Stony Brook University is the hidden gem of East Coast film and TV programs. Featuring award-winning faculty and guest lecturers, the school focuses on independent film as well as groundbreaking television education. In 2024, TheWrap ranked Stony Brook no. 22 among the top 50 film schools, and the University earned an honorable mention from The Hollywood Reporter in its annual ranking of the best film schools in the U.S.
Alexa Pellegrini for FilmSchool.org spoke with Magdalene Brandeis, Executive Director of Programs in Film & TV Writing, and Alan Kingsberg, Program Director of the MFA in TV Writing, with additional input from Christine Vachon, Producer and Co-Founder of Killer Films and Artistic Director of the MFA in Film.
Editor’s note: This interview took approximately 1 hour and is a total of 15 pages. Part 2 (8 pages) is available to our Supporting Members, without whom in-depth articles and interviews like this one would not be possible as FilmSchool.org is 100% advertisement free. Supporting Members also enjoy access to our database that tracks upwards of 4,000 film school applications and the full Acceptance Data statistics for each film program that helps demystify common questions about how to construct a winning portfolio, ideal GPAs and GRE scores, and much more.
MB: Thanks for wanting to interview us. I did a wide search, and our students were saying FilmSchool.org is where they heard about the program, so we’re glad to be chatting with you.
My background is in film development and film and TV production. In 2015, Stony Brook launched its Film MFA with Christine Vachon and Killer Films, building its rigorous curriculum around Killer’s filmography and Christine’s experience.
As a program, we're not sclerotic. We're not a big ocean liner. We can move quickly and nimbly with the ethos of the industry as it shifts and changes. Our graduates have produced public/private co-productions, placed feature films in domestic and international film festivals, had long festival runs with grand jury prizes on shorts circuits, have been recipients of NYWIFT Finishing funds, the Panavision Grant, the SUNY PACC prize, and have won the PAGE and Big Apple screenwriting competitions. In 2015, we launched the MFA in TV Writing. TV Writing alums are working in writers rooms and their scripts have won TV Academy Fellowships, International Page Awards, The Nantucket Film Festival, WeScreenplay Hollywood and numerous Finalist awards at the Austin Film Festival, among others.
Prior to launching the MFA in TV Writing at Stony Brook, which is probably the most comprehensive in the country, Alan Kingsberg started the TV Writing curriculum at Columbia University’s MFA in Film and was a Visiting Professor at Sarah Lawrence College. Kingsberg also worked as a TV writer, showrunner, and producer on over 140 half-hour episodes and over twenty series.
After graduating, his students have gone on to write and produce on television shows such as "30 Rock," "Mr. Robot," "Narcos," "The Deuce," "Stranger Things," "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt," "Orphan Black," "Quantico," "The Sinner," "Inside Amy Schumer," "Smash," "New Girl," "Odd Mom Out," "The Originals," "Vegas," "Weeds," and "Californication" and have showrun "Yellowjackets," "Mozart in the Jungle," and "A League of Their Own." Recent Stony Brook MFA in TV Writing graduates are working on "The Diplomat" and developing series with showrunners Tom Fontana and Bash Doran.
Christine Vachon is an Independent Spirit Award and Gotham Award winner who co-founded powerhouse Killer Films with partner Pamela Koffler in 1995. Over three decades, they have produced more than 100 films, including some of the most celebrated and important American independent features: "Kids," "I Shot Andy Warhol," "Happiness," "Boys Don’t Cry," "Hedwig and the Angry Inch," "Far From Heaven," "One Hour Photo," "Still Alice," "Carol," "Beatriz at Dinner," and "Dark Waters."
In television, Vachon executive-produced the Emmy and Golden Globe-awarded miniseries "Mildred Pierce" for HBO, as well as the Emmy Award-winning limited series "Halston" for Netflix. Recent releases include Todd Haynes' "May December" (Netflix), starring Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore, and Celine Song's "Past Lives" (A24), which marks her first Oscar nomination in the Best Picture category. In Fall, 2024, "A Different Man" won Best Picture at The Gothams, and "The Brutalist" won Best Picture at New York Film Critics.
