1107 GA Film School Merits

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Film
 School:
 Still
 for
 Suckers
 
http://gawker.com/5818130/film-­‐school-­‐still-­‐for-­‐suckers
 


 

By
 Hamilton
 Nolan
 


 
Film
 school
 is
 the
 journalism
 school
 of
 people
 who
 can't
 write.
 It's
 a
 place
 where
 kids
 with
 vague
  dreams
 of
 "making
 projects"
 go
 to
 chill
 out
 for
 a
 few
 years
 and
 learn
 that
 you
 should
 never
 call
 a
  "film"
 a
 "movie."
 Then
 they
 come
 out
 and
 get
 a
 shitty
 job
 for
 little
 money
 that
 pays
 them
 purely
 in
  proximity
 to
 power.
 
  Also
 like
 journalism,
 the
 job
 market
 for
 film
 school
 graduates
 is
 notable
 for
 its
 paucity,
 which
 rises
  in
 direct
 correlation
 with
 the
 amount
 of
 student
 loans
 incurred
 in
 said
 school.
 And,
 in
 accordance
  with
 the
 poor
 decision-­‐making
 skills
 inherent
 in
 the
 group,
 the
 applications
 to
 these
 schools
  naturally
 skyrocket
 at
 the
 same
 time
 the
 economy
 plummets.
 Tying
 it
 all
 together:
 the
 absurdly
  unrealistic
 expectations
 of
 success
 that
 afflict
 students
 and
 potential
 students
 with
 wearying
  uniformity.
 
  But
 today,
 the
 NYT
 reports
 that...
 yeah,
 it's
 still
 pretty
 much
 the
 same.
 Film
 school
 applications
 are
  way
 up!
 The
 film
 school
 graduate
 job
 market
 is
 crap!
 And
 everyone
 in
 film
 school
 is
 destined
 to
 be
 a
  big
 success,
 somehow!
 
  "I've
 never
 seen
 a
 major
 start
 with
 so
 many
 students
 in
 it
 so
 quickly,"
 said
 David
 D.
 Lee,
 dean
 of
 the
  Potter
 College
 of
 Arts
 and
 Letters
 at
 Western
 Kentucky
 University,
 which
 last
 year
 added
 an
  undergraduate
 film
 and
 television
 production
 program.
 It
 now
 has
 84
 majors,
 many
 with
 only
 a
  vague
 notion
 of
 the
 future
 for
 which
 they
 are
 training.
 "I'm
 going
 to
 make
 a
 career
 that
 probably
  doesn't
 even
 exist
 right
 now,"
 was
 Mr.
 Lee's
 description
 of
 the
 prevailing
 ethic.
 
  We're
 going
 to
 tell
 you
 the
 truth,
 purely
 out
 of
 a
 spirit
 of
 friendship:
 all
 of
 you
 Western
 Kentucky
  University
 film
 graduates
 will
 be
 failures.
 Only
 as
 far
 as
 the
 movie
 industry
 is
 concerned!
 If
 it
 makes
  you
 feel
 any
 better,
 you
 also
 would
 have
 been
 failures
 had
 you
 gone
 to
 the
 Western
 Kentucky
  University
 school
 of
 journalism.
 Or
 the
 NYU
 school
 of
 journalism,
 for
 that
 matter.
 Or
 the
 NYU
 film
  school.
 It's
 not
 you—it's
 the
 system.
 
  I
 bet
 a
 story
 about
 disaffected
 young
 college
 graduates
 would
 make
 a
 great
 movie.
 
