Full Sail

As of right now I'm pretty set on going to Full Sail in the fall. I was just curious as to whether or not anyone has any feeback or knowledge of anything relating to the school that they can give me.

I had them send me their course catalog, read through all of the film diploma and instantly knew that it was what I wanted to do.

Anyone been? Know someone who has been? Has taken the tour? Has read anything about it? Likes the word Sail?

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I like the word Sail

but I'm not quite sure what you are asking??? please explain in more detail Mr. Original Gangster

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I don't know anything about the school, congrats for getting in

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I'm just curious if anyone has heard anything about it. Like if it is as good as they make it up to be, or if it is really just a buncha smoke and mirrors.

I haven't applied yet, but as long as you can afford to pay and actually have some sort of a desire to go there, you can pretty much get in. It isn't like other 4 year colleges.

I was actually considering them for a long time. Be very aware though, if you go into it thinking it will be easy, don't go. One of my teachers in High School used to teach in the film department at the Orlando school and he said he had never seen so much corruption in one place, although I can't really say how much I believe him because he is a sad, paranoid little man who has absolutely no respect for himself. But the general consensus I have heard from graduates is that if you can afford it, and have the pure desire to succeed there, and the willingness to work your tail off then it is worth it. Slackers don't do well there, you actually have to LOVE whichever field you go into there to do well. Though I have no doubt that you could do well there.

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On another note, I took the tour and I was absolutley blown away. If I had the opportunity to go there I would have taken it in a heartbeat. Just the tiny little glimpse of the equipment they were using in the film dept. made me giddy in delight. They actually allowed us to ply around with the digital editing stuff and I was in absolute heaven. If you haven't already then definitely try and go on the tour, it is truly interesting.

I have to say that projectMayhem's experiences conflict greatly with the image the school sells of itself. I've read a lot of stuff on film schools in the US, what with wanting to be a filmmaker and all, and to me, Full Sail always seemed like film school as done by Nickolodeon. Bright and colourful, and with a big cheesy smile, but not much else.

I'm glad to hear that projectMayhem thinks differently, mind you. Although I'm personally not one to get excited about digital editing [if I was I'd just go into my room everyday and whack off to my PC], any place that lets you shoot film as opposed to DV is worthy of some respect.

That said, so many of their course descriptions read like fairy floss courses for rich white kids who think they're black. Or, you know...something.

If you can get in though, go for it. I mean, you've got nothing to lose, and the whole point of any film school [good, bad or ugly] is that you choose what you get out of it. If the courses are remedial, steal some equipment each weekend and make a feature. Go for gold.

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I'm gonna head down January 11th to take the behind the scenes tour, so I'll see whats up then. Thanks for the input though, seems both of you have shown the same concern I have.

That was kinda my point, it is really hard to get a full grasp on what they are all about. We saw all the great equipment and were shown a short film from a graduate which I thought was pretty interesting. But the way I eventually came to think about them is they had great hardware and equipment but I just wasn't sure if the money was going to be worth it. I do know someone who went through their music production program and he said he had a great deal of fun working there but he said he wishes that he had learned more than he did from the instructors.

I imagine they'd be very much like summer camp leaders.

"Hey, Guy! Let's go make a movie!"
"Don't touch me."

So, missster silver bullet. What film schools would you recommend/have looked into?

Well, I think it depends entirely on what type of filmmaker you want to be.

In between 2000 and 2002, for example, I became increasingly interested in the Los Angeles Film School, but then that all turned around in the last twelve months, as I realised that if I went there I would become a "Hollywood filmmaker". To me, a course like those offered at NYU and the New York Film Academy would probably be most beneficial. They're more focused on the artistic side than the commercial side, and they prepare you for Independent filmmaking. I never gave Full Sail much attention, for all the reasons I've already stipulated.

Of course, I don't need to worry about this at all now. I won the scholarship to Bond University on the Gold Coast here in Australia, and while it may not be a film school in the same sense as LA Film or the NYFA [and it's not], I plan on milking it for all it's worth anyway. This is not to pat myself on the back and tell you all I'm so great, but to say that I don't really think it matters where you go in the end. You can make it work for you. Bond University gives their film students twenty-four hour access to all their equipment, so I plan on completely abusing that, for example. As with everything, it's ultimately what you make it.

So, if you can get into one of the "real" film schools, I think that's excellent, and you should definitely go for it. But if you don't have the money [which would have been the only thing preventing me from going to the NYFA], or you don't get accepted, don't worry about it. Just go where you go, and make it work for you.

Yeah...I'm not too sure where I stand yet.

I'd rather be more commercial than art house...but still independent.

What I REALLY want to do is be a producer. If I had things my way, I'd make the movie I'm plotting out right now....it'd make trillions because it'd be so very tiger club cool! then I'd use my wealth to start my own empire of awesome. I rule.

As much as I appreciate art and art house films...I'm really not concerned with setting new standards or pushing the limits of film, as someone such as yourself wants to do, I just want to entertain. But not entertain in the sense that I just want to produce fast food film that everyone is, I crave originality. Sam Raimi is a person I'd model. Bruce Campbell happens to be my personal idol.

I don't trust this Full Sail business. The web site's interface reminds me of the lucid dream company in Vanilla Sky. And it's in Orlando. Name me one serious thing in Orlando besides Tracy McGrady.

I'll stick to my books and repertory screenings to learn, thanks. If you're not from either A)New York, or B)anywhere except California and Florida, you have no business teaching people how to make movies.

It is cool that they encourage the use of film, though. So the program can't be all bad. DV is not cinematic by nature. Its strengths and weaknesses have to be exploited and its limitations shown in order for it to become cinema, whereas film naturally has a soul to it.

Go ahead, Peter. Anywhere, and I do mean anywhere, is better than where we're at right now.

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Have you met him? I saw him in person at a horror movie convention in Baltimore in August 2002. He did a short live script reading of The Evil Dead with the girls from that movie. I didn't get an autograph/meet him up close though.

Hey man! I was born and raised in Orlando! And Tracy McGrady no longer is a popular character around here anymore. I wish to God they didn't, but the Magic suck. Orlando does have a pretty big music scene though, which is cool b/c there's at least 2 shows on any given week that are good.

Nope. I plan on it though. That man is such an accomplished but unrealized and underappreciated well of talent. He has done so much more than people think he has. Nothing but an inspiration. Plus he is just ****ing cool!

Nicely put, Steve. I agree.