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Variety’s Top Film Schools: Yes to Christian Schools, No to USC/UCLA

Variety’s Top Film Schools: Yes to Christian Schools, No to USC/UCLA

Last updated on: April 27, 2018 at 2:25 pm by Kate O'Hare

Variety’s Top Film Schools: Yes to Christian Schools, No to USC/UCLA 2018-04-27T14:25:59-08:00 Kate O'Hare

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Yesterday, Variety released a list of the best film schools worldwide in 2018. Some of the schools it contains are interesting, but equally interesting are those it doesn’t.

What’s on it that’s interesting:

The overtly Christian school (Biola originally stood for Bible Institute of Los Angeles):

Biola University
La Mirada, Calif.
Biola offers an undergraduate degree in cinema and media arts and will launch a school of the same name in July. The School of Fine Arts and Communication has concentrations in media producing, production and writing for film and television. It gives students 24-hour access to a 10,000-sq.-ft. production center complete with sound stage, recording room, and video and audio editing facilities. The school has nearly $3 million worth of film equipment.

The specifially Catholic schools:

DePaul University
Chicago
Offering undergraduate and graduate degrees in animation, film and television, creative producing, documentary and screenwriting, DePaul boasts one of the most hands-on programs in the country, in part because of Cinespace Chicago Film Studios, a 32,000-sq.-ft professional production facility with three soundstages. The school also includes Project Bluelight, a professional film production company where students can get real experience working on independent films and TV pilots.

Mount St. Mary’s University
Los Angeles
Students have the opportunity to study film at a real Hollywood film studio through Mount St. Mary’s film, media and communication program. Located at Sunset Gower Studios, MSMU offers a B.A. in film and media, a B.S. in film, media & social justice, as well as a newly unveiled BFA in professional photography, which will be available starting this fall.

The Church of Christ school (though many don’t know it);

Pepperdine University
Malibu, Calif.
Aside from the more technical aspects of filmmaking like screenwriting and cinematography, film students at Pepperdine can also engage in research on the history, theory and social impact of cinema.

Obviously, we hope that John Paul the Great Catholic University eventually makes the list, but it’s a fairly new, small school. Its Catholicism is orthodox; it’s located in Southern California (Escondido — a longish drive, but at least not a plane flight, from L.A.), and it teaches film, acting, animation, game development, business, journalism & TV, new evangelization and creative writing & screenwriting.

What’s NOT on the list that’s interesting:

UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television

USC School of Cinematic Arts (colloquially known as USC Film School).

Both of these programs are are known around the world and supported throughout the entertainment industry.

Among those the board of UCLA’s film school are graduates Francis Ford Coppola, ABC president Channing Dungey, writer/producer Darren Star and EPIX president Michael Wright; Mandalay Entertainment Chairman and CEO Peter Guber, Goldie Hawn, producer/director Frank Marshall, Martin Scorsese, producer Paula Wagner and actress Rita Wilson (Mrs. Tom Hanks).

USC Film School was established in 1929 as a joint venture with the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences (the Oscars people). Its long list of graduates include writer/producer Judd Apatow, writer John Milius, “Star Wars” creator George Lucas (who donated $175M to expand the facility), director/writer/producer James Ivory, actor/director/producer Ron Howard, producer Brian Grazer, director Sam Peckinpah, TV writer Shonda Rhimes, director/writer/producer John Singleton, TV writer/producer John Wells and filmmaker Robert Zemeckis. Alfred Hitchcock taught there.

Commenters on the Variety piece aren’t happy with the exclusion of UCLA and USC.

What do you think?

Images: Pixabay

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