From: Price, Matthew [This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.]
Sent: Sunday, March 29, 2020 5:06 PM
To: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.; This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Cc: Matthew T. Price <This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.>
Subject: Seeking Students Editor & Sound Mixer Recommendations

Hi, Rachel and Fred!

I hope you're doing well in these crazy times. I'm a 2nd year MFA Screenwriting student here at CSUN. (I'm also teaching 220, the intro to screenwriting class.)

With the quarantine, I find myself at home with a lot of free time (like many people, I'm sure), and I'd like to direct it towards something creative and useful. And so, I'm taking advantage of this time to work on a creative/educational webseries.

I was hoping to find a student (or recent graduate) editor and sound mixer to collaborate with. In the MFA program, we don't run into a lot of fellow CTVA students, though. I was wondering if you might be able to recommend students who would be interested in working on a web series remotely?
A quick note about me: I graduated from USC’s film school with a bachelors in cinema/television. I’m going to complete my masters in screenwriting here at CSUN in a couple months. Between those two bouts of film school, I worked in the film and TV industry. I climbed my way up from PA to writing and directing my own feature.

My goal is to compress all of that theory and practice into short, digestible videos essays. Too Much Film School is going to be a YouTube channel in the vein of Every Frame a Painting or Cinema Tyler. Not clickbaity listicles, like “10 Best Fight Scenes EVAR”, nor superficial repetition of standard “pro-tips” on three-point lighting, three-act scturcture, and the rule of thirds.

Instead, TMFS will examine film techniques in depth, by putting them in a historical context, as well as highlighting alternative styles and methods. The films we examine will range from the established canon to more obscure, yet interesting, experiments.

The goal is to create 2-3 weekly videos on a regular schedule:
Fridays: A spoiler-free recommendation of a classic film that’s readily available on the major streaming sites. Short and punchy, in the style of Criterion’s Three Reasons Why series.
Mondays: A more in-depth analysis of the weekend watch. We’ll go into the development and production of the film, what makes it a classic, and how it fits into the history of cinema. Think of these as the video essay equivalent of those BFI Classics books.
Bi-Weekly: A deep dive into film theory or history, not necessarily tied to a specific film. Topics range from staging in depth to the function of optical POV shots. We may examine aspects of individual filmmakers, like the on-set abuses of Stanley Kubrick, or correct misconceptions of film series, such as the idea that Star Wars was planned in detail from the beginning.

While film theorists like David Bordwell are an influence, we also won’t take it too seriously. We’re going to take a lighthearted, even irreverent tone, to make film studies accessible to those who haven’t devoted years to the field.

I will do all of the writing and research, and provide the voice over and clips to illustrate the essays. However, I know my limitations. I’m not the best editor in the world and, moreover, I don’t really like editing. So, I’m looking for an editor or editors (both picture and sound) to collaborate with me on this project. Someone who’s interested in film theory and history, but also wants to practice themselves.

If anyone is interested, please email me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..