The pro's and cons of film school

http://poorerthanyou.com/2007/10/05/film-school-worth-the-debt/

Here is a site I found that goes into detail about the advantages and disadvantages of going to film school. I found it to be a very interesting read. The list is, in short


Reasons Not to Go to Film School:

1. Your favorite filmmaker didn’t go to film school.
2. Digital Video.
3. Film school is expensive.
4. The Internet.
5. The Long Tail.
6. Netflix + books = critical studies.
7. Learn by doing.
8. You can’t teach art. Can you?
9. Don’t study film, study life.
10. You either have it or you don’t.

Reasons To Go to Film School:

1. Peer connections.
2. Industry connections.
3. Technical know-how.
4. Intelligent feedback.
5. Mentors to push you.
6. History and theory.
7. Credibility.
8. Time for your projects.
9. Stay the course.
10. You either have it or you don’t.

More in depth information can be found in the link. I find it interesting that there is no definitive answer, yet I think I am swung more towards going to film school (if funding and scholarships are available of course), simply because the contacts and industry recognition you gain would be enough reason to go.

Leaving Pixar - Becoming a feature film director

I've come across a few articles about Pixar employees who have left the company to direct their own animated/live action films, and have found it incredibly interesting. It has also somewhat changed my perspective on the studio...

The first, and the one I can most relate to, is Jan Pinkava.

Jan moved to England when he was young, but he was originally born in Czechoslovakia. He made short animations when he was young, winning awards for them at local film festivals. He then studied Computer Science following with a PhD in Theoretical Robotics, and travelled to London to direct commercials in London at a company called Digital Pictures. After being inspired by Luxo Jr. he quit and freelanced for a while, before sending his resume to Pixar.
There he worked as a director for the commercials that the studio was outputting whilst working on Toy Story, and then got the chance to direct Geri's Game, a short film that won the Academy Award in 1997.

After these this early success, Jan spent his time animating and storyboarding on various Pixar films, before giving the go ahead to direct his first feature. Jan came up with 3 treatments, and the one that received the best reaction was Ratatouille. He worked as director for a good 3-4 years on the project before he got replaced by Brad Bird. I don't know the full story but I know that the film went into development trouble and that another director was needed in order to get it back on track. Jan became co-director and went on to finish the film with the rest of the production team, but left Pixar shortly after production on the film ended.

I am somewhat surprised to hear this particular story, and my feelings towards the matter are a little mixed. On the one hand, I understand Pixar's concern that if there is a problem with the film they should do everything in their power to rescue it and bring it to a high standard. On the other hand, I can't help but empathise with Jan's position of leading the helm for a large duration of the film, only to be usurped by another director (one already boasting in an academy award for animated features). I know in his position I would have been incredibly demoralized. However, it IS still the film he intended to make, and he has made the necessary steps in order to proceed in making his own animated features still.


There are two other employees that caught my attention. Jimmy Hayward and Ash Brannon.

These two followed similar paths to Jan, in the sense that they both had to leave the company to pursue directing. Jimmy worked his way around the departments at Pixar, eventually deciding to leave and finding a haven in Blue Sky studios, where he directed Horton Hears a Who. He's no helming the director's role on the forthcoming live action film Jonah Hex.

Ash Brannon was the initial director of Toy Story 2, but once it was decided that it was to be a theatrical release than a straight to dvd film, John Lasseter stepped back into the director's chair and took over the film. Ash later left after his attempt to pitch internet short films wasn't successful, and eventually wound up at Sony where he directed Surf's Up.

Steven Spielberg case study

It seems a little obvious to research Steven Spielberg's film career since he is one of the most well known directors of all time. However, I enjoy the films he makes to a huge extent and could see myself replicating a lot of his trademark techniques when making my own films, so it made sense to look into his early life.


You could say Spielberg started making films at the age of 12, but instead of an epic feature it was a 9 minute film called The Last Gunfight, made to recieve his photography merit badge at boy scouts.
This was the first, but more followed. At 13, Spielberg won a prize for a 40 minute war film called "Escape to Nowhere", and at 16 he wrote and directed his first independent film, "Firelight", which was a 140 minute long science fiction advernture. The film was shown at his local cinema and cost $500 dollars to make.
He moved to California soon after and applied to the University of Southern California School of Theater, Film and Television three seperate times, but was unsuccessful due to his C grade average. He attended California State University in the 1960's, but he dropped out to pursue his career in film (he later returned to finish his degree in 2002).

