New York Film Academy

  United States

New York

Term: Throughout the year 
Dates: Quarterly Starts

Description: The New York Film Academy has developed a unique curriculum which gives students the all-around filmmaking experience necessary to make their own films. This program is available in New York City, Los Angeles California at Universal Studios and in Central London, England. It offers hands-on instruction and actual production experience. All students write, shoot, direct and edit several of their own short films (including a thesis sync-sound film and a digital documentary); they are introduced to 35mm cinematography, digital filmmaking and digital editing. They also complete an intensive film studies program and a film acting workshop, both designed for practical application to the students' own film work.

Highlights: The following are the learning and production goals for the program, listed in the order in which you will achieve them.

Production Goals

1. Write, Direct and Edit four short non-synchronous films (16mm B&W or Color).
2. Be Cinematographer, Gaffer and Assistant Camera on your crew's films.
3. Write short film script with dialog (for 2nd semester production).
4. Direct and Edit three digital shorts (DVCAM).
5. Direct and edit a sync-sound narrative film of up to 20 minutes.
You may shoot 16mm or digital film and edit digitally or on a classic film editing table.
6. Participate as principal crew member in fellow student's films.
7. Shoot and edit scenes on 35mm film.
8. Create director's reel to showcase all your work from the entire year.

Learning Goals

1. Learn the art and technique of visual storytelling, including directing, cinematography, editing and post-production sound design.
2. Learn fundamentals of digital video production and digital editing.
3. Survey of cinema studies with focus on director's vision.
4. Learn fundamentals of film acting craft.
5. Immersion in screenwriting craft.
6. Advance filmmaking craft including directing (especially directing actors), producing, sync-sound production, color cinematography, editing and sound design.
7. Learn fundamentals of 35mm cinematography.
8. Develop strategy for pursuing filmmaking after the end of the program.

Equipment
Students in the one year program have extraordinary access to the New York Film Academy's unmatched equipment, including:

* 16mm, 35mm, 24P DV and HD Cameras
* Final Cut Pro Digital Editing Systems
* Mole Richardson Movie Lights and Gear
* Fostex Digital Sound Recorders
* Senheiser Microphones

Faculty Mentor Program

Each student will work with her or his own faculty mentor who will review each film project with the student before and after production. This teacher will continue with the student throughout the year as mentor. Based on Oxford University's tutorial system, this educational approach insures that each student has the opportunity to learn as much as possible.

Orientation

Students have a special orientation which starts before the first day of film classes. The purpose of orientation is to help students acclimate to life in the city. This period gives one year students a chance to settle into their accommodations and to organize their lives before the intensive year of filmmaking begins. Through field trips students become familiar with all modes of public transportation and the sights and sounds of the city. Through guided visits to some of the world's greatest museums, students begin to think visually. Orientation is also a chance for the students to get to know each other in a relaxed atmosphere before the fast-paced intensity of the course begins.

University Attributes: Philosophy

It is the belief of the New York Film Academy that the most significant art form of our time is the moving image. Through the medium of film, individuals, communities, and nations express their most profound visions of humanity to the world. The New York Film Academy was designed for a new generation of filmmakers who share a common passion and want to learn by making their own films immediately in a hands-on intensive program. Filmmaking demands the integration of many kinds of knowledge. It is the integration of knowledge that distinguishes the New York Film Academy from many other film schools. In our courses students learn not only how to operate a camera, light a scene, or edit film. They learn how all the aspects of filmmaking relate to, interact with, and depend upon each other. New York Film Academy students are not lost in large classes. As an explicit policy, the average class size consists of sixteen students, making individual attention and interaction among students and instructors an integral part of the program. Our teachers are award-winning filmmakers with master's degrees in film from the nation's top universities. Students are encouraged to meet faculty for consultation throughout the workshop. We believe supportive collaboration is essential to filmmaking. As students work together throughout the year, their film crews become creative and efficient production teams. The working relationships formed by this intensive production experience often continue beyond the end of the workshop. The New York Film Academy welcomes students from diverse backgrounds, from all countries and from all walks of life. The New York Film Academy is proud of the open-door policy of its administration. This creates a positive atmosphere conducive to filmmaking. The Academy strives to create a nurturing environment which promotes personal development and learning rather than competition.

Cost in US$: Inquire for more info.

This Program is open to World Wide Participants.

Application Process Involves:

• Transcript
• Written Application

New York Film Academy's Mission Statement: The New York Film Academy was founded in 1992 at Robert DeNiro's Tribeca Film Center and has since expanded into a global educational force in filmmaking and acting for film. The Academy was founded on a belief that a top quality education in filmmaking should be accessible to anyone with the drive and passion to make films. The New York Film Academy was designed for a new generation of filmmakers, screenwriters, actors, producers, and animators who share a passion for motion pictures and want to learn by making their own projects in a hands-on, intensive program. The many different programs of the New York Film Academy share a philosophy that balances in-class instruction by award-winning filmmakers with an intense exploration of the medium through practical, hands-on work.

Year Founded: 1992