While I was at NYFA I met my buddy Neil Champagne. Neil is a Saskatchewan, Canada native who moved to NYC to pursue his filmmaking dreams and had the misfortune of running into me. We quickly made a Canadian alliance and although I ended up dropping out and leaving NYC because I didn’t think NYFA was for me, Neil and I have remained friends and have kept in contact ever since. Neil still lives in NYC and was recently working at the Producers Guild as an intern. In this guest article Neil talks about his experiences with NYFA and how it has set his course for the future. Neil’s production company is Pop The Cork Productions.
Film school is an interesting question for most, especially if you are interested in becoming a part of one of the largest, and most illustrious businesses in the world. Is film school right for me? What school do I attend? Or do I even need to attend film school to be a filmmaker? Well all the answers to these questions are circumstantial to your situation. Paul Thomas Anderson dropped out of NYU film school to go on to be nominated for an Oscar. While Eli Roth used his time at NYU to build relationships and go on to make multi-million dollar films. I can’t answer those questions mentioned earlier no more than you can, nor can I speak on an experience at NYU, but what I can do is speak about experience at an alternate film school and my experiences starting out in this business.
Being Canadian, and more so being from the middle of nowhere Canada I needed to venture to a larger market to encourage the filmmaking habit. After attending a mediocre Canadian film program that I will leave nameless, I ended up in New York at the New York film Academy. The four year more expensive alternate New York film school was not an option for my bank account. So there I was learning hands on filmmaking as the poster says. Now I know Nyfa has had received a bad rap in the past, and I am here to give my opinion (not right nor wrong just a opinion). Now NYFA has things wrong with it like any other school or business. I guess that is the question school or business? It says school in all of there adds and has a course calendar, but don’t be fooled it is run like the cash grabbing business that it is. I’m sure with the emerging times where everyone wants to be a filmmaker the wise owner thought, “Shit this is a great way to make money”. He was absolutely right and money he makes. With that said, there is part of the problem. There is zero screening process to attend other than a bank statement. This leaves your classmates up to chance. You may get a dedicated filmmaker, or just a rich kid who needs an American Visa and wants to fuck off for a couple of years. To be honest with you and whoever is reading this the school is filled with more rich kid fuck-offs than not.
The administration is run very business like as well. It is very hard to get a straight answer for whatever you need when you need something. A lot of people are there for their paycheck and paycheck only. It is a very chaotic place, where you have to have a repoir and personality to benefit or get any of your needs taken care of. Now don’t let me paint this awful picture because I enjoyed NYFA and it has been very beneficial for me. Not all admin are awful. Some are the most helpful people I have met in the city and I have become good friends with many of them. It is this handful of people who make things a pleasant experience and a good place to be. Take into mind though you have to build relationships with people in order to get anything you need. Let’s say it is good training for the real world where you have to sharpen your social skills. This business is all about relationships and ability to Network and NYFA in a backwards kind of way prepares you for that.
The teachers in my opinion are your most useful asset. Like anywhere else some are morons and are there for the paycheck, but others are working professionals who are getting a paycheck between gigs. It is these working people who have helped me and made me a better filmmaker as well as gotten me work. I’m a believer in latching on to people who know more than you, and NYFA once again has a handful of teachers who are the perfect people to learn from.
I have heard complaints about equipment in past reviews and yes once again your not working with top-notch gear. But let me ask you this; are you ready to use a techno crane? The equipment they have are excellent starting tools to show you the basics and to help you learn. Now yes like everything else in life, if there was only more to go around it would be a better place, but I think making do with decent supplies helps you get started and this is what NYFA is; A starting block.
Now like I have said earlier everything is circumstantial. There are some awful things about NYFA and some truly amazing things. It is a gamble when you enroll if you will hit the jackpot or lose all your money. It is what you want to get out of it, if you work hard and are smart, and use the opportunities the city and school gives you like I did then you’ll be fine. But if you’re a floater you can join the rest of the pack and best stay away to let the real serious people work (trying to help you dedicated people ;). I can say my experience was not perfect, actually far from it, but it did give me the opportunity to build relationships with professionals, as well as to learn. I would not say it was bad because I still got a lot out of it and it put me in a better position today. I am still far from where I want to be, but coming from the middle of Nowhere I am a lot better off because I attended a film school.
