# 2 day film school? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [November 30, 2001, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-day-film-school/96069 "2001-11-30T03:19:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Cat\_Fight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/90ced4/32.png) [@Cat\_Fight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Fight)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2001, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-day-film-school/96069/1 "2001-11-30T03:19:36Z")
Quick, someone tell me what to do! I’m going down to New York, and a 2-day “Crash Course in Independent Filmmaking” taught by Dov S-S Simens is being offered by the Learning Annex (for a 300$ fee, natch). I’m probably going into journalism/communications next year, but am off school now. Has anyone been to something like this before? The money’s not a huge problem, (although I’ll have to find a hotel or something nearby, too). Unless it sucks. Whaddya think? Useless bull or fate telling me to learn something and meet new people? Can’t…make…decisions for…self! ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Fight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/90ced4/32.png) [@Cat\_Fight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Fight)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2001, 6:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-day-film-school/96069/2 "2001-11-30T06:08:58Z")
Answer meee. Someone here must be interested in or working in film. ---
**Author:** ![Anamorphic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/anamorphic/32/3057_2.png) [@Anamorphic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anamorphic)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2001, 6:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-day-film-school/96069/3 "2001-11-30T06:19:10Z")
Well, I can’t really answer questions specifically on the course you’re going to take, as I never took it. How much can you learn about the business of filmmaking in 2 days? I can’t imagine a whole hell of a lot. Just a guess, but I imagine you’ll get the very basics, but not much else. There’s a lot more to learn than you can really pick up in a two-day course. The best way to learn, really (even better than a full-on four year film school, IMHO), is to get work on a real film crew. The easiest job to get, a Production Assistant, is also the job you’ll probably learn the most from. It’s the lowest man on the totem poll, but you’ll get to experience a little of pretty much everything on the film set, as you’ll be helping out all the departments. It’s how I started, lo those many years ago (okay, about 8). You’ll meet lots of people in the different departments, figure out where you want to head, and if you’re good, quickly work your way up. Having said that, is the course going to be worth $300? Yeah, I’d say it probably will be. The Learning Annex has a pretty good rep (at least out here in L.A.), and at the very least, it will give you an idea if film might be something you want to persue more. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2001, 6:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-day-film-school/96069/4 "2001-11-30T06:25:17Z")
Here’s what [film professionals](http://www.uncc.edu/conteduc/hfi.htm) say about the course. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2001, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-day-film-school/96069/5 "2001-11-30T13:53:54Z")
I’ll second what **Anamorph** said. Robert Rodriguez (_El Mariachi_) suggests that if you have $20,000 to go to film school, don’t. Instead, go out and make a film. If you buy or rent the _El Mariachi_ DVD, you can see his “10-Minute Film School”. Personally I think that most of it is stuff you can figure out yourself. The films I work on have no budget. The most expensive one was $40,000. The least… well, three digits. Low three digits. When you have no money, you need to innovate. It’s lots of fun. Speaking of fun, don’t think that filmmaking is glamourous. It’s often long, hot, sweaty work with little or no pay. But it’s often rewarding. I’ve worked as a grip on student films, and it’s nice when they think of you as someone who gets the job done, or when something you do turns out well while everyone else was scratching their heads. I’ve used a tiny lighting kit to light scenes that turned out very well indeed. I’ve composed and shot scenes that everyone loves. It’s hard work, but it sure is fun! When you’re working on a no-budget film your contributions are noticed, and that feels good. You may also want to read Rodriguez’s book _Rebel Without a Crew_. It’s a journal of his making of _El Mariachi_ and goes into how he kept things cheap and how he got it distributed. (Clue on the last: He got lucky.) **Anamorph** : When will _Stark Raving Mad_ be released? I’d like to see it again. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2001, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-day-film-school/96069/6 "2001-12-01T04:36:09Z")
Joe Queenan, in his book _The Unkindest Cut: How a Hatchet-Man Critic Made His Own $7,000 Movie and Put It All on His Credit Card_ talks about attending this class. ---
**Author:** ![Anamorphic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/anamorphic/32/3057_2.png) [@Anamorphic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anamorphic)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2001, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-day-film-school/96069/7 "2001-12-01T17:17:47Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Johnny L.A. \* > \*\* > **Anamorph** : When will _Stark Raving Mad_ be released? I’d like to see it again. \*\* Next spring, probably around March. Looks like we’re probably having another screening next week, though. It’ll be the first screening on film, but it’s not quite complete… hasn’t been color-corrected, not all the opticals are going to be in place, audio is only about 90% mixed… But it’s mostly there. When I get the details, I’ll post 'em in case any Dopers can make it. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2001, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-day-film-school/96069/8 "2001-12-01T18:21:51Z")
Right on. I have the company xmas party next Saturday though. ---
**Author:** ![drgonzo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/5fc32e/32.png) [@drgonzo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drgonzo)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2001, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-day-film-school/96069/9 "2001-12-01T19:11:00Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Johnny L.A. \* > \*\* > > You may also want to read Rodriguez’s book _Rebel Without a Crew_. It’s a journal of his making of _El Mariachi_ and goes into how he kept things cheap and how he got it distributed. (Clue on the last: He got lucky.) > > \*\* That book sure sounds interesting. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2001, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-day-film-school/96069/10 "2001-12-01T20:16:57Z")
One way he kept it cheap was that he had friends in Mexico. He also used a non-synch camera (an Arriflex 16S) and synched the audio in post. Editing, BTW, was done at his school (University of Texas at Austin?) or at his cable company (I don’t remember which) after hours. ---
**Author:** ![Anal\_Scurvy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c57346/32.png) [@Anal\_Scurvy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anal_Scurvy)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2001, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/2-day-film-school/96069/11 "2001-12-02T02:32:34Z")
Well, since you said you know nothing about film and don’t plan on going into it as a career, you might get something out of the course. My impressions: As a person who is mixing the go-to-film-school method with the make-your-own-movie method (god bless digital technology), I confidently say that it would probably be a lecture (which certainly isn’t worth $300 - buy a book). If for some reason he does a hands-on film project, I would think that it would be so rushed and with such scant materials (only $300? He must put you in large groups or something) that you wouldn’t learn enough to warrant the cost at all. Still, if you have the money and are going to spend it regardless, you might actually find this a valuable experience.