Welcome to our community

Be a part of something great, join today!

Log in
  • 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 :)

Anyone had experiences with NYFA?

P

Patrick Scheller

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 7, 2009
Messages
95
Reaction score
0
Points
0
Location
Zurich, Switzerland
I'd like to add my own question about finding a good film school here if I may.
I am planing to attend the winter course (8 weeks) at the http://www.nyfa.com/ . Has anyone any experience with this school or even with this course in particular? Is it worth the travel (from Europe)?

Please share your knowledge and experience with me.
:hat:
 
Don't they have programs all over the world? I'm not sure, but it might be as far of a trek as you think. I'm pretty sure there's one in England...closer than New York or LA I assume.

Aside from that, I don't know anyone who's gone to any of their programs...only that they have enough money to put advertisements around every corner in Los Angeles.
 
NYFA, is a scam in New York & L.A. It's a bigger scam in London. It's even a bigger scam in Abu Dhabi.
 
I went for Final Cut Pro training for a 1 month (5 8 hour days per week) program and it was intensive and good. It was on the grounds of Universal Film Studio so they had some access for the film students there.

Anyway, I was just there for 1 month and found the program good for me. This was back about 4 years or ago.
 
Thanks guys but I need experiences, not personal and unexplained inclinations or opinions about the distance from here to there
:sarcasm:

..but thanks anyway. Your personal :thumb_postwhore:
 
sbcooler said:
I went for Final Cut Pro training for a 1 month (5 8 hour days per week) program and it was intensive and good. It was on the grounds of Universal Film Studio so they had some access for the film students there.
Anyway, I was just there for 1 month and found the program good for me. This was back about 4 years or ago.
Click to expand...
Ah finally some 1st hand infos. Thanks sbcooler (that is a nice nick). :cheers2:
Have u heard anything about the New York school?
 
I went on a tour of the LA campus and it did seem pretty cool to walk around the backlot and see students shooting on 16mm, 35mm, and even the RED. But I didn't get a very good vibe about all the teachers and students. It looked like what they were shooting was worthless and it looked like the students were there because their rich parents didn't know what else to do with them so they sent them to film school. I think the biggest benefit of film school is the people you meet and the contacts you make, and it seems pretty expensive just to meet people. But to each his own.
 
Neil Larson said:
I went on a tour of the LA campus and it did seem pretty cool to walk around the backlot and see students shooting on 16mm, 35mm, and even the RED. But I didn't get a very good vibe about all the teachers and students. It looked like what they were shooting was worthless and it looked like the students were there because their rich parents didn't know what else to do with them so they sent them to film school. I think the biggest benefit of film school is the people you meet and the contacts you make, and it seems pretty expensive just to meet people. But to each his own.
Click to expand...
:smilielol5:okay that's a way to see it. Unfortunately I'll have to pay myself. And I have my own reasons to go for a film course and to the USA even though I hate being filed and scanned by the faking Homeland Security Nazis once I buy my ticket - but that's another story.
You guys have no idea what it's like to live in a movie-free country like Switzerland. We have no sense for good entertainment and hence no film schools or rental shops nearby. If you want to make movies here you usually apply for some state funds (no kidding) or try to push the most out of ur cheap material and live in the underground.
We have a regular short-film festival in my town, big thing here LOL. I went 1 evening a few years ago and man you wouldn't believe the horros I have seen there. I felt so ashamed to be swiss. So it is kinda vital for me to go to where the flavour is.
:emote_head_explode:
 
My stepson was in the New York program for a year, then went to SUNY. He learned a lot of equipment basics, as they do a good bit of hands on production, mostly 16mm or DV/HDV finishing on DVD for student projects. Can be good for developing contacts in the NY production community. Pretty expensive as you have to supply your own materials, tape,film processing, etc. for your productions. Living in NY is not cheap either. Its probably better for technical and hardware oriented training than most academic college film programs.
 
Patrick, as being from Switzerland myself, you don't have to be ashamed. There are a lot of good movies made here, but frankly, you have to search for them.

I know somebody who was at NYFA in NYC who lives here in Switzerland. Actually I know two. If you're interested, give me your e-mail or other contact data by PM and I'll forward it to them.

I once heard somebody say about NYFA: Use the money to buy yourself a camera and start shooting.

But I think that even the possibility to shoot in NYC might be such an experience that is worth the money, no matter how good/bad the school is.

(long time lurker, first post :-))
 
I just worked as the gaffer on a short film production in Estonia which was directed by one of the students there(as many have already said - rich parents who paid for the whole production, including paychecks, si2k rental, light equipment and alll that) and I have to say that while he was a good guy I wasn't terribly impressed. He had attended the school for 1 year and as far as I understood NYFA is supposed to give you a very "hands on" training but he wasn't familiar with a lot of the equipment nor was he the best director(or the worst) i've seen. So you could definitely go there if you have a lot of $$$ to put in there. I'd personally find a more reputable film school in somewhere Europe.