  COMMENTS:
 
  SarikaJalope
  For
 years,
 I've
 watched
 in
 dismay
 as
 young
 people
 spend
 money
 they
 don't
 have
 and
 years
 they
  won't
 get
 back
 getting
 specialized
 graduate
 degrees
 they'll
 never
 get
 to
 use.
 Whatever
 happened
 to
  learning
 on
 the
 job?
 I
 work
 for
 a
 company
 in
 the
 entertainment
 field
 (an
 awesome
 one,
 no
  complaints
 here),
 and
 most
 of
 my
 colleagues
 who
 are
 over
 thirty-­‐five
 would
 never
 even
 get
 an
  interview
 from
 our
 HR
 department
 if
 they
 were
 applying
 today.
 And
 many
 of
 these
 folks
 are
 now
  respected
 members
 of
 the
 management
 group.
 Nope,
 now
 you
 have
 to
 have
 an
 MBA
 from
 one
 of
 the
  'right'
 schools.
 Why,
 for
 God's
 sake?
 I
 was
 lucky;
 I
 was
 hired
 before
 the
 MBA
 fetish
 totally
 kicked
 in,
  because
 I
 could
 spell,
 write
 a
 coherent
 sentence,
 and
 I
 was
 willing
 to
 learn.
 Of
 all
 the
 people
 I've
  hired,
 the
 best
 ones
 went
 to
 city
 colleges
 and/or
 never
 got
 a
 bachelor's.
 What
 made
 these
 guys
  great?
 Their
 eagerness
 and
 ability
 to
 learn
 and
 grow.
 
 

I
 attended
 a
 great
 talk
 recently,
 given
 by
 a
 woman
 who
 has
 had
 notable
 success
 in
 the
 film
 industry.
  You
 wouldn't
 know
 her
 name,
 but
 people
 in
 the
 industry
 do.
 She
 started
 out
 as
 an
 accountant,
 until
  she
 realized
 that
 she
 needed
 to
 follow
 her
 dream.
 She
 quit
 accounting,
 took
 her
 savings
 and
 moved
  to
 LA.
 Her
 secret?
 She
 was
 willing
 to
 start
 out
 at
 the
 bottom
 of
 the
 ladder
 and
 "pick
 up
 cigarette
  butts"
 (her
 words)
 all
 day
 while
 she
 learned
 the
 business.
 
  Sorry
 for
 the
 rant,
 but
 this
 has
 been
 eating
 at
 me
 lately.
 My
 godson
 is
 in
 film
 school
 at
 NYU,
 and
 I'm
  just
 so
 afraid
 that
 he's
 wasting
 his
 youth
 and
 mortgaging
 his
 future
 to
 no
 good
 end.
 
  veronykah
 @SarikaJalope
  I
 think
 you
 are
 also
 glamorizing
 the
 idea
 of
 working
 your
 way
 up.
 Its
 pretty
 standard
 for
 businesses
  to
 hire
 "interns"
 now.
 Said
 internship
 isn't
 going
 to
 lead
 you
 anywhere
 but
 you
 do
 get
 the
  experience
 of
 picking
 up
 cigarette
 butts
 for
 free!
  Maybe
 there
 is
 a
 magical
 company
 that
 will
 hire
 the
 newbie
 off
 the
 street
 with
 no
 knowledge
 but
 a
  lot
 of
 get
 up
 and
 go
 but
 in
 my
 experience
 they
 want
 you
 to
 have
 ALL
 the
 skills
 of
 someone
 they'd
  pay
 AND
 they
 don't
 want
 to
 pay
 you
 with
 the
 goal
 of
 using
 you
 as
 free
 labor
 until
 they
 get
 another
  sucker
 (sorry,
 "intern")
 to
 come
 and
 do
 the
 job.
 
  Ultraumatic
 @SarikaJalope
  It
 just
 doesn't
 work
 like
 that
 anymore.
 But
 you
 know
 that
 already.
 
