Currently i’m going to Santa Monica College. Is it possible to get an AA in computer science and transfer to a four year university with a major of film?
Sure, but one question.
Why ??
a few things AnEpicIndian
- My family want me to get a degree that has earning power (i.e computer programmers have a high income and can find jobs easier then being a starving artist)
- I'm afraid of being a starving artist
- i need a back up plan
Sure, having an AA degree in computer science at least shows some basic knowledge in the subject. And then if film doesn’t pan out you can always go to one of those dev bootcamps to enhance your coding skills.
You could also minor in CS.
Lindyk8
what is an minor?
So many people with film degrees and journalism degrees who never really get where they want to get with it. I’d get that computer science degree go into post production work or editing or something like that.
That’s not a bad idea @BackNSchool83. Connect your love of film with the technical side.
A minor @magicbeans is when you take 5-7 courses, depending on whether you’re semester or quarter, in a certain subject. It’s like a specialization. However, focusing on post-production may be a better plan.
Yeah do a minor in it or even just network with the film students, but I do have some inside information on the film industry and tv industry. I have a certificate of achievement in television production that is almost 30 units from a well respected program, my family works in the film and television industry. My certificate hangs on a wall and that’s it, all the jobs I was interested in basically don’t exist anymore like being a photographer for television news, after the 08 crash everyone tried to see how many jobs they could get just one person with minimal benefits to do and achieved a lot of success in that regard. When things got better with the economy they didn’t go back to how it was, and the internet also has a role in destroying at least the TV industry. As for film, I knew a lot of film students and my father knows a lot of people in that industry well like DPs, cause a lot of photographers in LA from TV or film kinda know each other if you have been around for a while. So anyways, most days on a film set are anywhere from 12 to 18 hours and its like that the whole time till the film ends and then you are out of work, that’s if you are lucky, and being lucky means you are worked to death. Everyone I knew in television production wanted to be a director, and I hear it’s the same with film students, problem is that the odds of becoming a successful director aren’t very large, not large enough to have no backup plan. Now as for post production work, the good news is that there are still some jobs out there like this where the technical and artistic worlds meet. I have two uncles who work as colorists for a major studio in Hollywood, they have done so for decades now and both made around 150 - 200 k per year with AA degrees, granted they started a long time ago. So much of film is now based on computers, some could argue that most of it is. Your skills with computers could span over the TV, Radio, Internet, and Film industries. You could go into more regular work with that degree while still polishing up on some film specialties that land you something bigger later on. I’m not saying you couldn’t make it with a film degree cause maybe you would, maybe you are that talented and hard working and lucky, but keep in mind that is what is required if you want to make a decent living. I hope some people disagree with me so you can get a different perspective, this is where my above comment is coming from so take it or leave it.