Latest Film School Reviews

Even as a still-young program, the UGA Film MFA continues to grow, improve, and build new resources and opportunities with every year. As a boutique 2-year program, it was a more affordable film school option than many others with just as much opportunity to grow my skills and hone a creative voice as a writer and filmmaker. The small cohort size made for an environment that prioritized growth and collaboration over competition, and that network has lasted after graduation. Faculty bring valuable experience, and since graduating the program has continued to upgrade partnerships and opportunities for students.

To me, film school is about three things: (1) getting better as a filmmaker; (2) meeting collaborators you like as people and enjoy working with; and (3) making connections that help you enter the industry upon graduation. The UGA MFA program excels at the first two and is improving on the third.

I've gotten much better as a writer, director, and crew member since starting here, and a lot of that is due to clear and constructive feedback from the skilled faculty. Equally importantly, I've met friends and collaborators that I enjoy being with on and off set. As a new program, alumni connections and industry pathways are still being developed, but they are improving every semester.

I have a lot to say about this film school since arriving in fall of 2022. Originally entered as critical studies, I was accepted for the Fall of 2024 into the production emphasis. I've taken a lot of the class in both critical studies and on the production emphasis. Keep in mind, the program is constantly changing and the portfolio requirements or classes so something noted might not be accurate whenever you are applying.

This review is all subjective at the end of the day. It's up to you to decide.

Production Emphasis:
Classes and Program Layout:
The production focus of the program is two year program, which had you start with TFM 314 (Introduction Class) followed by 361 (Studio Production) then 362 (Intermediate Filmmaking) alongside 540 (Documentary Production) and ending with 560 (Advanced Film). You can swap 560 with 561 (Advanced Television), which I wasn't able to take because there wasn't a professor to teach it at the time but its a route if you are wanting to focus on more Television than narrative film. You can delay taking 540 to take it alongside 560, which I wouldn't recommend cause it alot work but is an option.

I find my con of this layout is a ton of repetition especially in 362, where it feels like a repeat of 314 and things that we already know have to be re-explained. 560 as a thesis film class suffers from the fact that it should be a two semester class, split between pre-production in first and production and post in the second. I do think that one class that should be require is the internship class as one form of career prep within the film program to help student with working in the field.

Electives:
The program has a ton of elective classes that you are able to take to focus on a subject or emphasis. For me, I focused on Cinematography and Production Design as those caught my eye. The program does need more post-production/vfx as well as more producer focus classes similar to other film programs have. The program elective courses, especially in cinematography and production design do suffer from not having more classes or more professors teaching it.

Production Design emphasis has you taking TFM 350 (Staging for Film and TV Classes), followed by either focusing on Art Direction (TFM 550), Production Design (TFM 551) or Digital Design for Film and Television (TFM 559). If you focus on this route, I highly recommend taking 559 as you design sets using CAD software like Vectorworks or Rhino. Production Design and Art Direction have you focus on scenic design, graphics, set decoration, budgeting, and scheduling. You might even take a tour to Warner Bros or Paramount or Raleigh Studios.

Cinematography emphasis has you take Cinematography for Television and Film (TFM 322) and Advanced Cinematography for Television and Film (TFM 522). Both classes you make a multiple film projects with their own unique story.

Professors:
Many of the professors do teach at other schools, such as UCLA, USC, AFI and more. You sort of get some form of education that they teach there from those school in here which is nice. Many of the classes with the exception of 362, had professors with recent film industry experience or ongoing film work which is a welcome change.

Gear:
We have a good selection of gear that can be further expand, especially with the recent cohorts (including the one I was in) making more films. As of recent we had like 10 560 Films, 10 362 and a ton of documentary which lead to issue of not having enough gear for a lot of programs to use.
We also have a deal with RED Cinema Camera to buy their cinema camera at a cut priced. We also have discount pricing for a ton of the film gear rental houses.

Career Prep, Internships and Outreach:
Beside working on film projects for classes, there are a ton of opportunities in and out of the university that the department sends for students to apply to. You can work the local Emmys and a ton of news station and media companies hire students and college graduates. Similarly to other film schools, it's up to you to decide and choose to apply.

A lot of successful alumni recently have been outreaching to the program and especially graduates.

Critical Studies Emphasis:
Critical Studies focuses on the study and analysis of film, television and media and is very much different. Prior to getting into the major, I was in the Critical Studies Emphasis and it is the emphasis that you would go into if you didn't get into the Production Emphasis. You learn alot of film history and some of the classes are interesting as well semester to semester.