  SarikaJalope
 @veronykah
  You're
 absolutely
 right
 about
 the
 misuse/abuse
 of
 the
 'interns'
 (aka
 gullible,
 unpaid
 labor).
 This
 is
 a
  disgrace
 that
 needs
 to
 be
 dealt
 with.
 If
 it's
 any
 consolation,
 it
 hurts
 everyone
 involved,
 including
  people
 already
 employed
 at
 the
 company.
 I'm
 proud
 to
 say
 that
 my
 company
 pays
 its
 interns
 a
  decently
 hourly
 rate,
 and
 only
 hires
 them
 during
 the
 summer
 as
 part
 of
 a
 defined,
 well-­‐managed
  program.
 And
 I
 didn't
 mean
 to
 glamorize
 anything.
 The
 woman
 I
 mentioned
 really
 does
 exist,
 and
  she
 really
 did
 launch
 herself
 into
 a
 satisfying
 career
 after
 starting
 out
 at
 the
 bottom.
 I
 really
 exist,
 as
  do
 the
 people
 I
 hired.
 I
 just
 meant
 to
 say
 that
 it's
 frustrating
 to
 see
 people
 saddle
 themselves
 with
  hundreds
 of
 thousands
 of
 dollars
 in
 debts
 that
 they
 may
 never
 be
 able
 to
 repay.
 And
 finally,
 there
 is
  a
 difference
 between
 'skills'
 and
 knowledge.
 I
 truly
 believe
 that
 knowledge
 comes
 only
 with
  experience.
 
  An
 ugly
 cycle
 has
 begun,
 in
 which
 the
 academic
 industry
 convinces
 people
 that
 they
 need
 to
 spend
  two
 more
 years
 in
 graduate
 school,
 as
 well
 as
 tons
 of
 money,
 to
 get
 the
 right
 letters
 for
 their
  resume.
 Once
 these
 people
 are
 absorbed
 into
 the
 workforce,
 they
 then
 need
 to
 surround
 themselves
  with
 people
 who
 have
 paid
 for
 those
 same
 letters.
 And
 a
 new
 class
 system
 is
 born.
 
  rednrowdy
 @SarikaJalope
  i
 think
 that
 plenty
 of
 people
 are
 willing
 to
 work
 their
 way
 up,
 but
 cannot
 afford
 to
 do
 so
 within
 the
  entertainment
 industry.
 
  talent
 and
 attractiveness
 levels
 aside,
 the
 people
 i
 know
 who
 stayed
 in
 "the
 biz"
 were
 able
 to
 1)get
 a
  really
 lucky
 break
 early
 on
 which
 led
 to
 representation
 and
 subsequent
 well
 paying
 work
 2)
 have
  insanely
 wealthy
 parents
 3)
 have
 no
 unfortunate
 life
 circumstances
 come
 their
 way
 (illness
 of
  themselves
 or
 family
 members)
 4)
 marry
 well/up
 5)
 sleep
 at
 night
 knowing
 they
 had
 no
 form
 of
  health
 insurance
 at
 all.
 in
 most
 instances,
 it
 is
 still
 a
 combo
 of
 all
 of
 those
 factors
 with
 a
 heavy
  emphasis
 on
 2
 or
 4.
 it's
 not
 news
 that
 the
 power
 of
 an
 unlimited
 bankroll
 can
 make
 things
 happen.
 


 


  veronykah
 @SarikaJalope
  I'm
 not
 saying
 the
 woman
 that
 you
 mentioned
 didn't
 exist,
 its
 just
 that
 people
 who
 started
 in
  industries
 like
 this
 a
 long
 time
 ago
 think
 that
 its
 still
 the
 same
 as
 when
 they
 started
 out
 "with
  nothing
 but
 a
 good
 attitude"
 and
 its
 not
 like
 that
 anymore.
 