AK: In our MFA in TV Writing, we have a three-pronged approach: small classes taught by professors in the practice; one-on-one advising; and bringing in industry experts.
The core TV writing classes, like Pilot, and Spec are all paired with one-on-one advising. And the classes are small, anywhere from eight to twelve students. So, in addition to workshops that are run like writers rooms, students meet with their professor every other week for a half- hour one-on-one. That has changed the whole equation for how to get scripts completed. Classroom work is group oriented with everybody participating, while the one-on-one conferences are a deeper dive into the things that the individual student needs to improve and succeed.
For the TV Writing Guest Series, I bring in working showrunners and writers like Debora Cahn from "The Diplomat" and Ashley Lyle from "Yellowjackets." These guest events are not fan discussions but in-depth discussions of processes that then tie back to the material being taught in writing classes. Rather than questions like: ‘What's it like to work with Amy Adams?’, it’s more like: ‘In episode 104, when you had the character hide the jewelry from her husband, what were you trying to achieve in her emotional arc?’
MB: Christine came in saying, ‘I've taught all over the world for over 30 years, and I don’t quite feel like the film education is replicating what a student needs to learn to make a splash in the industry.’ So, she brings in both her filmography and also current test cases, and students see actualized budgets and actualized screenplays, rough cuts and schedules.
We had a test case this fall that was the screenplay, the movie screening, the director, the distribution company, and the director's manager. And you could sort of see how an entire project is finished and then let out into the world. And that was "A Different Man," directed by Aaron Schimberg, and starring Sebastian Stan and [Renate Reinsve], distributed by A24. There are a lot of other cool test cases.
Film classes tend to be bigger, 12 students per class — it’s better for crewing. We have a rigorous lockstep curriculum in the first year. Students do a Directing exercise every weekend. They learn to edit, they learn cinematography, they learn safety, they learn intimacy coordination, they learn stunt, safety, they write short scripts. So, it's very, very rigorous training in all the disciplines that make up film so that they develop their filmmaking muscle memory. And then they take Production I in the spring, Screenwriting I, Directing Actors, and cinematography.
In the second year, students move into their selected tracks, screenwriting and producing in addition to Directing II and Production II. Every fall, we host a big screening for the culmination of the first and second year productions at Lincoln Center. It’s a lot of work, but it leads up to a celebration of that work.
So, students are getting exposure to the film world at large through Christine and the people she brings in; they’re developing their craft and their art and showing the world their work through making films and screening and submitting to festivals.
AK: The MFA in TV Writing has over 18 classes that focus on TV, including Spec, Pilot, Limited Series, Showrunning, Business of TV, Comedy, Webisodes. Graduates leave with a robust TV Writing Portfolio that becomes their calling card to the industry. They also write a feature script, while screenwriting focuses mostly on writing feature films.
MB: Part of our mission as a film school is to empower underserved voices–people who wouldn't consider film school as a possibility, because a legacy film school puts people up to $300,000 in debt, while the entire tuition for our three-year program is $30,000 for in state and just upwards of $50,000 for non-resident and international. The other is our independent focus, and our microbudget third year. We’re smaller than others, and that allows us to keep the quality high.
AK: Entertainment is a scrappy business and we are built in that mode. One of our students got into USC, UCLA, and AFI, and she flew into New York to see what we’re about. When she visited those schools, she said that nobody seemed to care whether she enrolled or not. We saw her talent and wanted her to be part of our creative community. So, she moved from LA to New York and attended our program, which is so unusual.
We had another student who was admitted to Columbia, but came to Stony Brook’s MFA in TV Writing and felt he’d made the better choice educationally and professionally and saved a couple of hundred thousand dollars in the process. This same student just won three major contests this year including one that flew him to LA for a fully cast table read of his script. Needless to say, his career is off and running.
And most of our students work. Most of our classes are in the evening, since we recognize that people either need or want to have jobs while they're going to graduate school. We're not the, ‘$85,000 a year, you don't have to work, somebody paid your tuition’ type of film school.
