Jeff Bierman

Not sure if this thread is still alive or not, but I found it and feel like I should put in my fair share. I'm 22 years old, I went to undergrad for film right out of high school in Philadelphia, and then I got accepted to the AFI right out of undergrad, where I have just started my first year. I'm about 5 weeks in. For me it has been a great experience. I've learned a ton about the craft, but I've learned it all from being on set. The problem with learning it all on set at film school is that most people don't know their hand from a c-stand. I was lucky enough to get a really great deal on undergrad, which allowed me to be able to withstand the loans for AFI, and I love AFI, but in general I don't think film school is the way to do it. I think if you are really passionate, and know that you want to work on films you need to set some goals for yourself and stick to them, then go out in the industry and get work doing anything you can. If you want to shoot, take the money from film school and buy a camera, and just shoot, shoot, shoot. Then advertise on craigslist and let everyone know that you have a camera and you want to shoot some projects. You won't be making money shooting these, but you'll be gaining experience and not going into debt. The other thing to do is to try and crew on as many films as you can. There are always listings on craigslist for low budget stuff. Hop on the roject and and help out any way you can, and watch what they do, and work as hard as you can. If you bust your ass, people will notice and eventually you'll be getting paid, and eventually you will let them know that you have a camera and what to begin shooting films, and eventually you will begin doing that. Finally you need to read the trade journals, subscribe to American Cinematographer, actually read, look around online for reviews on cinematography books, you'll find a solid list full of juicy information, which may at first seem really dense, but read it, and eventually you'll know the language of a cinematographer, which in the end will help you as a person, and a craftsmen. Above all just be persistent and actually care. And don't forget to live either, because we're here to make movies about life, don't get caught up in the technical side so much that you don't live, you'll forget what making movies is really all about. Ok, so that was a bit more of a rant than I intended, but hopefully worthwhile if anyone reads it. Good luck.