Juhan Malmstein, soon starting my 3'rd year of BA in AudioVisual Media in the Baltic Film and Media School.
 
I spoke with the NY people at the time and they seemed ok over the phone but to be honest I did not vet the school that much. I wanted to learn Final Cut Pro and that was it...the rest I didn't care about.

They have a cool full color 100 page magazine that looks really cool, but the real question is how does it compare to say the LA film School or UCLA's program or other programs and I don't know the answer to that.

One last thing...I've seen the best independent short films I've seen at film festivals comes from AFI (American Film Institute). I have no idea of the training. I just know I saw 4 or 5 things from their film students at festivals and they were the most incredible shorts I've ever seen.

Good luck and ask a lot of questions and maybe visit the places you are considering. It cost a lot of money and is worth a visit before you lay out the big bucks and the immense amount of time it will take.
 
NYFA 12 Week

NYFA 12 Week

I took a 12 week night class there last year and was surprised by what I found. Considering the high profile slick ad campaign they've had for years (the billboards are everywhere) I had expected a high gloss facility with borderline staff. I found the opposite. The building was pretty funky (bad HVAC and borderline Macs in particular) but the teachers were terrific. They were organized, approachable and had an obvious love for films and filmmaking. The most surprising thing though were the students. Out of around twenty in my class there were at most five who actually finished their final film. Why in the world would you pay that money and not follow through? Why ask why?

My advice is to ask a lot of dumb questions, do the work and drain the brains of some smart teachers and you'll be glad you gave it a shot. Pun intended.
 
Thanks a bunch Billy, that sounds encouraging. Could you answer that last question which you brought up yourself please? ;) And what course did u attend? And did u go to NYFA in New York or LA?
 
I took their 1 week course back in Summer of 2005 in La Femis, Paris, France.
They have a lot of sattlite campus and even cruise programs off greece.

I have to agree there are a lot of rich parents sending their high school students there who don't give a crap about film.. But I went their on my own funds, could only afford the 1 week program, which is really too short to learn anything. But having zero experience in film, it did teach me alot, covering a very, very brief overview of the process of writing, directing, and camera work for making your first short film.

Since I knew zero at the time, there was a lot to learn and I'm glad I went. The instructors were very nice and knowledgeble there, but you'll definitely get a lot more out of it if you are active and take change and ask questions. They seemed kinda of passive in offering guidance. But again, this was the super short 1 week crash course, so that may have a factor in how they approach teaching. Also, this was the Paris instructors, so you may have a difference experience in the States.

I would definitely recommend it if you have little-to-zero experience with filmmaking. It's not worth it if you already made a few shorts and have a general knowledge of the whole process. But stick with their Europe sites, there got plenty. I only few out to Paris from the States because I always wanted to go to Paris.
 
I RSVP'd for an open house at the Studio City campus three months in advance. I received an email confirming my reservation later that day. The day before the open house, I boarded an airplane from Tulsa, Oklahoma and landed at LAX a few hours later. I showed up at the school the next day 15 minutes early and was greeted by two employees of the school (read: former students). I was informed that the open house had been canceled and I would not be able to tour the campus or the Universal lot. The guy there asked me if I had driven there from nearby, and after I told him that I had, in fact, flown in from Oklahoma for this open house, he apologized profusely and tried to get me a tour of the Universal lot. The man at the guard-shack told us that because the open house was canceled, I would not be allowed inside.

I really wanted to attend NYFA, but I was sourly disappointed by my experience. They have great advertising, but poor follow-through.
 
patrick,

i have been to nyfa (new york) in 1997 - feel free to pm or email with questions.

kind regards from munich,
martin
 
I am a red owner and graduate of the one year program in LA. Every school has its pros and cons. My only regret from NYFA is the price and the fact that we learned nothing about sound or screenwriting. The one year directing program teaches just that, directing and cinematography. After working on many professional film sets since school I would say it was an asset. My best advice though would be to take the three month program (or two months if that's what it is). We learned most of the hard core hands on stuff early on and the rest of the time produced our own stuff. I would take the shorter film program and then take the two or three month screenwriting intensive. After graduating school I have come to learn that knowing how to write will help you ten thousand times more than any other skill and NYFA's directing program is weak in that department. If you want to be a cinematographer, it is a good program, but I would recommend going out and volunteering on real sets - you'll learn faster.

If you have any other questions shoot me an email.
redshorts@rocketmail.com
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top