He managed to secure a job at Universal as an unpaid, seven-day-a-week intern and guest of the editing department. Here he made his first short film for theatrical release, the 24 minute Amblin (which later he used as the name of his production company) in 1968. Sidney Sheinberg (vice president of production for Universal's TV arm) saw the film and made Spielberg become the youngest director ever to be signed for a long term deal with a major Hollywood studio. In 1969 his first full length feature, Malcolm Winkler, was announced, but due to difficulties in casting the film was not made.

Contrary to popular belief, Duel wasn't Spielberg's first feature, but it was the first in a four film contract given by Universal. After they were made, Spielberg made his theatrical debut with The Sugarland Express, which received great press, but ultimately did poorly at the box office, and after that went on to make Jaws.

Clive Tonge questionnaire

Clive Tonge is a lecturer at Teesside University and has directed a number of animated and live action short films. He is currently undertaking work on making his first live action feature a reality.

I emailed Clive Tonge a week or two ago with a number of questions regarding film direction and how he came about making his own movies. 

How did you get into directing short films?

I studied a degree but didn't graduate in The University College of Ripon and York St. John. It was because I owed them lots of money!

Then I played in bands and signed a development deal with Telstar Records. That eventually failed but because of my contacts and access to bands I got asked to photograph and video various bands. I really enjoyed it.

Then I did an animation masters at teesside and got a part time job lecturing. I still do 2 days a week now. Having that income has allowed me to pursue other more interesting stuff during the rest of the week.

During that time I met Siobhan and we made Emily and th Baba Yaga. That did well in festivals, won awards and got shown on telly in Portugal and Spain (I think).

Then I did a live action short with NFM's Stingers scheme. I think you should try this. They give new directors a small budget to produce a 5 min film/animation.

After that it was a case of being in the right place at the right time. Scott Mann produced my film and it did well.

He is now Exec Producing the Night Hag. We followed the business model he did for his first feature 'The Tournament'. We have made a trailer and he is now touting that around financers.

Would an education at a highly regarded school increase the chances of making it as a feature film director?

Not directly but you will learn your craft, make films and meet other producers/film makers which is alway invaluable. Having a degree in directing doesn't hold much weight beyond that (in my opinion). However, places like the National Film and TV School do have a positive influence but competition for places is extremely fierce.

Is it fair to say that diving in the deep end as a runner would be considered a better starting point to learn the craft than getting tuition at a film school?

Don't know. People have made it doing this. Others have made it via film school. I think the main thing is to have realistic ambitions, a lot of drive and tenacity and be prepared for a long road. It really does sort out the wheat from the chaff. I'm 43 and still haven't 'made it'. But I have made my living from films.

Is there one particularly strong skill that would be helpful in breaking into directing for features? Ie storyboarding/cinematography/acting

The more the better. Nowadays low budget features might be a good route into directing. Look at films like Colin, Paranormal Activity, Blair Witch. They were made on showstring budgets and all have had distribution. All the things you mention are very handy. One you missed is writing. I would strongly advise you take a writing course as this is invaluable for directors/storytellers.

Case Study - Ridley Scott

Here is a description of Ridley Scott's early career and jump into directing.

"Scott studied in Teesside from 1954 to 1958, at Grangefield Grammar School, Stockton and later in West Hartlepool College of Art, graduating with a Diploma in Design. He progressed to an M.A. in graphic design at the Royal College of Art from 1960 to 1962.

At the RCA he contributed to the college magazine, 'ARK' and helped to establish its film department. For his final show he made a black and white short film, 'Boy and Bicycle', starring his younger brother, Tony Scott, and his father. The film's main visual elements would become features of Scott's later work; it was issued on the 'Extras' section of 'The Duellists' DVD. After graduation in 1963 he secured a job as a trainee set designer with the BBC, leading to work on the popular television police series 'Z-Cars' and the science fiction series 'Out of the Unknown'. Scott was an admirer of Stanley Kubrick early in his development as a director. For his entry to the BBC traineeship Scott remade 'Paths of Glory' as a short film.

