Tag Archives: associate degree

One Month Later: The Oscars

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It has been a month since the 94th Academy Awards aired on live television.

Reflecting back a month after the Oscars, what have we learned? What was the impact?

In case you missed it, Acting awards included; Troy Kotsur in Coda, Jessica Chastain in The Eyes of Tammy Faye and Ariana Debose in West Side Story. Best directing went to The Power of the Dog by Jane Campion and Best Picture went to Coda.

Montage. In order: Behind the scenes of Dune, Jessica Chastain in The Eyes of Tammy Faye, Spiderman: No Way Home, Will Smith, Behind the Scenes of West Side Story, The Power of The Dog and Coda.



Ideally, you watched the Oscars and came away with a new film or two on your watch list.
If not, add Dune, Coda and Spiderman: No Way Home to your list.
Undoubtedly, the Oscars also have an impact on society. We can take the Will Smith controversy as a prime example of this.

There is also a positive impact of modeling patience, forgiveness, and understanding at the Oscars. For example, many winners use their speeches as an opportunity to speak on social issues that are important to them.

But the real impact of the Oscars is seen after the fact.

For example, the results of the Oscars often help to shape the future of what the film industry looks like in the following years. The winners set the tone for what is successful in the eyes of the Academy and (some) viewers.
Unsurprisingly, we have seen an increase in viewership in the Oscar nominated films since the ceremony.

Here at Digital Film Academy, we know how important it is to stay updated on new trends. We offer the newest and most innovative equipment in order for you to produce work that aligns with the industry. 
With our equipment kit, included if you join our Associate of Science Degree in Digital Media, you will have everything you need to experiment with new trends.

Come check out our Open House to see what we have to offer and get started on your film training today.

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AI Love You: Former DFA Student, Stephan Zlotescu

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Former Digital Film Academy student, Stephan Zlotescu, releases AI Love You on Netflix.

Congratulations to former DFA student, Stephan Zlotescu, writer and creator of the new Netflix film AI Love You.

The movie is directed by Thai-French actor and filmmaker David Asavanond (Tom Yum Goong) in his directorial debut. The cast includes Pimchanok Leuwisetpaiboon and Mario Maurer.

Stephan Zlotescu is a former student of Digital Film Academy’s Advanced Certificate program in New York City. We are very proud of his new accomplishment as well as his other work including True Skin, Future Sex, and Pastel.

About AI Love You: This new sci-fi romantic comedy written by Stephan Zlotescu explores themes of love and advancing technology. After a software glitch causes an advanced AI program to fall in love with a young woman, it escapes into the body of a man and tries to win her heart. The film is available to stream on Netflix now.

View the AI Love You Trailer here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kVlPF24TXsM

You can view other work on former DFA student, Stephan Zlotescu, here:

True Skin

Future Sex

Pastel

Digital Film Academy offers a variety of professional media training including Cinematography, Sound Recording, Directing, Video Editing, Screenwriting and VFX.

Contact our admissions department for more information about our programs: [email protected]

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Goal Setting

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As we transition into the New Year, many of you may still feel stuck in old habits, and goal setting can be an easy tool to help us overcome obstacles. We still have many of the same challenges that we faced the year prior. The pandemic is still a threat to public health and safety and we are all adjusting the best we can.

goal setting. white wall with professional lighting equipment.

For many of us, our dreams and goals were pushed to the side due to challenges resulting from the pandemic, both financial and health-wise. 

So, how do we get back on track? Let’s talk about goal setting. 

The first step in setting a goal is to think about what we want to accomplish. We can write this down with as much detail as possible. Do you want to become a successful filmmaker? Why? Do you want to focus on directing, cinematography, or sound design? Think about what it is you truly want to accomplish and write it down on paper or electronically. 

Once you have a goal in mind, we need to set a timeline to accomplish that goal. Realistically, how long will it take to accomplish? Are we ready to take action now? Where do we go from here? At this point, we need to consider what actionable steps we are going to take to make our dreams a reality. 

This is where Digital Film Academy comes in.

Studying with Digital Film Academy could be the first actionable step to fulfilling your filmmaking goals. 

Digital Film Academy offers two programs: A year-long Certificate program and a sixteen month Associate’s Degree program. In both programs, you receive free lifetime access to our equipment.

This means long after you graduate, you will have access to the equipment you need to fulfill your goals. Our Associate’s program also includes a personal equipment kit including a Blackmagic 6K camera, Canon M50 camera, Sound Recording Equipment, Lighting Kit, etc. 

Attending Digital Film Academy can serve as an actionable step towards achieving the goals you make for yourself. DFA makes it easy for you to set timelines with future intakes in May and September, allowing you to plan what works best for you. 

Digital Film Academy offers a variety of professional media training including Cinematography, Sound Recording, Directing, Video Editing, and Screenwriting. These classes allow for exploration of your true passions while developing skills in every facet of digital media.

Contact our admissions department for more information about our programs and how to align it with your goals: [email protected]

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3 Ways to be Professional

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Profile view at young African-American sound mixer wearing headphones while editing at home recording studio.

Let’s talk about professionalism. We often hear that we need to “be professional” on set but what does that really mean? We’ve broken it down into 3 ways to be professional: be kind, listen, and focus.  

