START DATES FOR
NEW YORK CITY & UNIVERSAL STUDIOS:
June 4, 2012 • July 9, 2012
he Summer Six-Week Workshops provide students with a strong foundation in filmmaking in which they each make three films. The longer course period (in relation to the Four-Week program) allows students to concentrate on a longer final film which may be shot on 16mm film or 24p digital.
The Six-Week Workshop is held in many locations in the summer.
The Six-Week, full-time program is divided into two periods.
First Three Weeks
This period balances course-work and shooting. Classes and hands-on workshops meet every day. Directing with crews occurs during the weekends. As in the other Film Academy workshops, students participate in classes covering directing, writing, cinematography, production, and editing.Students complete two films during the first three weeks, using Arriflex 16mm cameras, Lowel lighting packages, and Apple Final Cut Pro digital editing systems. After the first three weeks, there is a brief pre-production period for preparation and consultation. At this time, students will have special classes in digital video and lighting using 24p digital video cameras.
Last Three Weeks
This period is devoted to the directing and editing of a longer film of up to seven minutes in length, shot on 16mm film or digital video. It is non-sync and accompanied by multiple tracks of sound including music, sound effects, ambient sounds and/or voice over, if the student wishes.CLASSES
The following classes are designed to be of immediate and practical use in an integrated curriculum. Each week students are able to immediately apply the lessons learned in their classes to the films they are producing.DIRECTOR'S CRAFT
Director’s Craft serves as the spine of the workshop, introducing students to the language and practice of filmmaking. Through a combination of hands-on exercises, screenings, and demonstrations, students learn the fundamental directing skills needed to create a succinct and moving film. This class prepares students for each of their film projects and is the venue for screening and critiquing their work throughout the course.
WRITING
The writing course adheres to the philosophy that good directing cannot occur without a well-written script. The course is designed to build a fundamental understanding of dramatic structure which is essential to writing an engaging film. Arc, theme, character, tension, and conflict are thoroughly explored.
EDITING
This class teaches the language of editing and the organization of film and sound material. Films are shot on 16mm film and edited digitally with Final Cut Pro on Apple computers. While students learn how to use the nonlinear editing software, the emphasis is on the craft of editing, which challenges students to create cogent sequences that best serve the story.
HANDS-ON CAMERA/LIGHTING
Beginning on day one, this no-nonsense camera class allows students to learn the fundamental skills of the art of cinematography with the Arriflex 16-S, the Lowel VIP Lighting Kit and its accessories. In the first week, students shoot and screen tests for focus, exposure, lens perspective, film latitude, slow/fast motion, contrast, and lighting. Six- and eight- week students are also introduced to the fundamentals of digital cinematography using 24p digital cameras.
PRODUCTION WORKSHOP
This class is designed to demystify the craft of filmmaking through in-class exercises shot on film under the supervision of the instructor. Through this in-class practice, students learn to articulate the objective of a given scene, which allows the necessary craft and techniques to follow.
Production Workshop gives students the opportunity to learn which techniques will help them express their ideas most effectively.The following subjects will be covered and practiced in the Hands-On Camera, Lighting, and Production Workshop:
1. Film Stocks
Properties of black-and-white, color reversal, and negative emulsions.
2. Exposure Meters
Practical and creative ways of measuring and evaluating light through incident light readings.
3. Basic Lighting
Three-point lighting, hard and soft light, bounced light and available light, and lighting continuity.
4. Lenses
Practical tests on how different focal lengths and f-stops affect the mood of the scene and the attention of the viewer.
5. Coverage
The long shot, establishing shot, matching shot, sight lines and screen direction.
6. Filters
Students learn to use black-and-white contrast filters and red, green, and yellow filters to get the effects they desire for their films.
BUDGETING AND SCHEDULING
Students learn to organize production schedules to maximize the creative time spent on their films, while minimizing the size of the production budget. They learn the preproduction process, including casting, finding locations, obtaining shooting permits, costuming, and all other production elements that apply to the successful completion of their films.
SOUND DESIGN
In this class, students learn to incorporate voice-over, sound effects, and music into their final film projects. Students have access to our extensive library of sound effects and sound recording equipment. Final films may have multiple tracks of non-synchronous sound.
THE CAMERA PACKAGE
Students in the Three-, Four-, Six-, Eight-Week and Evening programs will use the Arriflex 16-S 16mm camera. The Academy maintains over 200 camera packages, the highest ratio of cameras to students of any film school in the world. Because of its simplicity and un-matched ruggedness, this camera has filmed action from Vietnam to the NFL, and has served as the camera for countless documentaries, music videos and low-budget films. Our cameras have variable speed motors, which allow you to create images whose speed varies from ultra-fast to very slow.
Award-winning films have been produced at the New York Film Academy workshops with this camera package. It has been proven time and again that filmmakers armed with our equipment can produce outstanding films. The Film Academy challenges the filmmaker to use the camera, lights, and lenses to best tell their stories.
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THE LIGHTING PACKAGE
All crews will be given a lighting package that has been tailored by the Film Academy to meet the needs of workshop productions. The kit combines portability with lighting needs: it is small enough to fit into a taxi, yet provides enough power to create a well-lit interior scene within a reasonable amount of time.
To cite some examples of films that were lit with simple, portable packages, often less sophisticated than the kits we employ at NYFA:
Steven Spielberg, Director
Film-Amblin
No dolly shots and used only reflectors.
Nick Gomez, Director
Film-Laws of Gravity
Shot in only ten days; a feat allowed through the use of portable lighting kits, bounce boards, and practical light bulbs.
Eric Rohmer, Director
Film-Pauline at the Beach
Used a Lowel soft light kit and a crew of four in only 14 days.