Classes and Program Layout:
The classes for the Critical Studies focus are on critically analyzing film, with the upper division requiring that you have taken at least TFM 310 and 330. The 400-500 level class are not for the faint of heart, as they very much test your ability to write what is essentially graduate thesis level work especially because it taught by only really professor. The interdisciplinary electives within the TFM program are very knowledgeable to have for post-graduation, and I would recommend a ton of people to take 401.

You are able to take certain Production Classes electives, such as Production Design, Sound Design and Screenwriting. So if you didn't get into the program, you have options to give you better chances and have a unique skillset for post graduation. One thing, I recommend is going on-set for some of the production as people are always looking for help.

Professors:
Similarly to the production emphasis, there are both tenure vs non tenure professors. Many of those professors teach at other schools such as UCLA, USC or UCSD.

Career Prep:
I do think one of the downfalls of the Critical Studies emphasis is that there is no help for post-college career work.

Overall:
The program for me was very fun and enjoyable, with a lot of talented people coming out from it. Some production and critical studies classes could be better structured and hiring of new staff could alleviate many of those issues. As a local from San Diego and as a transfer, it is a good film school for the price if you are local.

My time at FSU's College of Motion Pictures Arts has truly been a dream. As my number one film school to attend since I was in middle school, being at FSU Film has been everything I could've wanted and more. There were many factors that made me want to attend this particular school and are still reasons why this film school means so much to me.

Going in the order of the listed pros, the Film School provides classes with a great teacher to student ratio. This allows the content to not only be fully understood, but also for students to participate in class and ask questions that are then quickly answered. The small class sizes assists in allowing individuals to find their voices as filmmakers with the guidance of faculty and professors.

All of the equipment we use at FSU Film, whether it is cameras, lighting, or editing equipment, is industry standard. This creates a sense of confidence within both myself and my classmates while we are on set. It is such a comfort knowing that the practices and principles we are utilizing each and everyday on set is a similar fashion to what is being done in the industy.

The Alumni Connections is one of the largest pulls that made me want to attend FSU. The curriculum provides students the opportunity to connect with alumni. From working with older/younger classmates to bringing in Alumni for presentations and classes, the FSU Film school creates more than just a connection to classmates, but a connection to a film family.

Finally, the conservatory approach to learning may be one of my favorite aspects of the Film School since I started attending it. Being able to consistently be on set and have the hands on experience that the school provides gives me the opportunity to learn set protocol and production operations. The information and theories that are taught in class then gets to be put into practice on set.

Overall, I am very happy with my decision to come to FSU Film! I would absolutely recommend this school to anyone looking to pursue a BFA degree in filmmaking.

The UGA low-residency MFA in Screenwriting program is outstanding. While I would have loved to participate in a full-time program such as the MFA in Film at UGA, that wasn't feasible for my situation. I was a 45 year old military spouse and mother, located over 100 miles from campus. The low-residency program allowed me to strengthen my writing skills and build community with other writers, while developing relationships with mentors I would have otherwise not had access to. Since graduating, I directed an award winning proof-of-concept short film that I wrote in the program, and directed another web series pilot written by a fellow alum. In both instances, I was mentored by other alumni, and I brought on multiple classmates to be part of the process. Being part of the UGA MFA family means you always have a connection to the industry and someone to collaborate with.

If you want to be a professional film producer, there is no better entryway into the industry than NFTS in the UK!!

I graduated from MA Producing at NFTS, and it remains one of the best experiences of my life. NFTS doesn't teach filmmaking, it makes films. The school runs like a studio in miniature: ten students per discipline, ten fully funded films a year, with students never putting in a penny of their own money. Classes are led by working producers, not retired ones. The internships at leading production companies built real relationships and, for many of us, jobs after graduation. Tuition is 26.000 GBP, halpf what you need to pay in the US. The most important film school in the UK, and one of the best in the world. NFTS doesn't prepare you for the industry. It puts you in it.

This place is more than just a film school. t's a community that challenges, inspires, and prepares students for real careers in the film industry.

I was apart of the inaugural cohort of the UGA MFA film program right in the heart of Athens, Georgia. It's grown a lot since I was there, but I learned a lot and even moreso was able to really focus on my craft as a filmmaker and cinematographer. After graduation, things were slow like with most, but now I can say just about every gig I have gotten in the past 4 years has been somehow tied to the connections and contacts I made through my time at the University of Georgia.

The vast majority of my professors have been outstanding, especially the female ones. They truly care about your success and the outcome of your projects. While we don’t have an excessive amount of equipment, it is a great start to make a fantastic piece. I have never felt so supported by a group of students as I have in my classes. Our alumni network is also growing, I’m excited to see where this program goes in the upcoming years!