Be Kind.

For the first example, we have Martin Scorsese whose birthday was earlier last week and his words give us a sense of the type of people he wants to be around on set as a film professional.

“And as I’ve gotten older, I’ve had more of a tendency to look for people who live by kindness, tolerance, compassion, a gentler way of looking at things.” –  Martin Scorsese

No one likes to work with someone who is angry or intolerant all the time because it can create a negative work environment. For this reason, having a positive attitude and displaying kindness conveys something to those around you and sets up a more positive environment to film.

Listen.

So, why is listening important? Martin Scorsese has another quote for this:

“Now more than ever we need to talk to each other, to listen to each other and understand how we see the world, and cinema is the best medium for doing this.” ― Martin Scorsese

Professionalism doesn’t always mean being the loudest voice in the room. Sometimes, you need to step back and really listen to what others on set are saying. Practicing active listening and responding to ideas is a great way to convey professionalism on set.

Focus.

Lastly, focusing on your goals will help everyone to stay on the same page. This includes time management and communication. Eliminate outside distractions and focus on the task at hand. Sometimes, the simple solution is actually the most concise and important one. 

And we’ll leave you with a final quote about simplicity: 

“There’s no such thing as simple. Simple is hard.” — Martin Scorsese

Digital Film Academy is here to help you become a more well-rounded and marketable film professional through our Associates Program and our Advanced Certificate Program.

We have Pre-Production classes with leading professionals in the industry who will help you to excel with practical experience. Our Post-Production classes includes learning from the top editing softwares like Davinci Resolve, Avid, Pro-Tools, and After Effects; giving you professional experience from your own computer. 

Join us for our next Open House Tuesday November 23rd at 6pm EST. You can sign up here: 

Open House – live Online webinar

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“Call it”

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It’s your first day as AD (Assistant Director) and everyone is ready to shoot. The director just looks at you and tells you to “call the shot”. What do you do?

“Picture’s Up!” or “Quiet on Set!”

This is your first step. Loudly, without screaming, let everyone know they’re about to go into an actual take. Anytime you hear this on set, stop what you’re doing and get comfortable because you shouldn’t move or make a sound until you hear “cut” and sometimes that can take a while.

“Roll Sound!”

First thing you want to do is get the sound recorder to start recording (On your very own Zoom f6, if you’re in our Associates Program with equipment included*). Why start there? Sound is cheap. It runs on cheaper cards, taking up less space on the drives. Don’t get me wrong – it is not the sound mixer or boom mixer that are cheap, they’re looking at up to $800 a day for their expertise.

Your Sound Mixer will start recording audio and they will let you know by saying: 

“Sound Speeds” or “Sound Rolling”

You will then say:

“Roll Camera!”

Now your Operator will start the camera recording (with your 6k Blackmagic*) and they will let you know by saying: 

“Camera Rolling” or “Camera Speeds”

You’re now getting audio and video recordings so it’s time to capture the slate “clapping” this is used (when you don’t have timecode) to synchronize (sync) the audio and video clips. (Slates are also included in the Associate equipment package*) You will now tell the 2nd AC to:

“Mark it!” 

The 2nd AC will read the pertinent information from the slate so the editor can identify which take it is by listening to the audio.

“Scene 1 Charley, Take 4”

The 2nd AC will clap the slate and clear frame. At this point, on most sets, your job is done. When they are ready the director will finally call: 

“Action!”

This is the basis for every take, but things change on the fly and there’s lots of special circumstances and some different ways to call the shot.

If you’re interested in learning some of these industry specifics and so many other important elements of the filmmaking and media business, consider coming to one of our Open Houses. You will be able to get a feeling for our school, programs, and more!

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We’re changing, are you?

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Students working as a film crew, directing, operating the camera and recording sound at Central Park in New York.

“Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results”

– Rita Mae Brown (not Einstein, I checked)


Everything around us is constantly changing, and that’s never been more true. I’ll throw another quote at you:

“For he that gets hurt will be he who has stalled”

– Bob Dylan


The best way to succeed is to be on the forefront of change. And that’s what we’re doing. Digital Film Academy is always on the lookout for how we can change to better serve our students. We’ve pivoted to a hybrid learning environment that allows our busy students to do most of their classes remotely. We bring our seasoned professors to you, wherever you are. 

We’ve designed an entirely new Associates Program that gives you equipment to own (yours forever, no joke), included in the tuition. That means that as you’re building your portfolio, working on school projects, or working with clients, you’ve got everything you need. You become your own production company. When you’re learning the equipment you have it there, in your hands. We did this because it’s the best way for you to learn and that’s our top priority. 

We’ve adapted our hands-on classes so that we can still deliver the essentials, while keeping our students safe. We just finished our intensive 3 week summer classes that had students performing in real life scenarios. From shooting walk-and-talks in Central Park to dramatic dollys in the heart of Hell’s Kitchen. 

Our mission is and always has been to prepare you to make money and we’re always looking for new ways to do that better. 

Maybe it’s time you think about making a change? 

Come to one of our Open Houses and see if we can’t help you take a step in a new direction.

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