In the final installment of our exclusive CalArts interview, Alexa Pellegrini speaks with Ranu Mukherjee, Dean of the School of Film/Video, about fine-tuning your admissions strategy, financial aid, how undergraduates and graduates receive direct access to the film industry, film showcases, and more.
Read part one of the interview here:
Ranu Mukherjee
RM: For Film and Video (which again, is a live-action BFA or MFA), admissions is looking for people who work with the moving image in interesting ways. You don't have to have a script written; they’re not specifically focused on narrative filmmaking. For the BFA, you should have done some filmmaking, but you can also submit other creative materials. This program is open to all approaches to filmmaking.
For Directing, which is only an MFA, they're looking for an interest in narrative, and it doesn't have to be conventional. There just has to be an interest in narrative in some way, because the focus is on the development of narrative filmmaking and how it might be expanded in the 21st Century.
In general, CalArts isn’t the most conventional school. So, we're also looking for people across the programs that are not necessarily cookie cutter. That’s why we’re looking for people who are thinking as authors and also are willing to get into lots of different roles. So, it’s not the best school if you only want to work in one specific industry role. It’s not that you can’t do that after you graduate, but if your primary mode of filmmaking is to be assigned a specific role at the start, it might not be the best fit for our live action programs. We're looking for people who want to expand what filmmaking can be and are open to looking at a wide range of work and keeping an open mind.
In Experimental Animation, MFA students need to have had some experience animating, for sure. BFA students need a little experience animating, and also experience creating with different materials — so, lots of drawing, working with clay...
Read part one of the interview here:
The Art School Approach to Film: A Guide to CalArts' Programs and Admissions (Part 1)
California Institute of the Arts, better known as CalArts, offers an artistic community where filmmakers are encouraged to experiment and explore their creative identities. Walt Disney founded the school in 1961, envisioning an institution where artists of every kind could learn from each other...
- Alexa P.
- Comments: 1
- Category: Admissions Interviews
Ranu Mukherjee
What makes an application genuinely memorable to admissions?
RM: For Film and Video (which again, is a live-action BFA or MFA), admissions is looking for people who work with the moving image in interesting ways. You don't have to have a script written; they’re not specifically focused on narrative filmmaking. For the BFA, you should have done some filmmaking, but you can also submit other creative materials. This program is open to all approaches to filmmaking.
For Directing, which is only an MFA, they're looking for an interest in narrative, and it doesn't have to be conventional. There just has to be an interest in narrative in some way, because the focus is on the development of narrative filmmaking and how it might be expanded in the 21st Century.
In general, CalArts isn’t the most conventional school. So, we're also looking for people across the programs that are not necessarily cookie cutter. That’s why we’re looking for people who are thinking as authors and also are willing to get into lots of different roles. So, it’s not the best school if you only want to work in one specific industry role. It’s not that you can’t do that after you graduate, but if your primary mode of filmmaking is to be assigned a specific role at the start, it might not be the best fit for our live action programs. We're looking for people who want to expand what filmmaking can be and are open to looking at a wide range of work and keeping an open mind.
In Experimental Animation, MFA students need to have had some experience animating, for sure. BFA students need a little experience animating, and also experience creating with different materials — so, lots of drawing, working with clay...
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