Best Film Schools

One of the top film schools in the world is the American Film Institute located in Los Angeles, California. The AFI was created in 1967 as a result of President Lyndon’s National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act. The non-profit organization is now headed by Jean Picker Firstenberg, who took over the position from George Stevens Jr. in 1980. Film Fest, the AFI’s annual film festival was the first to hold FIAPF accreditation in the United States. The AFI offers a two-year Master of Fine Arts program in six disciplines and a one-year Master of Arts degree in Digital Media Studies. The California Institute of the Arts is another top film school. Located in Valencia California, Cal Arts was founded by Walt Disney in 1961. Animation is a large part of the focus of Cal Arts, but it also includes a faculty consisting of practicing visual and performing artists and offers many media internships. Alumni include Tim Burton and Michael Patterson. Columbia University of the School of the Arts is located in New York, New York and offers undergraduates the opportunity to focus on film theory and criticism, while focusing graduate programs on production. Another top film school is the NYU Tisch Film and TV. The school was founded in 1965 and is located in New York, New York. Recognized internationally as the best program most likely to turn out successful professionals in film, television and radio, NYU Tisch requires students to participate in all crew aspects of film while producing their works.

The odd ends: Lesser known but well regarded filmmaking schools