2. It Has Negative Connotations
Going to film school seems like a dream come true - the whole world is your oyster; all of the resources, equipment and collaborators at your disposal and encouraging your creativity and growth as a filmmaker. As I explained in a previous entry, film school truly is a bubble of creativity - a bubble that is quickly and unceremoniously burst the first time you step on an actual film set and are treated like the snobby, rich, entitled kid who paid their way to get this opportunity instead of getting down and dirty and busting their ass for it. This is another reality check I was recently hit with on some professional film sets I was fortunate enough to have a chance to work on over the past year: many working industry professionals look down on film students. The fact of the matter is, many industry professionals did not get their start in film school, but entered the industry through other routes, be it friends, family members, or local union initiatives. It's odd to say, but the film industry might be one of the few careers where you are actually looked down on if you have a college degree. Of course, this is a generalization, and there are plenty of industry professionals who themselves went to film school and understand where you are coming from. And to be honest, we are partially responsible for this reputation - I can't tell you how many stories I have heard of film students joining professional film shoots as PA's or departmental interns and doing nothing but talking about how "if they were directing the film, they would have done so many things differently..." Believe me, that would aggravate anyone, much less an industry professional who actually knows what he or she are doing and has the years of experience to back it up.