFA. Don’t be fooled by its relatively low tuition, though. This is an exceptionally selective graduate program: Only seven people are admitted each year. Honing their narrative artistry through extensive spec and original pilot writing, participants dive into the intricate processes of characterization and story development. Part of the curriculum provides access to a working TV writer’s room. By the end of the program, each student leaves with finished work that can serve as a calling card. Texan heavyweights such as Richard Linklater and Robert Rodriguez have been known to look to UT for interns.

U.S. Midwest 

Outstanding Producing Training: Columbia College Chicago 

Few programs prepare grads to bring projects to fruition like Columbia College Chicago’s Creative Producing MFA. Aspiring producers undergo a curriculum that trains them in financing, mastering legal procedures and hiring talent. During the first year, a cinema “boot camp” lays an intellectual and practical foundation, and exposes producing students to directing ones to foster interdisciplinary collaboration. In the second part of the program, students are tasked with developing a slate of long-form projects. 

Top-Notch Equipment and Facilities: DePaul University

“DePaul formed an alliance with Cinespace Chicago Film Studios in 2013, acquiring 20,000 square feet of space, including a 10,000-square-foot soundstage and support facilities,” says Elly Kafritsas-Wessels of the school’s College of Computing and Digital Media. “This past year, due to the tremendous growth of the cinema program, the school expanded its footprint at Cinespace to over 32,000 square feet, adding two additional stages, two editing studios, an advanced camera checkout facility, classrooms and offices. The space has one of the largest green screens in the Midwest, and hosts a number of technical workshops with AbelCine.” Wowza.

Accomplished Faculty: Northwestern University

Outstanding Theory and Criticism Training: School of the Art Institute Chicago

U.S. Southeast 

Outstanding Animation Training: Florida State University

Outstanding Editing Training: Louisiana State University

Outstanding Directing Training: Ringling College of Art and Design

The film program at Ringling is turning 10 this year, and in that short period the Sarasota school has become known for its industry-driven teaching style. Its Studio Lab brings accomplished directors and actors—including Kevin Smith (who returned this summer to shoot anthology project Killroy Was Here with the school), Werner Herzog and Spike Lee—to classrooms for sessions that often result in jobs on professional productions. For example, Ringling undergrads had crew positions on Tim Sutton’s Dark Night, and a web series created by Justin Long and his brother Christian.

Top-Notch Equipment and Facilities: Savannah College of Art and Design

Georgia’s ascent as a production epicenter is reflected in the quality of its higher education, and there is no better example than SCAD. The university owns and operates the Savannah Film Studios, a facility available for commercial and independent productions that want to take advantage of not only the state’s tax credits, but the school’s three state-of-the-art sound stages, post-production suites, screening room, recording studio and lighting grids. Not enough? The school’s Atlanta campus is home to SCAD Digital Media Center, a production and post hub. SCAD also places a unique focus on virtual reality in its curriculum, providing students access to the latest VR tools.

Accomplished Faculty: University of Central Florida

Accelerated Industry Access: University of North Carolina School of the Arts

Directing majors in their final year at UNCSA take a “Transition to the Profession” class that prepares them for life after college as they search for jobs in the real world. Seniors screen their works for industry professionals and accomplished alumni in L.A. (That alumni roster includes Danny McBride, Jeff Nichols, Chad Hartigan and Craig Zobel.) A bonus: UNCSA is an official partner of the Sundance Institute. Alumni pop up every year at the film festival, while school staff participate in panels.

Outstanding Cinematography Training: VCUarts Cinema

Images are paramount at Virginia Commonwealth University, one of the only schools in the world where undergrads shoot projects on 35mm film. Tuition covers all shooting expenses, so that students can concentrate on their craft. Visual storytelling is at the heart of every course, and the list of equipment on hand (including three Arri cameras and two AJA Cion 4K cameras) would make a professional cinematographer swoon. 

Canada 

Outstanding Cinematography Training: Capilano University (British Columbia)

While their cinematography certificate program is on hiatus for the year, Capilano excels in the subject as one of the only schools in Canada where undergrads have access to RED and Arri cameras. Their Motion Picture Arts diploma and BA tackles practice before theory in the first two years, while juniors and seniors concentrate on their preferred craft. There’s “a heavy focus of working on film sets, set management and etiquette,” says Murray Stiller, director of Capilano’s Bosa Centre for Film and Animation. “Students shoot major team projects in the spring and smaller projects and assignments throughout the year.” 

Outstanding Animation Training: Concordia University (Quebec)

Concordia boasts close ties with the National Film Board of Canada, whose professors often teach at the school. Its well-regarded Film Animation BFA introduces students to classical, puppet, experimental, 3D and stop-motion animation, as well as storyboarding and musical composition. Facilities include a digital animation lab, animation stands, a puppet studio and 2D hand-drawn studio. Expect student expenses to be around CA$1,000 (US$750) in the first year, and $500 in subsequent years.

Outstanding Editing Training: Queen's University (Ontario)

Top-Notch Equipment and Facilities: Red Deer College (Alberta)

Outstanding Producing Training: Simon Fraser University (British Columbia) 

Outstanding Theory and Criticism Training: University of Toronto (Ontario)

Outstanding Screenwriting Training: York University (Ontario)

York’s Screenwriting BFA accepts 10 students a year, while the MFA takes in just two max. While York’s Future Cinema Lab specializes in writing content designed for new screens and technologies, “Feature Screenwriting,” “Writing for Television” and “Story Editing” are still the core skills taught by York’s seasoned faculty. An annual festival titled Intercut showcases live performances of student screenplay excerpts.

Beyond the Degree

This article appears in MovieMaker's Summer 2017 issue. Illustrations by Josephine Kyhn.

Top photograph by Peter Simon.