Just over a week ago, three Georgetown graduates made their mark on the Sundance Film Festival. Hoyas contributed to two entries, with one of their films—Another Earth—earning two prizes and sending shockwaves through the indie film world. While Georgetown can take pride in these ambitious filmmakers’ success, their graduation from a school that lacks a film program has made their presence in the industry even more notable, proving yet again that when it comes to getting ahead in the movie business, a degree from New York University’s Tisch School of Arts is often not as important as raw talent.
Many aspiring filmmakers face the daunting decision of majoring in film and media studies versus something more practical—not to mention that walking down Hollywood Boulevard amid herds of failed filmmakers would make any parent balk at paying for an education in film. But what happened this year at Sundance is a prime example of why the road to film industry success does not end when a student turns down a prestigious film school for a more traditional education.
While there are countless film school graduates among the successful filmmakers of the past and present, a staggering number of directors and writers did not study film formally—and many times did not graduate from college or even high school. Quentin Tarantino, one of the most prolific directors of this generation, dropped out of high school at 16 and got his education in film while working at a video rental store. Paul Thomas Anderson dropped out of NYU after two days, opting for experience in the field over theoretical film courses. Hell, three of this year’s five Academy Award-nominated directors never graduated from film school.
While advocates of film programs may argue that these people are like Mark Zuckerberg or Bill Gates, unique Harvard-drop-out types who had “it” in them since birth, there are too many exceptions for these to be isolated events. Looking at just a few of the notable directors and writers on this massive list, it’s easy to wonder if graduates of film programs have become the exception in Hollywood.
Education in the arts is in itself a disputed subject, with some arguing that a craft requiring creativity and imagination cannot be taught. In defense of film school, there is a certain level of technical competence required in the filmmaking process. But while film school may accelerate this learning process, the learning curve is not steep enough to deter the motivated amateurs who start off with $400 camcorders and manage to work their way up to professional production equipment. The digital age, after all, has allowed amateurs to film low-budget productions just like these Georgetown grads. Access to studio-quality equipment is no longer required to make studio-quality movies. Movies like Brick and Monsters have championed this point, bringing stunning images to the screen on budgets equivalent to the salary of an extra in G.I. Joe.
If finding a job in the industry comes down to innate talent and creativity, film school is still a great place to network. Not only do film students take classes with potential creative partners and children of people in the industry, there are already many NYU and USC grads in the industry who will look favorably on hiring graduates of their alma maters. If an outsider like Tarantino wants to get into the movie business, it requires far more effort, with a far higher chance of failure than that of someone with an M.F.A. But while Hollywood is still all about who you know, the three Georgetown students at Sundance have demonstrated that a career in the business is open to anyone with a little bit of talent and a willingness to risk failure. And that’s something that doesn’t come with a quarter-million-dollar Tisch diploma.
Show John your studio-quality equipment at jsapunor@georgetownvoice.com
