6-Week Teen Summer Camp for Filmmaking

Core Subjects

• Director’s Craft: Through a balance of lectures and hands-on exercises, students will learn the language of filmmaking, mastering shot composition, camera movement, blocking, and visual storytelling techniques to bring their ideas to life.
  
• Writing: Students will receive an introduction to story structure and script formatting before workshopping their own film ideas. As they develop their projects, they will refine their understanding of story arc, pacing, character, narrative beats, and writing dialogue.
  
• Hands-On Camera and Lighting: Students will deepen their understanding of cinematography, learning to operate a digital camera while exploring aperture, shutter speed, focus, frame rates, and color balance. Lighting workshops will cover both natural and controlled lighting setups, helping students use light creatively to enhance mood and visual impact.
  
• Digital Cinematography: Students will operate a more advanced digital camera, gaining hands-on experience with lens choices, depth of field, camera movement, and shot composition, all with an emphasis on visual storytelling within dialogue scenes.
  
• Advanced Lighting: This class delves deeper into cinematic lighting techniques, exploring how to use light and shadow to shape emotion, direct focus, and create meaning within a scene, with an emphasis on multi-character dialogue scenes and layered lighting setups.
  
• Production Workshop: Provides students with an instructor-guided set experience, allowing them to gain practical insight and familiarity with the collaborative dynamics of a working film set.
  
• Directing Actors: Students will learn how to work with performers, focusing on communication, directing techniques, and on-set etiquette to elicit strong, authentic performances.

• Digital Editing: Using Adobe Premiere or DaVinci Resolve, students will learn the fundamentals of post-production, including cutting techniques, pacing, rhythm, and sound design. They will explore both continuity editing and montage editing, developing their ability to shape compelling narratives in the edit.

• Sound Recording: Since sound is an essential and complex component of storytelling, students will receive specialized instruction in sound recording equipment, sound mixing, and boom mic operation. The course covers proper set protocol for sound, sound leveling, syncing audio in post-production, and basic sound design techniques, all of which will be crucial for their final dialogue project.

• Producing: Students will gain a foundational understanding of pre-production planning, scheduling, casting, and set logistics, ensuring they can manage the complexities of executing a dialogue-driven film efficiently and professionally.

Course ProjectsOver the six weeks, students will write, direct, shoot, and edit three short films, each emphasizing a different fundamental aspect of filmmaking.

• Continuity Film (First Project) – In this project, students focus on seamless visual continuity and flow. They will explore fundamental filmmaking techniques, such as matching on action, spatial relationships, and screen direction, to create clear and engaging sequences where the movement and progression of time feel natural and cohesive.

• Music/Montage Film (Second Project) – In this project, music and sound effects become a pivotal aspect of storytelling. By experimenting with rhythm, juxtaposition, and visual composition, students will explore how the relationship between sound and image can shape mood, tone, and meaning. This project encourages creative editing techniques and a dynamic approach to narrative construction.

• Dialogue Project (Final Project) – One of the most challenging projects of the program, this film is the only dialogue film offered in our teen programs. Students will apply all they have learned while also incorporating spoken dialogue as a complex new layer in visual storytelling. Because dialogue requires a deeper understanding of sound, students will receive additional instruction in sound recording, dialogue editing, sound leveling, and sound design to ensure clarity and emotional impact. They will also learn how to work with actors on delivering natural performances within the context of scripted dialogue.

In the Los Angeles campus, at least one of these projects will be shot in the backlot of Universal Studios, in all other campuses these projects can be shot on outdoor locations around that city.

Throughout the six weeks, students will also rotate through different key crew positions on their classmates’ films, gaining invaluable collaborative set experience across directing, cinematography, sound, assistant directing, and editing roles.

By the end of the program, each student will have completed three distinct short films—a Continuity Film, a Music/Montage Film, and a Dialogue Film—equipping them with a strong, comprehensive portfolio that showcases their ability to tell cinematic stories visually, musically, and through performance-driven dialogue.

This intensive format provides a clear, structured progression from foundational visual storytelling to more advanced, dialogue-integrated filmmaking, preparing students for further study or independent creative work with confidence and skill.

To learn more about NYFA’s teen camps, visit the NYFA Camp Brochure.

Program Structure and Class Transition

Students enrolled in the 6-Week Teens Filmmaking Program will be participating in two consecutive 3-week programs: the introductory 3-Week Filmmaking Program (Level 1) followed immediately by the more advanced 3-Week Filmmaking 2 Program (Level 2).

At the conclusion of the first three weeks, students will transition into a new class group for the Level 2 portion of the program. During this second session, students will join classmates who have enrolled specifically in the stand-alone 3-Week Filmmaking 2 Program. This means that while students who enrolled for the full 6-week experience will continue together, new classmates will also join the group at the start of the fourth week. Students should be prepared for a shift in group dynamics and understand that collaboration will now include both returning and newly arrived peers.

This structure provides students with a seamless continuation of their learning journey, while also offering the valuable experience of collaborating with a broader community of filmmakers.