MB: We have very committed, high-level filmmakers who want to take their craft to the next level. Also, everybody can train as teachers. The minute they get hired as a teacher, they get a $4,400 stipend, then they get their health insurance paid. But we're not a teacher training program. We’re an art school.
AK: The teacher training is great because they get real credits. At most schools, people who teach undergrad are TAs, not professors. At Stony Brook, grad students become adjunct professors. So, when they leave our program, they've got one or two semesters of teaching. They can go to another university with references and experience, and that's important for the early career stages. It's great to have a teaching job while you’re building your writing career because you're learning more about the field.
But what we really want to emphasize is the artistic accomplishments of the program. People are coming to make movies and break into television writers rooms, and we're giving them those opportunities.
MB: The other thing is the students own their IP. Some film schools retain the IP.
MB: Our focus is story-centric. Although we teach the technical aspects, particularly editing and cinematography, that is not our core focus. We often attract industry professionals who want to focus on that movie they’ve been wanting to make.
And in Film, we are largely hands-on. Theory is woven in, but practice is the goal. A visiting professor said to me last night: ‘You’ve set up this film school exactly how I would have if I were to build a film school, with a focus on making and making and making.’
AK: For TV Writing, the focus is on generating great pilots that can win awards and launch careers as well as prepare graduates to thrive in professional writers rooms. There is some theory, but the main focus of the program is on writing and generating powerful stories, scripts and series pitches.
MB: At the graduate level, the acceptance rate is about 1 out of 6. We can’t give you data on the undergraduate minor as people opt into a minor, usually in their second or third year, but we offer instruction in Film and TV Writing to over 800 undergraduate students.
AK: The MFA in TV Writing requires a 10-page writing sample, preferably from an original pilot, a writing prompt, plus a statement of purpose and a personal video where you pitch yourself. Most important are the writing sample and the prompt.
MB: Film MFA applicants apply to one of three tracks: Directing, Screenwriting, or Producing. All tracks require a video pitch, a statement of purpose, a resume, the response to the prompt, and a 10-page writing sample in addition to any video/film/visual samples. Producing track applicants have the option of submitting critiques, production program notes, and/or literary criticism as their writing sample.
MB: I don't want to say mistakes — I feel like that's too critical. But I think certain things draw us in more than others.
AK: For the personal video, I like applicants to pitch themselves. We’ve had people just sit on a couch and start to act as if they're talking to a studio and just pitch their projects in great detail, and we don't get to know anything about them. In addition to getting to know the applicant as a person, story should be prioritized. We want to know what stories you feel passionate about.
MB: If someone is carpet bombing film schools, and has a statement of purpose that doesn’t reflect that we're the state university of New York, it shows you haven't even been on our website. In your application, you should indicate that you know where you're applying and what details about the school appeal to you.
AK: To get to know the goals of the applicant, to understand their personal narrative and their level of passion for their chosen area of study.
MB: The statement of purpose is the second thing I read, after watching the video pitch. A lot of applicants write about how they were first struck, smitten with film or TV. We want to see where they’re inspired to go from there. What kind of voice they want to have in that world. What kinds of stories they need to tell.
MB: For Directors, we’re looking for their visual voice and how it communicates their interest and concerns. In a Producer’s video sample, I look at how well the thing is done.
MB: Visual elements contain style, personal point of view, rhythm, pace, tone, mood. They tell much of the story, without words.
AK: What I tell everybody about their writing, and their admission package is: “Marry your passion with your skill set.” This way you can write yourself into your dream job. In our MFA, students find their voice, learn the craft, and then create a writing portfolio that can launch their career.
The second thing I want to emphasize is that we're looking for potential. We're not necessarily looking for accomplishments. When we look at applications for TV writing, the writing samples are the most important part. When we read a script, it’s not like it has to be the best script we've read. We ask, ‘Is there a bright spot in there? Is there a seven-line exchange where you go, ‘How did they write that?’ Even if the rest of it is a little disorganized, that little section shows so much promise that we have to take the applicant very seriously.
Of course, we always interview everybody so that we can dig deeper. We curate our cohorts, in both programs. So, we're looking at the mix and match. My students this year said, ‘How did you put this group together? We love each other!’