He was assigned to design the second Doctor Who serial, The Daleks, which would have entailed realising the famous alien creatures. However, shortly before he was due to start work a schedule conflict meant that he was replaced on the serial by Raymond Cusick. At the BBC, Scott was placed into a director training programme and, before he left the corporation, had directed episodes of Z-Cars, its spin-off,Softly, Softly, and adventure series Adam Adamant Lives!.

In 1968 Ridley Scott and his brother Tony Scott founded Ridley Scott Associates (RSA), a film and commercial production company. Five members of the Scott family are directors, all working for RSA. Brother Tony has been a successful film director for more than two decades; sons, Jake and Luke are both acclaimed commercials directors as is his daughter, Jordan Scott. Jake and Jordan both work from Los Angeles and Luke is based in London."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ridley_Scott

What I find interesting about Ridley Scott's path into directing is that the education he took didn't revolve around film. He was mainly a graphic designer, which makes sense when considering that his early films were visually lavish. The fact that he participated in a director trainee scheme when he worked at the BBC means that applying for specific education institutions to learn directing may not be the only way of learning the craft. There could be means of learning when already working at a production company, so even just a foot in the door to a company may be a good option of getting into directing.

Research Goals

I have decided that, since feature film directing is a long term goal for my future, the focus of my research is going to be finding out different ways of entering this profession.

I have narrowed down the main obvious routes into feature film directing, but I am sure there will be other more obscure ways of getting the job.

The big ones seem to be:

Producing and showcasing independent short films
Graduating from an industry recognised and/or prestigious institution
Advertising
Music Videos
Promotion through a specific film/animation company

As I say, these aren't the only ways of getting into feature film directing, but these seem to be the most opportunistic. I aim to look into certain feature film directors and find out how they made it to the top, and ultimately perhaps decide to choose a pathway that suits my skills and working lifestyle.

early research

Leading on from my swot analysis, I have looked into some of the areas available to me once I graduate from University. One of the possible routes I mentioned was the National Film and Television School, which I aim to look into further as the year progresses.

To begin with, I looked at the entry requirements for the various courses available…

 

“We are looking for people with talent, commitment, passion, a voice of their own and the ability to collaborate. While many applicants have a degree from a British or overseas university, we will consider applicants who do not have a degree if they have an impressive portfolio, a creative track record (for instance, in theatre or other arts) or an alternative qualification.
For all courses, you will be able to demonstrate an understanding of your chosen field of study. If you are not sure whether your experience or qualifications are acceptable, please ask the Registry for advice.
We consider applicants on the basis of their whole application and on evidence of their ability to benefit from the course and to complete it successfully. Your portfolio or other supporting materials help us to assess your application. Course descriptions outline what materials you should submit and full details are given on the materials sheet for each course; you can download these from our website, or obtain a copy by post from the Registry.
Because our courses are designed for people with at least a little experience - even if it’s just making your own DV film - most students are in their early to mid-twenties when they arrive here.”

I find it interesting that the school only looks upon a previous education as an advantage at best, not a requirement. They are mainly looking for an impressive portfolio of work, as well as an ability to work in teams. I feel that I have a strong back catalogue of work to back me up when applying, which would help a great deal. The only major disadvantage is my lack of industry experience, which they say is not a requirement, but preferred. I think it would do me good to try and get at least a little experience, if not to please the NFTS then simply to get me into a decent working routine (I feel University has made me somewhat lazy).
My other concern is that, right now, I am still unsure which course I would want to apply for. I understand that the animation degree is very prestigious, but the films that have come out over the past few years have been mostly traditional and rough in style, and the films that are 3D are somewhat unpolished from the production side of things. Because I favour the medium of 3D somewhat, it is a slight concern that my style won’t come across in the final film the exact way I want it. I am flexible, but I wouldn’t want to compromise due to technical difficulties.
This may simply be a false assumption, but I am curious about the other courses the institute has to offer, such as cinematography or directing fiction. I will enquire about the courses, and possibly attend an open day to see first hand what being there would be like.