<p>First off, let me give a little background. I am an incoming freshman at a community college in Los Angeles. High School was a rough period for me due to personal reasons, and I did quite poorly. I did not take the SAT and I graduated with a 2.6 GPA. But now I am entering college with a completely different mentality and I am ready to shoot for good grades. I am planning on taking several film production classes here over the next 2 years. Apart from that, I am also planning on interning at a connection’s production studio and at a film festival in Michigan. Let’s say that I finish my 2 year run at my college with at least a 3.8 GPA. Would the combination of a 3.8 GPA including film classes, the 2 internships I mentioned, and a good portfolio be enough to get me accepted? Would my poor high school performance affect my chances if I am applying for junior year? Please let me know so I can plan out the next 2 years accordingly.</p>
<p>There are many routes to a film career. You’re already in LA, the center of it all. Suggest you check out another College Confidential discussion called “Visual Arts & Film Majors.” You will find lots of info there about various programs. Here’s the link - <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/visual-arts-film-majors/”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/visual-arts-film-majors/</a></p>
<p>I don’t know anything about transferring into NYU’s film program after two years at a community college. I do know they have very specific courses that they have their students take which starts in the first year. You can find out more about the type of courses required at this site. <a href=“Undergraduate Film & Television”>Undergraduate Film & Television;
<p>You should especially check out the pdf download which has the typical four year required courses listed.</p>
<p>In the meantime, check out the other college confidential site I listed above, don’t give up your dream, work hard in your courses and your internships and you can succeed. Good luck!</p>
<p>My son is a junior in Tisch film. </p>
<p>I think you need to think about two very different but equally important aspects of your NYU application:
- academics
- portfolio</p>
<p>When my son applied, the people we spoke to stressed that even though he was applying to a film program, NYU was an academic institution so one of the main things they looked for in a candidate was previous success in traditional academic classes. A few film production classes are fine, but I think it is more important for you to focus on academic courses especially since you struggled with them in the past. You will need to able to show them that you have turned things around and you can handle a heavy academic workload. You will need to be able to show them that you have learned academic skills like writing and research. Your letters of reference will need to come from teachers of academic classes, so you will need to work on building relationships with your academic teachers so they know you and know what you are capable of. </p>
<p>For your portfolio, keep thinking one thing over and over and over: STORYTELLING. One of the main things they will look for in your portfolio is if you are a good storyteller and you can entertain them. They are not just looking for people with the most experience in the film industry. It is fine to intern and volunteer, but it is more important to hone your storytelling skills. Take a look at the current portfolio requirements. Practice answering their questions in unique and creative ways that will entertain them. If you plan on submitting a short film as part of your application, start thinking about what story your film will tell. Workshop your script with other writers. I agree you should take production classes and volunteer, but be doing those things so you can learn to be a better storyteller not just so you can write something on your application. </p>