"Film as
dream, film as music. No art passes our conscience in the way film
does, and goes directly to our feelings, deep down into the dark
rooms of our souls."
- Ingrid Bergman
Careers and Courses in Film Studies
Film Studies is a program or concentration offered within the Arts Departments of many academic institutions. The program will lead you to gaining a BA in Film Studies degree within 3 or 4 years. You will learn to think theoretically and analytically about the broad context of humanistic studies, applying film concepts to the world at large and life in general. As such, film studies can prepare you for a great variety of great careers! Interest in movies as a hobby to watch or to actually make films is often the motive to take such courses. Film Studies is a fascinating discipline and can lead you to many opportunities where you will enjoy your courses and the concepts you learn.
Careers Connected Directly to Film
Not surprisingly, a large range of careers that a Film Studies
degree can lead you to involve films. You can become an
actor/actress, get into various roles and make
them come to life through your personal acting talents. You can be
a writer, thinking about the stories behind films.
You can be a director, transferring your visions
into movies through leading and directing actors and photographers.
Or you can become an editor, putting the final
touches on a movie before it's released.
"With a good
script, a good director can produce a masterpiece. With the same
script, a mediocre director can produce a passable film. But with a
bad script even a good director can't possibly make a good film.
For truly cinematic expression, the camera and the microphone must
be able to cross both fire and water. The script must be something
that has the power to do this"
- Akira Kurosawa
And of course, you can be anything and everything in between:
- camera operator
- set designer
- casting assistant
- colorizing technician
- animator
- prop maker
- sound specialist
- costume designer
- cinematographer,
There are hundreds of people
behind the huge blockbuster movies, as well as thousands of others
behind smaller low-budget and independent films. It's amazing to
think of all the people involved in even a small production.
Film making takes a lot of teamwork and dedication, the pay off in
the long run is very meaningful. Seeing your creation and hard work
on screen is something quite worth it!
Why Film Studies?
Taking Film Studies will
teach you what makes films great. You'll understand how filmmakers
transfer their ideas, visions and dreams into an entertaining,
educational or even inspirational piece of cinema. And you'll
easily be able to apply that knowledge in movie industries all
around the globe. I know from my own personal experience that I can
no longer just sit and let the movie pass me by!
Being in Film Studies encourages you to constantly
question, analyze and try to understand the filmmaker's
perspective. Many a time, filmmakers will include things
such as symbolism, or dialogue that really make the movie all the
more significant for the audience. The more you'll be able to take
from films, the more you'll enjoy them and grow to understand how
they're made and how to truly appreciate them.
Careers in other movie-related businesses
Think Film Studies can only
lead you to making movies? Well, think again. You
can start a career as a cinema manager, working
for the folks who project the films. You can join a film
distribution business, being responsible for getting the films out
for the public to see. How about becoming a worker in a
film festival? From the organizing committee to
the people who execute the events, film festivals offer many jobs
to people interesting in film.
You can start a journalism career by being a film critic- watching
movies as part of a dream job! Or become a librarian specializing
in film. Of course, you can join the academia and become a Film
Studies Professor, with your favourite teachers as your mentors.
And if being a professor sounds too hard, become a drama or English
teacher. Or else join the government's censorship committee and
decide on which films are appropriate to which age groups.
The possibilities are endless!
Of course, studying films doesn't necessarily restrict you to film
jobs. That's a common misconception, but holding an arts degree can
lead you to a larger variety of careers than just films.
You can join the business world- film students are in
demand especially in marketing areas, where your
creativity and ability to understand audiences are critical. Making
commercials, other forms of advertisements, even market research-
these are all interesting possibilities. You can expand upon your
knowledge of history and culture learned from film studies and go
into areas like history, geography, and many other social sciences
in your Graduate Studies, which will exponentially raise the
variety of careers you can find- from anthropology to therapy, you
could do practically anything.
Lights!
Camera! Action!
