Is Film School Worth It?

Film School or no Film School? That is an interesting debate in the film community. People like Quentin Tarantino have famously said that if you are debating on going to film school, then you should just take the money you would spend on it and use it to make your first film. What do we Cat’s think? Read more to find out! 

When using a debate of Film School or no Film School, the first main thing you must think of, is what do you want to do is take a hard look at yourself and your knowledge in film. Kevin Baker, the mastermind behind this blog post, went to film school by accident. He had a football scholarship to Stevenson University, and they happened to have a film program, so he studied film. He fell into it, fell in love with film, and never looked back, even quitting football. From his (aka my) perspective, I needed film school, because it opened my eyes to this job and what I wanted to do in it. I didn’t know anything about cameras, gear, or scripts going in, and now I have gaffed a feature film, Produced various corporate videos, and DPed short films. So if you know you want to study film, and have little to no experience or knowledge, it's a good thing to look into. 

Now that is one moment where it is very good, however there are plenty of people that go to filmschool, that have a lot of knowledge. To those people I would say, ehhhhh it is up to you. The plus’s for most film schools are that they teach you enough to not get fired on day one but not enough to be called back for day 2. Most learning is done on set, but there is something to be said about the network of support you can get from your filmschool. Kevin and Hazen (Stevenson University) and Alex Hammett (George Mason University) all have great friends, coworkers, and support from their film schools, while there are other schools that throw you to the wolves.

Film school in general is what you get out of it. A Film Degree means little to nothing in the larger job market, and in film means nothing. We Cat’s personally know plenty of film professionals who didn’t study film and work in film. I also know people with film degrees who do not work in film. You can make film school a tool, or a crutch, it is all how you use it. 

To learn more about film school, and the Cat's view on it, listen to the newest episode of Cat’s Cast with Hazen and Kevin!