How to Get in and Succeed in the Film Industry
Many of todays highschool media programs are providing students with digital cameras and creative software for editing video, but to make your living in film you need much more knowledge of the film and video production process.
The film industry today demands workers who have received practical training not only on professional film and video equipment but also training in how a production goes together and how all 23 jobs behind the camera relate to one another. The film industry is a time and money business like no other. There is little time to train you on the job. You must know your craft and be responsible to succeed in film.
- THEATRE
- Good grounding for actors but has very limited job potential for actors or technicians.
- TELEVISION
- Good for learning TV Journalism, simple camera work, and interview techinques, but a small market for jobs.
- FILM -
This is where the jobs are. Last years British Columbia generated over 1.1 billion dollars in revenue from the motion picture production industry.
I deal with such topics as: Union, Guilds, non union work, pay scales, skills need to work in theatre, televison and film, as well as jobs above and below the line along with non theatrical film work.
There are no eight hour days in the film world. Your average day is twelve hours and it is not uncommon to work a longer day.
Workers in our industry often refer to their jobs as a "lifestyle" not a job. Though the hours are long and the work often challenging, it is a creative business that pays its skilled workers well.
Lets look at a few facts:
On the west coast alone more than 35,000 individuals make their living from the film industry. The majority of this work is servicing American Films that are being shot in Canada. More than 90% of the crew working on these films are Canadian. A feature theatrical film can employ more than 100 crew members.
The 1,000 channel universe is here, and the demand for product for television broadcasting will be ever increasing. Todays graduates are the filmmakers and actors that will supply this need.
My seminar on How to get in and Succeed in the Film Industry, will give your students the hard facts and practical information they need to know to succeed in film. I familiarize them with the various film schools and training facilities available and the opportunities that await them as they become employable in the industry.
Whether you want to become a director (and most students do) or a camera operator, or a set decorator, your work in the film business is not a job, it is a lifestyle. It can be a lifestyle that is very rewarding both creatively and financially, but it comes through hard work.
Canada’s film industry is a big business run by skilled professionals. On the west coast alone there are some 50,000 people that work in film. A majority of this work is servicing the American Film Production Industry. Greater than 90% of the technicians working on these films are Canadian.
There are over 23 different key departments on a film crew and the overall crew on a big film will number more than a hundred. As part of my seminars I acquaint students with the theatrical and non-theatrical (educational, commercial and corporate video) parts of our business, as well as the opportunities available in the acting profession.
I read the above passage from the website speakfilm.com. Its a guy called Barry Casson has written it because he does seminars on 'How to get in and succeed in the Film industry', the passage is just brief explanation about the film industry and different industries like Theatre and Television. Iv found it very interesting to read and it has given me a better insight in to what to expect and how to act if I want to pursue my ambition to get more involved in the film industry! The statistics he shows are mind blowing, I never knew that over 35,000 people make their living in the film industry, I thought it was a lot less than that! Kind of scary but interesting.
By the sound of it I really need to get my act together sooner rather than later if I want to get in to this kind of industry!
CHALLENGE ACCEPTED!!!