Overall, I'm very happy with my time at UNO. I started taking courses before going back to school full time and I also liked this path, but the University was not so helpful in transferring credits after the fact. Alas. I received a graduate assistantship which awarded me free tuition and a stipend while in school. I taught introductory level courses for 2.5 out of 3 years and also found this to be very rewarding to my education. I was transitioning from another profession and this program was the perfect thing for me to pause, learn how to make films, learn how to be a student again, and reshape how I want my career to look moving forward. This program is absolutely a "what you make from it" kind of program. You can glide through with little effort, or you can work hard on as many projects as possible and build a great film foundation for yourself. I don't like giving the program a star rating, so I'm forgoing that for a longer review here.

The program has been around for a long time and, at the height of the streaming boom, there were UNO undergraduate and graduate alumni working on every major film project in New Orleans and beyond. UNO has a good reputation of producing students that are ready to work on sets that understand protocols, technology, gear, you name it. It's a small school, but if you've met someone on set that went to UNO, I can almost guarantee that it was probably a positive working experience.

Another positive thing that was hard to articulate in a list is that New Orleans is a major film hub and there are (usually) a lot of film productions happening in town. This is great and they usually take (and want!) student interns. When I was in school, this was the case because it was in the middle of the production boom. Nowadays, production has slowed (as it has everywhere), so it's hard for me to say how many interns they are taking on the few productions that are happening now.

All in all, I enjoyed my time in the program. But I'm also happy to answer more specific questions in a DM.

I had an incredible time in the Creative Writing MFA program at AULA. Each of the mentors are working writers or retired professionals, and are very generous and patient as they navigate their own projects. They are able to bring their expertise and guidance to our writing and career plans. The entire program strives to be encouraging and celebratory of each other's work. My cohort and classmates have made life-long bonds and creative career collaborators.

Boise State University's film program is a very new program which only began in 2018. Since then they've grown exponentially and gotten much more funding which has allowed them to acquire new gear, studio space, and professors. You study a wide variety of subjects, from film theory, genres, to hands-on production, directing, writing, sound, and Post-Production. You have to take a certain amount of different classes, so you have to pick and choose what you are most interested in, although there is not a lot of depth if you want to really focus in on one concentration. For instance, there is only one cinematography class, without an advanced class. There are more writing classes than anything else, with Screenwriting 1 and 2, writing for TV class, and playwriting. The professors all care about everyone individually and are always willing to help anyone with their productions, scripts, or ideas. The class sizes can be big, especially in the early years when you have to take the film theory classes, but dwindle down once you get into more specific classes like Directing, which usually has between 15-18 students. Overall, if you live in Idaho or a surrounding state, it is a good program to check out and you will definitely come out of it with film knowledge and production experience.

Overall, my time at LMU was a genuinely good experience. One of the biggest draws of the program is the atmosphere. Unlike the hyper-competitive environment you might find at a place like USC, LMU fosters a friendly, highly collaborative culture. The small class sizes make it easy to build a tight-knit network; I’m still in close contact with some of my peers, and we actively collaborate on producing short films to this day.

I specialized in editing. There were only five editors in my cohort of forty-something people, and I found that I vibed the best with the editing professors compared to the other disciplines. The editing faculty is genuinely invested in our success and teaches practical, industry-standard workflows that directly translate to the real world. I felt thoroughly prepared for post-grad work, and one of my professors actually referred me for my first job. Today, I'm working as an Assistant Editor and Additional Editor on documentary projects, and I credit a lot of that foundation to LMU.

The experience for directors, however, is a different story. Over half of my cohort were directors, and navigating that track really comes down to the luck of the draw regarding who you get assigned to as a professor. While some are incredibly nice, supportive, and knowledgeable, others display blatant favoritism and aren't actively making their own films anymore, leaving them out of touch with the current industry. Because of this inconsistency, I found that my director peers were generally not as well-prepared for entering the industry and did not receive the same level of career support that we experienced in post-production. Additionally, the curriculum really pushed directors to write their own scripts; while they started encouraging more collaboration with screenwriters later on, I think this is an area where the program still has a lot of room for improvement.

If you want to focus on post-production and build a collaborative network, LMU is a fantastic choice. If you are applying as a director, be prepared for a larger track where the quality of mentorship, curriculum structure, and industry preparation varies wildly.

Antioch is a program that can work for anyone willing to put in the dedication. Being low-residency, this program allows students to build communities while also networking within their chosen career path. Instructors are available for one-on-one projects, feedback, and career advice as they're all currently working in the film/television/stage world. The residency occurs twice a year for ten days, and this is where students are given the opportunity to attend insightful seminars, meet writers they look up to, and engage in social events organized by the incredible staff. If you're looking for a community of working writers, Antioch is the place to go!