MB: I love what Alan said about the writing samples. The assignment, which is writing something fresh from the prompt, is as important as a piece of polished writing. It’s a wonderful way to see what a person's talent is.
MB: If you’re applying to the [Film MFA] program, want to see how much you care about film — through sound, image, edits, tone, and pacing in your video pitch. Not just what you say, but how you say it visually.
AK: For the TV Writing video pitch, we're not looking at filmmaking skills. We're looking at who the applicant is and if it's a rough production, we don't care, because it's a writing program. We want to get some insight into what makes the candidate tick.
MB: The video portfolio is polished, edited, completed productions a filmmaker submits. The pitch is more of a self-reveal, a fresh exploration of the visual and storytelling voice.
AK: We had a video pitch of a woman who was being interviewed by her cat. She made the mouth move on the cat, and the cat was really sarcastic and critical of her. We had to have her because she had such a wicked sense of humor.
MB: The cat was good. My favorite was a stop frame filmed storyboard using Legos to replicate the film a student wanted to make with us. Agree that the video pitch generates the most anxiety. For film applicants, some are works of art, some are confessionals, some are a day in the life vlogs. The important thing is to show us who you are, make us feel, show us what you want to make. I watch the video pitch first. I want to hear your voice as a filmmaker, and know what kind of film citizen you are.
AK: And then I remember Stephanie, from California, who has a big Latino family. She added in some home movies with her brothers and they were playing football with her, and it was very much about who she was and the world she came from. You can pair that with the writing sample, and you can get a big picture of who the person is. So, she won us over with that sense of her connection to her family, as shown in the video.
MB: That’s right, we want to see people doing what’s close to them. Let us know who you are.
AK: That’s the perfect way to phrase it. Instead of pitching a project, you're pitching yourself. The production doesn't have to be perfect.
MB: Yes. The portfolio is everything!
MB: Directing is most competitive, followed by Screenwriting, then Producing. I think that’s true of most film schools. Most people want to be a director. Each directing student will leave the program with at least five short films and the option of finishing six films, one of which can be a feature. Screenwriting students must complete two feature screenplays. And Producing students will leave with a portfolio of at least 6 films and must have sole producer credit on their thesis. Many produce more.
MB: All MFA [applicants] require a Zoom interview. The interview is hugely important. If we’re going to spend a couple of years with you, we want to know who you are, and if your goals as a filmmaker or TV Writer match the style of instruction we have to offer. If we’re taking the time to talk to you, we want you to do well. We might ask a tough question to see how you respond to feedback. See if you can listen.
MB: The minor enables students to create compelling visual stories about the issues at the core of their own studies. Yes, it's a good stepping stone to a graduate degree as it offers the fundamentals and the opportunity to create a sample reel for graduate applications.
MB: We have rolling admissions with several application deadlines. We’ll send out requests to interview a couple of weeks after the scholarship deadline. We interview everyone we’re considering. We’re going to be spending 2-3 years with people, so we want to get their vibe.
About a month after the application deadline, we send out admissions letters. We have a priority final deadline on May 1 for international applicants, and a sort of drop dead deadline on July 15 for domestic applicants.
MB: Pretty good, but it depends. I thought most would reject our offer during the pandemic years, but almost none did. So, the wait list didn’t move then. But usually it does.
AK: For TV, the wait list gives you a chance to be admitted, particularly if you follow up with an additional writing sample. Also, there are a number of applicants who were wait-listed and admitted the following year who are very successful in the program.
MB: Yes, but if they’ve been awarded a scholarship, that scholarship does not necessarily apply when they return. It depends on the applicant pool.
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Alexa Pellegrini for FilmSchool.org spoke with Magdalene Brandeis, Executive Director of Programs in Film & TV Writing, and Alan Kingsberg, Program Director of the MFA in TV Writing, with additional input from Christine Vachon, Producer and Co-Founder of Killer Films and Artistic Director of the MFA in Film.
Editor’s note: This interview took approximately 1 hour and is a total of 15 pages. Part 2 (8 pages) is available to our Supporting Members, without whom in-depth articles and interviews like this one would not be possible as FilmSchool.org is 100% advertisement free. Supporting Members also enjoy access to our database that tracks upwards of 4,000 film school applications and the full Acceptance Data statistics for each film program that helps demystify common questions about how to construct a winning portfolio, ideal GPAs and GRE scores, and much more.