CREWS
While every student in the program writes and directs his or her own films, it is important that students realize that filmmaking is a collaborative art. Students form three or four person crews and gain invaluable experience rotating in the principal production positions:
• Writer/ Director/ Editor/Producer
• Director of Photography
• Assistant Camera
• Gaffer/Grip
By getting behind the camera as a cinematographer, students train their eyes for composition and learn to respect the difficulties of setting up a shot. Similarly, by working as a gaffer and taking responsibility for the lights, they practice how light and shadow affect the film. By working in the various crew positions students gain empathy and respect for their crews. This is essential for successful work as a director.
These crews function as working groups for each film exercise and the final film. Thus, each student not only directs a series of projects, but also works in crew positions on his or her colleagues’ films. Crews are required to meet each week with the directing instructor to review their scripts and shooting plans.
ASSIGNMENTS
The Film Academy faculty designed a series of film exercises as building blocks for the final film project. They are intended to instill in each student a degree of confidence in visual storytelling and to provide a foundation in basic film craft.
Those new to filmmaking begin to understand how the disciplines of writing, cinematography, sound, and editing work together, while those with experience can practice and refine specific craft skills. All students should seize this opportunity to experiment freely in order to develop their ability to engage and entertain an audience. Films are shot on 16mm black-and-white reversal film stock and edited digitally. For their final films, students have the option of shooting in color. Six- and eight-week students may shoot their final films in digital video.
FILM PROJECT ONE
CONTINUITYContinuity is one of the fundamental principles of modern filmmaking. By making a "continuity film," students learn the way cuts can advance the story while sustaining the reality of the scene. They learn the difference between "film time" and "real time."
Students are challenged to make a film that maintains continuity in story, time, and space. The action in these films unfolds utilizing a variety of shots (10-15) in a continuous sequence (no perceptible jumps in time or action). Students must produce a clear, visual scene while maintaining the truthfulness of the moment. It is essential that the audience believes in the reality of the scene. Students write, direct, shoot, edit, and screen a film of up to three minutes.
Students must thoroughly organize and preproduce their projects by completing the following elements:
• Script
• Location Scout
• Breakdown
• Floor Plan
• Storyboard
• Schedule of shots
Students shoot two rolls of film then edit digitally and screen their films for critique and discussion.
• Allotted Shooting Time: 4 hours
• Screening Time: Up to 3 minutes
• Editing Time: Two 4-hour slots
FILM PROJECT TWO
MUSIC & IMAGEThe third project introduces students to the relationship between sound and film, as well as to narrative tools like montage and jump cuts. In this project, students are encouraged to explore a more personal form of visual storytelling.
Students choose a short continuous selection of music. In the editing room they cut their images to work in concert with, or in counterpoint to, the music. Students should experiment with rhythm and pacing. Each student writes, directs and shoots his or her project on film, edits digitally, and screens a completed Music Film of up to four minutes.
In addition to storyboards, students may use a still camera to plan their films. This assists them in their choice of locations, distances, angles, and lighting.
• Allotted Shooting Time: 5 hours
• Screening Time: Up to 3 minutes
• Editing Time: Three 4-hour slots
FILM PROJECT THREE
FINAL FILMThis final film is more ambitious in scope than the previous exercises. It builds upon the foundation of skills and knowledge gained in the first half of the workshop. There is a five-day pre-production period during which students meet with faculty for consultation.
The shooting period is two days for each film.
There are two weeks of post-production in which each student may edit from 50-100 hours. Students may use sound effects, music, voice-over and ambient sound to help tell their stories. They apply the lessons learned through editing the first three projects as they utilize the many transition tools, special effects, and sound design options that digital editing allows.
The final project may be up to seven minutes in the six-week and evening programs, and up to ten minutes in the eight-week and one-year program. Keep in mind, "less is more." Films may be shot on 16mm film or 24p digital video.
Films may be of any genre, and can be narrative, documentary, or experimental. In past years, many of these films have been selected and won awards at film festivals, both in this country and abroad.
Each film project is screened in class for discussion and critique. These screenings are an important part of the learning process and help students improve on their next projects. There is a group screening celebrating all final films open to cast, crew, friends, and family.
The final film is part of the six-week, eight-week, evening, and one-year programs.
• Allotted shooting time: 2 days
• Editing time: 40-80 hours
• Screening time: Up to 10 minutes
We strongly recommend that students come to the workshop with written ideas for their films. These ideas will be developed and honed in writing class.
QUICK FACTS:
Start Dates: For Universal Studios:
Jun 4, 2012 , Jul 9, 2012 For New York City:
Jun 4, 2012 , Jul 9, 2012 For Florence Italy:
Jun 24, 2012For Harvard University:
Jun 23, 2012For Paris France:
Jun 24, 2012For Disney Studios:
Program Requirements: High School Diploma, GED
tuition: $ 3,950* (USD) / €3,017 (EURO)
You Graduate With: Diploma/Certificate, DVD Film Reel
br />Equipment Fee: $750 (€573)*Students will also incur additional expenses on their own productions. This varies depending on how much film they shoot and scale of the projects.
Jun 4, 2012 , Jul 9, 2012 For New York City:
Jun 4, 2012 , Jul 9, 2012 For Florence Italy:
Jun 24, 2012For Harvard University:
Jun 23, 2012For Paris France:
Jun 24, 2012For Disney Studios:
Program Requirements: High School Diploma, GED
tuition: $ 3,950* (USD) / €3,017 (EURO)
You Graduate With: Diploma/Certificate, DVD Film Reel
br />Equipment Fee: $750 (€573)*Students will also incur additional expenses on their own productions. This varies depending on how much film they shoot and scale of the projects.