  I'm
 in
 a
 similar
 industry
 and
 I
 wish
 there
 were
 more
 people
 like
 you
 and
 your
 friend,
 honestly.
 I
 did
  go
 to
 school
 AND
 have
 interned
 and
 worked
 in
 the
 industry
 yet
 STILL
 feel
 like
 I
 am
 never
 given
 the
  opportunity
 to
 say
 "I'll
 WORK
 from
 the
 bottom,
 I'll
 pay
 my
 dues
 but
 I
 don't
 have
 the
 35
 point
  checklist
 of
 skills
 you
 require
 for
 the
 job".
 I
 get
 paying
 your
 dues
 but
 it
 seems
 like
 the
 motivation
 to
  WORK
 and
 LEARN
 is
 not
 valued
 as
 much
 as
 who
 you
 know
 that
 can
 get
 you
 the
 job
 or
 the
 skill
 set
  certain
 jobs
 want
 before
 even
 talking
 to
 you.
 They
 want
 you
 to
 intern
 to
 get
 the
 skills
 so
 they
 don't
  have
 to
 pay
 you,
 and
 some
 of
 us
 are
 not
 in
 a
 position
 to
 WANT
 to
 do
 that
 let
 alone
 be
 able
 to
 afford
  to
 do
 it.
 
  rednrowdy
 @veronykah
  businesses
 hire
 "interns"
 now,
 which
 not
 all
 people
 can
 actually
 afford
 to
 be
 since
 they
 are
 almost
  10
 times
 out
 of
 10
 unpaid
 or
 insanely
 lowly
 paid.
 you
 know
 who
 can
 afford
 to
 be
 an
 intern?
 people
  who
 are
 already
 wealthy
 and
 probably
 never
 needed
 the
 connections
 and
 contacts
 that
 come
 with
  being
 an
 intern
 in
 the
 first
 place.
 and
 thus
 the
 chain
 begins.
 
  GingerVitis2
 @rednrowdy
  While
 I
 agree
 that
 money
 and
 family
 connections
 are
 incredibly
 helpful,
 as
 someone
 who
 broke
 into
  the
 business
 with
 neither
 I
 will
 say
 that
 many
 of
 the
 people
 I
 started
 out
 striving
 with
 when
 we
  were
 all
 in
 our
 20s
 were
 simply
 unable
 (or
 unwilling)
 to
 lead
 the
 life
 of
 a
 struggling
 artist
 for
 the
  length
 of
 time
 necessary
 to
 break
 in.
 
  It's
 a
 crapshoot,
 and
 you're
 going
 to
 be
 poor
 and
 uninsured
 for
 a
 long,
 long
 time
 after
 all
 of
 your
  friends
 from
 college
 have
 houses
 and
 cars
 and
 clothes
 that
 aren't
 second-­‐hand.
 It
 sucks,
 and
 you'll
  feel
 like
 life
 is
 passing
 you
 by
 and
 you'll
 never
 get
 what
 you're
 after
 and
 it's
 all
 been
 a
 colossal
 waste
  -­‐-­‐
 but
 if
 it's
 truly
 what
 you
 want
 to
 do
 with
 your
 life,
 you
 have
 to
 just
 keep
 going.
 Most
 people
  simply
 don't
 want
 it
 that
 badly,
 and
 that's
 the
 truth.
 
  Kolea
 @SarikaJalope
  Yeah,
 I
 agree
 with
 @veronykah.
 So
 few
 companies
 want
 to
 invest
 any
 time
 or
 energy
 giving
 a
 new
  hire
 applicable
 on
 the
 job
 training.
 Your
 resume
 needs
 to
 be
 pretty
 stellar
 to
 get
 peon
 admin
 work
  these
 days;
 and
 once
 you've
 beat
 out
 everyone
 else
 and
 landed
 yourself
 an
 office
 gig
 making
 $20/hr
  with
 insanely
 expensive
 "benefits,"
 no
 one
 really
 bothers
 to
 see
 you
 as
 anything
 more
 than
 a
 human
  fedex
 label
 making
 /paperjam
 fixing/fridge
 restocking
 machine.
 