How to Get Into Stony Brook University: Exclusive Advice From the MFA Program Directors (Part 2)
Exclusively for our Supporting Members, this is the second part of our 1-hour interview with Stony Brook University's Magdalene Brandeis (Program Director of the MFA in Film) and Alan Kingsberg (Program Director of the MFA in TV Writing), and Christine Vachon (Artistic Director of the MFA in...
- Alexa P.
- Category: Supporting Member Exclusives
AP: Stony Brook's film program is relatively young, yet faculty and alumni have left a mark on the industry that will be felt for generations to come. Can you tell us more specifically about these achievements and the film program's history?
MB: Thanks for wanting to interview us. I did a wide search, and our students were saying FilmSchool.org is where they heard about the program, so we’re glad to be chatting with you.
My background is in film development and film and TV production. In 2015, Stony Brook launched its Film MFA with Christine Vachon and Killer Films, building its rigorous curriculum around Killer’s filmography and Christine’s experience.
As a program, we're not sclerotic. We're not a big ocean liner. We can move quickly and nimbly with the ethos of the industry as it shifts and changes. Our graduates have produced public/private co-productions, placed feature films in domestic and international film festivals, had long festival runs with grand jury prizes on shorts circuits, have been recipients of NYWIFT Finishing funds, the Panavision Grant, the SUNY PACC prize, and have won the PAGE and Big Apple screenwriting competitions. In 2015, we launched the MFA in TV Writing. TV Writing alums are working in writers rooms and their scripts have won TV Academy Fellowships, International Page Awards, The Nantucket Film Festival, WeScreenplay Hollywood and numerous Finalist awards at the Austin Film Festival, among others.
Prior to launching the MFA in TV Writing at Stony Brook, which is probably the most comprehensive in the country, Alan Kingsberg started the TV Writing curriculum at Columbia University’s MFA in Film and was a Visiting Professor at Sarah Lawrence College. Kingsberg also worked as a TV writer, showrunner, and producer on over 140 half-hour episodes and over twenty series.
Christine Vachon is an Independent Spirit Award and Gotham Award winner who co-founded powerhouse Killer Films with partner Pamela Koffler in 1995. Over three decades, they have produced more than 100 films, including some of the most celebrated and important American independent features: "Kids," "I Shot Andy Warhol," "Happiness," "Boys Don’t Cry," "Hedwig and the Angry Inch," "Far From Heaven," "One Hour Photo," "Still Alice," "Carol," "Beatriz at Dinner," and "Dark Waters."
In television, Vachon executive-produced the Emmy and Golden Globe-awarded miniseries "Mildred Pierce" for HBO, as well as the Emmy Award-winning limited series "Halston" for Netflix. Recent releases include Todd Haynes' "May December" (Netflix), starring Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore, and Celine Song's "Past Lives" (A24), which marks her first Oscar nomination in the Best Picture category. In Fall, 2024, "A Different Man" won Best Picture at The Gothams, and "The Brutalist" won Best Picture at New York Film Critics.
How would you describe the structure of each MFA degree and its courses?
AK: In our MFA in TV Writing, we have a three-pronged approach: small classes taught by professors in the practice; one-on-one advising; and bringing in industry experts.
The core TV writing classes, like Pilot, and Spec are all paired with one-on-one advising. And the classes are small, anywhere from eight to twelve students. So, in addition to workshops that are run like writers rooms, students meet with their professor every other week for a half- hour one-on-one. That has changed the whole equation for how to get scripts completed. Classroom work is group oriented with everybody participating, while the one-on-one conferences are a deeper dive into the things that the individual student needs to improve and succeed.
For the TV Writing Guest Series, I bring in working showrunners and writers like Debora Cahn from "The Diplomat" and Ashley Lyle from "Yellowjackets." These guest events are not fan discussions but in-depth discussions of processes that then tie back to the material being taught in writing classes. Rather than questions like: ‘What's it like to work with Amy Adams?’, it’s more like: ‘In episode 104, when you had the character hide the jewelry from her husband, what were you trying to achieve in her emotional arc?’
