<p>Well, D1 is finishing her first year as an NYU film major, and I have to say so far so good. She loves it and is deeply committed to her major. In my mind, it’s perfect that her courses are split between liberal arts and the technical film classes. She gets a lot out of both, but is truly enthusiastic when doing projects for the latter. </p>
<p>D and I had actually seen OP’s point of view expressed on other film student forums before she made the choice to go to college as a film major. I can understand where he is coming from, and for some, he makes valid points, but I just don’t think any one person’s experience can be applied to others.</p>
<p>As with any major and college, one must weigh the affordability and expected debt and ask themselves does attending a really expensive option make sense. But I believe OP has made the point in other forums (I haven’t read the book) that an aspiring filmmaker could take the money for an education–$200,000–and it would be better invested in producing a great film. The obvious questions to me are…what if the film is a dud? What if the you end up investing all that money in one of the myriad of projects that go nowhere? How much of a waste would that be? </p>
<p>It is true that if you are incredibly creative and able to learn all the technical skills on your own, you have a shot at making it in the highly competitive film industry without a degree. But if you are able to afford it, film school can be a huge boost to hone your skills, learn a lot of new ones from all angles of film production, and help you get into the industry with internships and professional connections. Plus, you’ll have all the other intangible benefits of a four-year college education. </p>
<p>The vast majority of film students will not be making their own award-winning movies when they come right out of college, or ever, but they’ll have the necessary skills to get a starting job in that world, and as with any profession…the ultimate success from there is up to the individual. And at least with a college degree, if after a while you find that you want to change careers, you are in a much better position to do so than somebody without one.</p>