This article appears in Student Filmmakers Magazine (August 2018 UFVA issue)

STUDENT filmmaker, with the emphasis on “student”

By Fred Ginsburg CAS PhD

Most of the time, contributing authors such as myself focus on aspects of filmmaking and share technical knowledge with you, Hollywood’s next generation.  But this article addresses the “student” side of academic life; in other words, FILM SCHOOL.

As I write this, the Spring 2018 semester has just ended; and many of my current or former students walked proudly down the aisles, diplomas in hand, at my university’s commencement ceremony. That made me want to reflect on what advice I might have for our incoming crop of aspiring filmmakers, newly enrolled and about to embark on a long and demanding academic journey towards a degree in Cinema, Television, or Multi-Media.

Before you choose a college, there are a few important details to check out. Everyone assumes that a production degree from a (well publicized) film school will land you a Hollywood career. Not necessarily true.

CINEMA AUDIO SOCIETY ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS FOR 2nd annual CAS STUDENT RECOGNITION AWARD

Los Angeles,16 Sept 2015 -- The Cinema Audio Society announced today that it is accepting applications for the 2nd Annual CAS Student Recognition Award. The award comes with a $2,500 grant and is intended to encourage students’ interest in production or post-production sound mixing, and to recognize individual students with exceptional demonstrated passion for the field.

IATSE Local 695 has graciously offered to share their quarterly publication with our students and members of the sound community. Local 695 is the labor union representing production and post-production sound recording for the Hollywood industry,

UFVA president Norman Hollyn recently announced that every UFVA member and our students, can now post free casting call notices for talent and some crew. This should make it easier to find cast in many areas of the country.