MB: Christine came in saying, ‘I've taught all over the world for over 30 years, and I don’t quite feel like the film education is replicating what a student needs to learn to make a splash in the industry.’ So, she brings in both her filmography and also current test cases, and students see actualized budgets and actualized screenplays, rough cuts and schedules.
We had a test case this fall that was the screenplay, the movie screening, the director, the distribution company, and the director's manager. And you could sort of see how an entire project is finished and then let out into the world. And that was "A Different Man," directed by Aaron Schimberg, and starring Sebastian Stan and [Renate Reinsve], distributed by A24. There are a lot of other cool test cases.
Film classes tend to be bigger, 12 students per class — it’s better for crewing. We have a rigorous lockstep curriculum in the first year. Students do a Directing exercise every weekend. They learn to edit, they learn cinematography, they learn safety, they learn intimacy coordination, they learn stunt, safety, they write short scripts. So, it's very, very rigorous training in all the disciplines that make up film so that they develop their filmmaking muscle memory. And then they take Production I in the spring, Screenwriting I, Directing Actors, and cinematography.
In the second year, students move into their selected tracks, screenwriting and producing in addition to Directing II and Production II. Every fall, we host a big screening for the culmination of the first and second year productions at Lincoln Center. It’s a lot of work, but it leads up to a celebration of that work.
So, students are getting exposure to the film world at large through Christine and the people she brings in; they’re developing their craft and their art and showing the world their work through making films and screening and submitting to festivals.
How does the MFA in Television Writing differ from the MFA in Screenwriting?
AK: The MFA in TV Writing has over 18 classes that focus on TV, including Spec, Pilot, Limited Series, Showrunning, Business of TV, Comedy, Webisodes. Graduates leave with a robust TV Writing Portfolio that becomes their calling card to the industry. They also write a feature script, while screenwriting focuses mostly on writing feature films.
What makes Stony Brook stand out, particularly from large brand name film schools — think AFI, Columbia, and NYU?
MB: Part of our mission as a film school is to empower underserved voices–people who wouldn't consider film school as a possibility, because a legacy film school puts people up to $300,000 in debt, while the entire tuition for our three-year program is $30,000 for in state and just upwards of $50,000 for non-resident and international. The other is our independent focus, and our microbudget third year. We’re smaller than others, and that allows us to keep the quality high.
AK: Entertainment is a scrappy business and we are built in that mode. One of our students got into USC, UCLA, and AFI, and she flew into New York to see what we’re about. When she visited those schools, she said that nobody seemed to care whether she enrolled or not. We saw her talent and wanted her to be part of our creative community. So, she moved from LA to New York and attended our program, which is so unusual.
We had another student who was admitted to Columbia, but came to Stony Brook’s MFA in TV Writing and felt he’d made the better choice educationally and professionally and saved a couple of hundred thousand dollars in the process. This same student just won three major contests this year including one that flew him to LA for a fully cast table read of his script. Needless to say, his career is off and running.
And most of our students work. Most of our classes are in the evening, since we recognize that people either need or want to have jobs while they're going to graduate school. We're not the, ‘$85,000 a year, you don't have to work, somebody paid your tuition’ type of film school.
MB: We have very committed, high-level filmmakers who want to take their craft to the next level. Also, everybody can train as teachers. The minute they get hired as a teacher, they get a $4,400 stipend, then they get their health insurance paid. But we're not a teacher training program. We’re an art school.
AK: The teacher training is great because they get real credits. At most schools, people who teach undergrad are TAs, not professors. At Stony Brook, grad students become adjunct professors. So, when they leave our program, they've got one or two semesters of teaching. They can go to another university with references and experience, and that's important for the early career stages. It's great to have a teaching job while you’re building your writing career because you're learning more about the field.
But what we really want to emphasize is the artistic accomplishments of the program. People are coming to make movies and break into television writers rooms, and we're giving them those opportunities.
MB: The other thing is the students own their IP. Some film schools retain the IP.
