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  • Hey all, just changed over the backend after 15 years I figured time to give it a bit of an update, its probably gonna be a bit weird for most of you and i am sure there is a few bugs to work out but it should kinda work the same as before... hopefully :)

Ahh...

K

keifer

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I'm just starting at MSU (Montana) and they just told me that they don't have a RED and have no plans to get one or a Scarlet in the next 4 years...sad day. :angry01:
 
I went to MSU at Bozeman for 1.5 years before I dropped out (or was thrown out, depending on who you ask).

Beautiful town and campus - but the faculty was a a bit "old fashioned".
 
keifer said:
I'm just starting at MSU (Montana) and they just told me that they don't have a RED and have no plans to get one or a Scarlet in the next 4 years...sad day. :angry01:
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this is where you need to show your born leader skills. get a collection
going for a scarlett amongst your fellow students!!! cmon show the chutzpah!!
 
Take $30,000 you were going to spend on school and buy a Red and a Scarlet. Shoot everyday for several hours a day. Volunteer the camera on professional shoots, learn the ropes. Not a bad education.

I'm kidding of course. You should go to school and get an education.
 
I go to a school that also had no plans to get a red camera. I did a few presentations, talked alot, made sure i did well in my courses and knew my stuff. Told the program head i was getting one. now they are trying to get one.
 
BTW you don't have to go to film school to work in the industry. There are plenty of working professionals that never went to film school and they're doing just fine. But film school is a good way to build contacts and to see if that's really want you want to do.
 
I own a Red camera and I love it. That doesn't mean that just because a film school doesn't have one that it is not worth going to. There's a bit of red meglomania around here.
 
Learn the basics of film, by the end of your school there should be a couple of workshops specifically on the red you could take and learn from.
Then you'll be an expert, so dont worry and keep your head up.
 
The RED camera system isn't quite ready for the educational system to adopt. In about a year, things will be more in the favor of RED, but not now. There are some institutions that I would certainly say could (and gladly would) use a RED camera and do very well with it but most are probably not ready for one at this point since the camera system is starting to get it's legs, the post-production workflow is not at the point where it's friendly on their resources and budgets, and buying a RED is a significant investment of nearly 60K when all is said and done.
 
keifer said:
I'm just starting at MSU (Montana) and they just told me that they don't have a RED and have no plans to get one or a Scarlet in the next 4 years...sad day. :angry01:
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I'm just finishing my never ending MFA at MSU, mixed feelings about the place.

But, I have a RED.
And I'll see If I can't persuade them to get one of their own. I doubt it though, they just spent most of their money building the new black box theater.

I'll be up in Bozeman mid September with my RED if you want find out a bit more about it. Also, there are a number of other guys who go/went to MSU who own them in Bozeman.


And guys, can we not turn this thread into a "film school" vs. "do it your self" thread. They get so tedious and the real answer to the debate is always: "do whatever works best for you".
 
Film school sucks. Do it yourself.

haha, just kidding. I think it's true that educational institutes will usually want to wait a bit longer to adopt something, at least in my experience that's how it works. But a real film school is going to want to adopt the RED not too far from now, because once it becomes AN industry standard camera (not THE industry standard, different tools for different applications and budgets, of course), then it's pretty useful to teach students how to shoot with it, what its features are, what the post workflow is like, etc...
 
We've got one for 4 months now:

Braunschweig University of Arts, Germany

I'm teaching "Digital Cinematography"
 
Ed Blythe said:
Quick! Change to pre-Med!
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My friend is in pre-med, boy, he works SO hard! At least he'll be guaranteed great pay when he gets out, I mean I suppose that makes it all worth it in the end, plus if it's what you enjoy doing. I wouldn't enjoy that. But he's very bright, top of his class, trying to be a surgeon I think, so he'll have no problem doing well when he gets out. Unlike us film people who have no idea what will happen next week let alone in general. ;)
 
I really envy you film school grads. Unfortunately, I was "forced" into doing things a bit differently: At the tender age of 51, with a Ph.D. and after spending over 20 years as a college professor (finance/economics), I just finished my very first film (and it was a feature, at that).

I certainly learned an awful lot on that adventure, but it clearly is not the same thing as formal training. There are things that you formally-trained folks know that I'll never learn "on the job." On the other hand, I wasn't about to quit a tenured faculty position paying $200,000 a year, either. I may be nuts, but I'm not THAT nuts! It's like I always teach my finance classes at the university: It's all about the trade-offs. Some trade-offs make sense. Some don't. Buying two REDs and making an indie feature film made sense. Going to film school at 51 and giving up my day job clearly didn't.

My strong recommendation is always for people to get formal training when they can. Unfortunately, that's something I'll never have, but, fortunately, I'm still able to try to make my dreams come true.

Stephen
 
Stephen Pruitt said:
I really envy you film school grads. Unfortunately, I was "forced" into doing things a bit differently: At the tender age of 51, with a Ph.D. and after spending over 20 years as a college professor (finance/economics), I just finished my very first film (and it was a feature, at that).

I certainly learned an awful lot on that adventure, but it clearly is not the same thing as formal training. There are things that you formally-trained folks know that I'll never learn "on the job." On the other hand, I wasn't about to quit a tenured faculty position paying $200,000 a year, either. I may be nuts, but I'm not THAT nuts! It's like I always teach my finance classes at the university: It's all about the trade-offs. Some trade-offs make sense. Some don't. Buying two REDs and making an indie feature film made sense. Going to film school at 51 and giving up my day job clearly didn't.

My strong recommendation is always for people to get formal training when they can. Unfortunately, that's something I'll never have, but, fortunately, I'm still able to try to make my dreams come true.

Stephen
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Good for you for doing it, Stephen!

To Keifer,

Being on the end where I'm only about 4 years out of film school, I have a few thoughts, but you really should do what is best for you.

It's the experience that is key, the knowledge, NOT the means. Get the knowledge however you can. If you can in school and have a degree, awesome. If you can on sets, awesome.

Do both. At the same time. People will envy you, they will do the same, and you'll be inhaling the knowledge while not only learning, but teaching, too. Being on (a good) set is as much of a formal education (if arguably not more) as a good film program.

It's painful, your muscles will ache, you will want to cut your feet off after the 16 hour days where you only sit down for lunch, but it will be worth it!

I bought a DVX100 when I was in school about a year after it had been out, and well before our dept. had gotten one. I know the RED is an investment, but if you're just going into school then definitely save for a Scarlet, and blow them away. I spent a summer earning the money for the DVX instead of getting a car. Didn't regret it then, got a car later, trying to get a RED.

Good luck with your path!



Edit: P.s. If you get in and ALL they are teaching is theory, with no application, GET OUT! :)
 
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