Just came by this thread so I'll add my two cents...
I live in San Francisco and by hobby work camera with dreams of working on my own shorts and features one day. My education involves just a couple classes and hands-on training. Here are some thoughts related to your questions:
> I know SF isn't LA, but there used to be a real thriving indy community here in the Bay Area, and I was wondering if it was
> still around or not.
Yes and no. Yes there are many young writers/directors and others out here. But over the last decade there's been a slow but marked bleed of talent from the area. I've seen promising young filmmakers direct a couple shorts, only to decide to do one of two things: move to LA or move to NYC. SF is just too expensive now and there aren't enough on-the-side job opportunities to make it worthwhile for young artists to stay in the area.
You will find many older individuals who've taken up video as a hobby though (and young people just starting out.) Plus there's lots of corporate work. Here are a few resources:
http://movies.groups.yahoo.com/group/low_no_budget/
http://www.scarycow.com
Best of luck!