Does each MFA degree equally emphasize the creative, theoretical, and technical aspects of filmmaking?
And in Film, we are largely hands-on. Theory is woven in, but practice is the goal. A visiting professor said to me last night: ‘You’ve set up this film school exactly how I would have if I were to build a film school, with a focus on making and making and making.’
AK: For TV Writing, the focus is on generating great pilots that can win awards and launch careers as well as prepare graduates to thrive in professional writers rooms. There is some theory, but the main focus of the program is on writing and generating powerful stories, scripts and series pitches.
What is the Stony Brook MFA acceptance rate?
MB: At the graduate level, the acceptance rate is about 1 out of 6. We can’t give you data on the undergraduate minor as people opt into a minor, usually in their second or third year, but we offer instruction in Film and TV Writing to over 800 undergraduate students.
What are the admission requirements?
AK: The MFA in TV Writing requires a 10-page writing sample, preferably from an original pilot, a writing prompt, plus a statement of purpose and a personal video where you pitch yourself. Most important are the writing sample and the prompt.
MB: Film MFA applicants apply to one of three tracks: Directing, Screenwriting, or Producing. All tracks require a video pitch, a statement of purpose, a resume, the response to the prompt, and a 10-page writing sample in addition to any video/film/visual samples. Producing track applicants have the option of submitting critiques, production program notes, and/or literary criticism as their writing sample.
What mistakes do you commonly see on the application?
MB: I don't want to say mistakes — I feel like that's too critical. But I think certain things draw us in more than others.
AK: For the personal video, I like applicants to pitch themselves. We’ve had people just sit on a couch and start to act as if they're talking to a studio and just pitch their projects in great detail, and we don't get to know anything about them. In addition to getting to know the applicant as a person, story should be prioritized. We want to know what stories you feel passionate about.
MB: If someone is carpet bombing film schools, and has a statement of purpose that doesn’t reflect that we're the state university of New York, it shows you haven't even been on our website. In your application, you should indicate that you know where you're applying and what details about the school appeal to you.
What are you looking for in the statement of purpose?
AK: To get to know the goals of the applicant, to understand their personal narrative and their level of passion for their chosen area of study.
MB: The statement of purpose is the second thing I read, after watching the video pitch. A lot of applicants write about how they were first struck, smitten with film or TV. We want to see where they’re inspired to go from there. What kind of voice they want to have in that world. What kinds of stories they need to tell.
What makes a strong directing/producing video sample?
MB: For Directors, we’re looking for their visual voice and how it communicates their interest and concerns. In a Producer’s video sample, I look at how well the thing is done.
Can you expand on the ‘visual voice’ element and why it’s so critical?
MB: Visual elements contain style, personal point of view, rhythm, pace, tone, mood. They tell much of the story, without words.
AK: What I tell everybody about their writing, and their admission package is: “Marry your passion with your skill set.” This way you can write yourself into your dream job. In our MFA, students find their voice, learn the craft, and then create a writing portfolio that can launch their career.
The second thing I want to emphasize is that we're looking for potential. We're not necessarily looking for accomplishments. When we look at applications for TV writing, the writing samples are the most important part. When we read a script, it’s not like it has to be the best script we've read. We ask, ‘Is there a bright spot in there? Is there a seven-line exchange where you go, ‘How did they write that?’ Even if the rest of it is a little disorganized, that little section shows so much promise that we have to take the applicant very seriously.
Of course, we always interview everybody so that we can dig deeper. We curate our cohorts, in both programs. So, we're looking at the mix and match. My students this year said, ‘How did you put this group together? We love each other!’
MB: I love what Alan said about the writing samples. The assignment, which is writing something fresh from the prompt, is as important as a piece of polished writing. It’s a wonderful way to see what a person's talent is.
How should applicants approach the video pitch?
MB: If you’re applying to the [Film MFA] program, want to see how much you care about film — through sound, image, edits, tone, and pacing in your video pitch. Not just what you say, but how you say it visually.
AK: For the TV Writing video pitch, we're not looking at filmmaking skills. We're looking at who the applicant is and if it's a rough production, we don't care, because it's a writing program. We want to get some insight into what makes the candidate tick.
