Hi everyone,
I've been lurking on this forum for a while and finally have something worth posting about. I'm based in Athens, finishing up my undergrad, and I've just received acceptances to four MFA Directing programs in the US: NYU Tisch, Columbia, AFI Conservatory, and USC School of Cinematic Arts. I have until mid-April to decide and I'm genuinely torn, so I'd love to hear from anyone who has real experience with these programs, especially if you've attended one of them.
A bit about my background
I didn't study film as an undergrad. Alongside my degree, I've been making films independently: I've directed three short films that have screened at international festivals. I've also spent several years working professionally in the film industry, as an assistant director on large-scale productions including a Netflix series, and as an assistant to a couple established directors across narrative and commercial work. I've been deeply embedded in the independent film world for a while now.
So I'm not coming to an MFA as a complete beginner. I know how sets work, I've been in the room when funding decisions are made, and I've navigated the festival circuit. But I'm also aware of exactly what I don't yet have.
Why I want to do an MFA at all
II want to be transparent about this because I think it's relevant to which program makes sense for me. My goal is to make films as a writer-director, my own scripts, or adaptations I develop myself. The directors I look up to most are people like PTA, Wes Anderson, Lanthimos, Fincher, Villeneuve Haneke, etc. filmmakers who have a distinct visual and thematic signature, who work across both the festival world and general audiences, and who have built careers on authorship rather than assignment. That's the kind of filmmaker I want to be.
I want to make primarily English-language films. And I'm being honest with myself about why I want an MFA, it's more than one thing. First, craft: despite having made films and worked professionally, I'm conscious of the gaps in my own work. I want dedicated time and structure to develop as a director, to be challenged, to fail in a safe environment, to work with faculty who can push my visual language and storytelling in ways that are hard to access when you're always in production mode. Second, the business side genuinely matters to me too. Understanding how to develop and package projects, navigate the American industry, build relationships with producers and financiers. I don't want to just make great films; I want to build a sustainable career around them. And third, I'll be honest, the MFA is my entry point into the American film ecosystem. Without it, I simply wouldn't have the network, the industry access, or the legitimate foothold in the US market that makes that kind of career viable. Film school, for me, is a strategic move as much as an educational one.
Please don't suggest I skip film school or spend the tuition on making films, I've already secured funding to cover tuition, so the financial calculus here is really just about cost of living differences between New York and LA. The real question is purely about which program best sets me up for the career I described.
A honest caveat about film school in general
I'm also aware that film school, any film school, is unlikely to be the thing that makes or breaks a directing career. The directors I admire didn't necessarily succeed because of where they studied, and I don't have any illusions that a degree from one of these programs automatically opens doors. That said, for someone in my position, coming from outside the US, without an existing American network, the question of which program carries the most weight and prestige within the industry does matter to me, at least at the margins. Which of these four schools do people in the industry actually recognize and respect? Is there a meaningful hierarchy in terms of how alumni are perceived when they're starting out?
What I'm actually asking
If you went to any of these programs, or know people who did: does any of this match your experience? Are there things about these programs that aren't obvious from the outside? For the kind of career I described (author-driven, English-language, with ambitions for both critical and commercial reach) does one of these feel like a significantly better fit?
And if you're an alum of any of these four programs and are open to chatting, please feel free to DM me. I'd genuinely love to hear from you directly.
Thanks so much in advance.
I've been lurking on this forum for a while and finally have something worth posting about. I'm based in Athens, finishing up my undergrad, and I've just received acceptances to four MFA Directing programs in the US: NYU Tisch, Columbia, AFI Conservatory, and USC School of Cinematic Arts. I have until mid-April to decide and I'm genuinely torn, so I'd love to hear from anyone who has real experience with these programs, especially if you've attended one of them.
A bit about my background
I didn't study film as an undergrad. Alongside my degree, I've been making films independently: I've directed three short films that have screened at international festivals. I've also spent several years working professionally in the film industry, as an assistant director on large-scale productions including a Netflix series, and as an assistant to a couple established directors across narrative and commercial work. I've been deeply embedded in the independent film world for a while now.
So I'm not coming to an MFA as a complete beginner. I know how sets work, I've been in the room when funding decisions are made, and I've navigated the festival circuit. But I'm also aware of exactly what I don't yet have.
Why I want to do an MFA at all
II want to be transparent about this because I think it's relevant to which program makes sense for me. My goal is to make films as a writer-director, my own scripts, or adaptations I develop myself. The directors I look up to most are people like PTA, Wes Anderson, Lanthimos, Fincher, Villeneuve Haneke, etc. filmmakers who have a distinct visual and thematic signature, who work across both the festival world and general audiences, and who have built careers on authorship rather than assignment. That's the kind of filmmaker I want to be.
I want to make primarily English-language films. And I'm being honest with myself about why I want an MFA, it's more than one thing. First, craft: despite having made films and worked professionally, I'm conscious of the gaps in my own work. I want dedicated time and structure to develop as a director, to be challenged, to fail in a safe environment, to work with faculty who can push my visual language and storytelling in ways that are hard to access when you're always in production mode. Second, the business side genuinely matters to me too. Understanding how to develop and package projects, navigate the American industry, build relationships with producers and financiers. I don't want to just make great films; I want to build a sustainable career around them. And third, I'll be honest, the MFA is my entry point into the American film ecosystem. Without it, I simply wouldn't have the network, the industry access, or the legitimate foothold in the US market that makes that kind of career viable. Film school, for me, is a strategic move as much as an educational one.
Please don't suggest I skip film school or spend the tuition on making films, I've already secured funding to cover tuition, so the financial calculus here is really just about cost of living differences between New York and LA. The real question is purely about which program best sets me up for the career I described.
A honest caveat about film school in general
I'm also aware that film school, any film school, is unlikely to be the thing that makes or breaks a directing career. The directors I admire didn't necessarily succeed because of where they studied, and I don't have any illusions that a degree from one of these programs automatically opens doors. That said, for someone in my position, coming from outside the US, without an existing American network, the question of which program carries the most weight and prestige within the industry does matter to me, at least at the margins. Which of these four schools do people in the industry actually recognize and respect? Is there a meaningful hierarchy in terms of how alumni are perceived when they're starting out?
What I'm actually asking
If you went to any of these programs, or know people who did: does any of this match your experience? Are there things about these programs that aren't obvious from the outside? For the kind of career I described (author-driven, English-language, with ambitions for both critical and commercial reach) does one of these feel like a significantly better fit?
And if you're an alum of any of these four programs and are open to chatting, please feel free to DM me. I'd genuinely love to hear from you directly.
Thanks so much in advance.