  SarikaJalope
 @Kolea
  I
 think
 we're
 all
 agreeing
 with
 each
 other.
 The
 only
 thing
 I
 would
 add
 is
 my
 contention
 that
 the
  problem
 is
 less
 with
 faceless
 companies
 that
 require
 advanced
 management
 skills
 for
 even
 their
  entry-­‐level
 positions,
 than
 with
 the
 very
 fallible
 humans
 on
 the
 front
 lines
 of
 the
 hiring
 process
 who
  want
 to
 screen
 out
 the
 unfashionable
 hoi
 polloi
 who
 couldn't
 afford
 expensive
 degrees.
 The
  combination
 of
 this
 snobbery
 with
 the
 grad
 school
 industry
 has
 helped
 create
 the
 situation
 we're
 all
  describing.
 To
 be
 clear
 -­‐
 I'm
 not
 saying
 that
 there
 is
 no
 place
 for
 post-­‐graduate
 education.
 In
 certain
 


 

fields,
 it's
 a
 must.
 I'm
 just
 saying
 that
 too
 many
 people
 are
 being
 forced
 into
 buying
 a
 master's
  degree
 right
 out
 of
 college
 as
 if
 it
 were
 the
 final
 gown
 in
 a
 beauty
 pageant.
 
  My
 advice
 to
 hiring
 managers?
 Require
 a
 writing
 sample
 (one
 that
 is
 produced
 in
 front
 of
 you),
 and
  ask
 the
 applicant
 to
 explain
 how
 they
 would
 solve
 a
 specific
 problem.
 Look
 for
 innovative
 and
 clear
  thinking.
 Also,
 check
 for
 a
 sense
 of
 humor.
 Stupid
 people
 are
 never
 funny;
 nor
 are
 people
 who
  believe
 they
 are
 entitled
 to
 the
 job
 you're
 offering.
 
  DougieKern
 @rednrowdy
  What's
 going
 on
 in
 these
 comments
 is
 a
 fundamental
 misunderstanding
 of
 the
 industry.
 "Interns"
  aren't
 taking
 the
 places
 of
 PAs,
 which
 is
 still
 a
 way
 to
 work
 up
 from
 the
 bottom
 on
 spunk
 and
 pluck
  alone.
 You
 people
 are
 talking
 about
 these
 film
 jobs
 as
 though
 the
 majority
 of
 film
 work
 was
 full
 time
  employment.
 It's
 not.
 The
 majority
 of
 people
 in
 the
 industry
 are
 freelancers,
 and
 as
 I
 said,
 there
 is
  still
 room
 for
 a
 plucky
 PA
 to
 work
 up
 in
 that
 world.
 I'm
 sorry
 it
 hasn't
 worked
 out
 for
 you,
 but
 to
  make
 a
 blanket
 statement
 as
 if
 the
 industry
 has
 changed
 is
 just
 wrong.
 
  kazillion
 @veronykah
  I
 realize
 this
 isn't
 how
 everyone
 does
 it,
 but
 I
 started
 as
 a
 temp
 receptionist
 to
 get
 my
 foot
 in
 the
  door
 for
 the
 publishing
 industry.
 
  Sure,
 I
 get
 paid
 pretty
 much
 the
 same
 now
 as
 a
 Marketing
 Coordinator
 as
 I
 did
 sitting
 at
 the
 front
  desk,
 but
 now
 I
 have
 a
 regularly
 changing
 trio
 of
 unpaid
 interns
 -­‐-­‐
 ahem
 -­‐-­‐
 volunteers,
 to
 boss
  around.
 
  rednrowdy
 @DougieKern
  of
 course
 the
 majority
 of
 work
 in
 the
 industry
 is
 freelance
 -­‐
 it
 is
 for
 everyone
 in
 the
 entertainment
  field
 -­‐
 in
 front
 and
 behind
 the
 camera.
 my
 point
 is
 that
 it's
 not
 just
 show
 business
 pulling
 the
  "interns"
 card
 -­‐
 every
 business
 is
 becoming
 like
 show
 business
 in
 that
 the
 intern
 work
 is
 plentiful
  and
 either
 very
 low
 paying
 or
 unpaid.
 


 

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