I loved this program with my entire being and would do it again without hesitation.

The faculty are award-winning filmmakers who have led the industry for decades, and they all know each other. That network is real and it works. I was pulled onto a show immediately after graduation and have been working ever since. Given the current state of the industry, that is not something I take lightly, and I owe it entirely to them. They will help with union applications, bend over backwards to find you work, and become genuine friends in the process.

The alumni network is just as strong. Graduates are close with one another and most are actively working on major projects across film, television, and theatre, from Marvel and DC to HBO productions to Broadway. You are not just joining a program, you are joining a community that looks out for each other long after graduation.

None of that comes free. This program will not hold your hand. It demands serious soul searching and personal growth alongside the technical work. They treat you with sincere respect and hold you to a professional standard because they expect you to be a working professional when you leave. If they have to carry you through the degree, do not expect that grace to follow you after graduation.

They do have favorites. Those favorites are always the students who show up with more work than expected, put in the extra time, and push themselves without being asked. Be that student.

Pros:

• Faculty are working legends with deep industry connections
• Alumni are close knit and working on major projects across film, TV, and Broadway
• Graduates find work fast, a genuine rarity right now
• Real post-graduation support including union applications and job placement
• The department head will go out of her way to find the biggest working names and get them in front of students. If you want to learn from someone or you have a program you want to know, she will get it for you.

Cons:

• Extremely demanding, not for the unprepared or faint of heart
• No hand-holding, you will sink or swim on your own effort
• Three years, expensive

The film program at the University of Utah left a lot to be desired. For a program that could leverage Utah's growing film industry and stunning locations, it felt surprisingly stagnant. The faculty skews young, which isn't inherently a problem, but when that youth comes paired with limited experience on large-scale productions, it shows in the depth of instruction. Students looking to understand how professional sets actually operate may find themselves piecing that knowledge together on their own.

One moment that stuck with me, for all the wrong reasons: a faculty member assigned Birth of a Nation (the 1915 original) without the kind of critical framework that inflammatory material demands. It was a jarring choice that raised more questions about the department's judgment than it answered about film history.

As a design student, I found myself gravitating toward the theatre department, which offered far more meaningful opportunities for growth and collaboration. The film department simply didn't serve that creative track well.

There is one genuine silver lining: designers are rare in the program. If you want hands-on experience on student films and lots of it, you'll have no shortage of projects to work on. For a certain kind of self-directed student, that access could be genuinely valuable.

But as a well-rounded program? There's meaningful room to grow.

The access to free professional equipment with little resistance is awesome. A lot of film schools do not allow easy access in this way, and the SDSU inventory is on par with the other film schools in socal, for an extremely reasonable price. Additionally, you actually get to make a short film every semester here (one semester is a documentary if you play your cards right and don't double up your schedule), whereas the other public film schools DO NOT do that.

Ultimately, the school is what you make it. You will learn from your peers and your own mistakes 10000% more than from the professors. There are a handful of amazing new professors with more experience, but when I was there it was 70% old men with no recent film industry experience, whose advice I found to be useless and outdated now that I myself work in the film industry. I truly believe this is now changing over time (and may have already), and my hint would be if you see a woman's name listed as professor: TAKE THAT CLASS.

Their career assistance has been unfortunately lackluster for me thus far, I have gotten work and jobs from putting the work in by myself (despite my persistent efforts in asking them for help), but again they are working to change this and believe it will be a lot better moving forward. Their alumni network is vast, they just need to learn how to use it, and to really do the work in having more alumni outreach to the recent successful alums, not only the older ones from a billion years ago, because I've found the recent alums from the last 5-6 years to be far more engaging and helpful.

Columbia is a great place to develop taste. It is not a good place to learn how to make. They explicitly state that their goal is to teach you what great filmmaking is, not teach you how to create it (as an undergrad). The MFA program is fine but the network is very, very poor. Barnard, however, was incredibly supportive in their filmmaking courses. Columbia students who are frustrated may look to Barnard classes for better equipment and training.

If you want to be a pro, there is no better entryway into the industry. If you want to be an artist, maybe not the best school for that. USC is not so flexible with pushing creative boundaries. It polishes students into "pro-ready" talents with a network to immediately dive into. It is definitely competitive and can be cutthroat, like Hollywood. No school is perfect, and most will not make the leap, but you have no better chance to "make it" than to go to USC.

I am eternally grateful to everything USC has done for me, especially as an international student; it has closed learning gaps that would have taken forever to fill. The faculty is extraordinary, and the support from people in the school is unlike anything I have seen in other schools—an extraordinary experience and honoured ot be a part of the best film school in the world.