MB: The video portfolio is polished, edited, completed productions a filmmaker submits. The pitch is more of a self-reveal, a fresh exploration of the visual and storytelling voice.
AK: We had a video pitch of a woman who was being interviewed by her cat. She made the mouth move on the cat, and the cat was really sarcastic and critical of her. We had to have her because she had such a wicked sense of humor.
MB: The cat was good. My favorite was a stop frame filmed storyboard using Legos to replicate the film a student wanted to make with us. Agree that the video pitch generates the most anxiety. For film applicants, some are works of art, some are confessionals, some are a day in the life vlogs. The important thing is to show us who you are, make us feel, show us what you want to make. I watch the video pitch first. I want to hear your voice as a filmmaker, and know what kind of film citizen you are.
AK: And then I remember Stephanie, from California, who has a big Latino family. She added in some home movies with her brothers and they were playing football with her, and it was very much about who she was and the world she came from. You can pair that with the writing sample, and you can get a big picture of who the person is. So, she won us over with that sense of her connection to her family, as shown in the video.
MB: That’s right, we want to see people doing what’s close to them. Let us know who you are.
AK: That’s the perfect way to phrase it. Instead of pitching a project, you're pitching yourself. The production doesn't have to be perfect.
If an applicant has a low GPA or lacks professional film experience (or both), can a strong portfolio balance out their application?
MB: Yes. The portfolio is everything!
Which MFA in Film track is the most competitive?
MB: Directing is most competitive, followed by Screenwriting, then Producing. I think that’s true of most film schools. Most people want to be a director. Each directing student will leave the program with at least five short films and the option of finishing six films, one of which can be a feature. Screenwriting students must complete two feature screenplays. And Producing students will leave with a portfolio of at least 6 films and must have sole producer credit on their thesis. Many produce more.
Are MFA and/or Film minor applicants required to sit for an interview?
MB: All MFA [applicants] require a Zoom interview. The interview is hugely important. If we’re going to spend a couple of years with you, we want to know who you are, and if your goals as a filmmaker or TV Writer match the style of instruction we have to offer. If we’re taking the time to talk to you, we want you to do well. We might ask a tough question to see how you respond to feedback. See if you can listen.
Is the Film minor a good stepping stone towards a graduate film degree?
MB: The minor enables students to create compelling visual stories about the issues at the core of their own studies. Yes, it's a good stepping stone to a graduate degree as it offers the fundamentals and the opportunity to create a sample reel for graduate applications.
When does Stony Brook typically release admissions decisions?
MB: We have rolling admissions with several application deadlines. We’ll send out requests to interview a couple of weeks after the scholarship deadline. We interview everyone we’re considering. We’re going to be spending 2-3 years with people, so we want to get their vibe.
About a month after the application deadline, we send out admissions letters. We have a priority final deadline on May 1 for international applicants, and a sort of drop dead deadline on July 15 for domestic applicants.
What are the odds of being accepted off the wait list?
MB: Pretty good, but it depends. I thought most would reject our offer during the pandemic years, but almost none did. So, the wait list didn’t move then. But usually it does.
AK: For TV, the wait list gives you a chance to be admitted, particularly if you follow up with an additional writing sample. Also, there are a number of applicants who were wait-listed and admitted the following year who are very successful in the program.
Can applicants defer acceptance for any reason?
MB: Yes, but if they’ve been awarded a scholarship, that scholarship does not necessarily apply when they return. It depends on the applicant pool.
How to Get Into Stony Brook University: Exclusive Advice From the MFA Program Directors (Part 2)
Exclusively for our Supporting Members, this is the second part of our 1-hour interview with Stony Brook University's Magdalene Brandeis (Program Director of the MFA in Film) and Alan Kingsberg (Program Director of the MFA in TV Writing), and Christine Vachon (Artistic Director of the MFA in...
- Alexa P.
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- Next article in the series 'How to Get Into Stony Brook University: Exclusive Advice From the MFA Program Directors': How to Get Into Stony Brook University: Exclusive Advice From the MFA Program Directors (Part 2)
