Tag Archives: equipment

What To Look For In Film Training

Digital Film Academy students shooting a short film with the school's equipment. The best film training in NYC and Atlanta.

So, you are looking for a training in Film and don’t know where to start? Many programs offer different training and considerations when it comes to film school. It’s important to do your research and consider your options before making a decision. 

Digital Film Academy has three tips to get you started…

Research Alumni 

Initially, you can learn a lot about a program based on the success of their alumni. From graduates who starred in blockbuster Marvel films, such as Chadwick Boseman, to several graduates who worked on films commissioned by Netflix, Digital Film Academy has numerous success stories.
You can read more about our alumni here: https://www.digitalfilmacademy.edu/students-alumni/

Curriculum

As you research, make sure you are familiar with the specific courses that a program offers. Digital Film Academy offers courses in Screenwriting, Directing, Cinematography, Video Editing, Career and Portfolio Development, Producing, and more.

In these courses, what software will you be using? Digital Film Academy introduces you to Avid Media Composer, Pro Tools, Davinci Resolve, Maya 3D Animation and more.

Our goal is to give you a well-rounded film education so that you can become an expert in your field while some other programs only allow you to take classes that relate to one of these specialties.

Affordability

So, you’ve spent the money for your schooling, now what? One of the unique advantages of going to Digital Film Academy is that you get a head start on your career after graduation, with less tuition fees and free lifetime access of our state-of-the-art video equipment and facilities. Our Associates Degree also offers a personal equipment kit that is yours to keep, valued at around $10,000. Our Associate of Science in Digital Media costs $29,950 (and includes equipment ownership) and our 12 month long Advanced Certificate Program costs $17,560 (and includes equipment access).

Compare our prices with other film school fees here: http://www.digitalfilmacademy.edu/about-dfa/why-dfa/

If you would like to know more about Digital Film Academy please join us on Tuesday June 21st at 1pm EST for our virtual Open House. You can add your name to the guest list and see other Open House Dates here: https://www.digitalfilmacademy.edu/open-house/

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Every Ending is a New Beginning

“Every story has an end. But in life, every ending is just a new beginning.”
Dakota Fanning as Ray From the movie: Uptown Girls

As we begin a new year, we reflect on the past. This past year was challenging and full of ups and downs. For some, the end of 2021 may have felt like a huge relief. For others, this ending may have felt bittersweet. 

What goals did we have for ourselves that we didn’t quite meet? Is there something missing in our personal or professional lives that we want to incorporate into this new year? 

As we reflect on our goals for 2022, the question of training and honing in on our talents might arise. 

Digital Film Academy is here to help you meet your professional filmmaking goals and fine-tune your talents to become a better filmmaker. 

For instance, if you are interested in pre-production, we offer lifetime access to our equipment, saving you time and money when producing your own projects. 

We also have an equipment kit included in our Associates Degree program featuring a Blackmagic 6k Camera, Tungsten and LED Lights, and more, yours to keep. 

For post-production, we have cutting edge technology available to you such as Davinci Resolve, Avid, Pro-Tools, After Effects, and many other softwares. 

DFA’s training is geared towards giving you all of the tools and resources you need to succeed in the film and media industry. 

While new beginnings aren’t always easy, taking this step for your career could be very rewarding. Many students have taken this leap with our programs to become a more well-rounded film professional.

You can take a look at what some of our students and alumni have said about our school here: DFA Students and Alumni.

If you are ready for a new beginning, consider attending our Open House on Thursday January 6th at 1pm EST. You can add your name to the guest list here: https://www.digitalfilmacademy.edu/open-house/

We look forward to starting this new year with you. 

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Do It Yourself

Woman sitting in front of a computer screen while wearing headphones, learning online.

Nowadays, we have a wealth of information at our fingertips. Websites like YouTube provide resources on topics we never thought possible! You may find yourself asking, why do I need a film school when everything I need to learn is online? Doing it yourself can be helpful in many ways, but you’ll need a little more to be a successful professional in the film industry. We give you (at least) three reasons:

Connections 

Attending Digital Film Academy will expose you to professionals in the industry. Our instructors are working film professionals with firsthand experience in the field. There are people to support you before, during and after completing the program. 

Hands On Experience 

YouTube is great for visual learning but sometimes you need hands-on experience. At Digital Film Academy, we put equipment in your hands and teach you how to use it correctly. Our online classes are engaging and interactive, no more boring zoom classes… 

Equipment 

Digital Film Academy offers FREE lifetime access to our production equipment and facilities including our RED Cinema cameras. This means no more paying for rental equipment, ever. In the classroom, Digital Film Academy uses state-of-the-art industry equipment to make sure you receive the best training possible, including DSLR’s, RED Cinema cameras, Avid Media Composer, Adobe Premiere and Protools just to name a few.

Doing your own research and learning online can be fun and valuable but it cannot replace a quality education from Digital Film Academy. Our goal is to give you all the tools and resources you need to succeed in this industry. If you are ready to take the next step, join us at our Open House on Tuesday December 21st at 6pm EST.

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Work Smarter

There’s lots of hard workers out there. But they’re not all successful. You have to learn how to work smarter, not just harder.

What are the missing elements? 

1) Improve your methods. 

Working hard is wasted if you’re not working smart. What does that mean? That means being efficient. Taking the time to question your methods and find the best way to accomplish a given task. 

2) You have to value your hard work.

If you don’t value your own time and efforts, most people won’t volunteer to. You’ve got to know what you’re worth and expect others to act accordingly. 

3) Find the people who value and support your hard work. 
Some people will take advantage of your hard work. Others will resent your hard work. But if you keep looking, eventually you’ll find people who will give their best along with you and together, the sky’s the limit. #findyourcrew

What does that have to do with us? 

1) We put cutting edge equipment in your hands. 

When you have great equipment, you’re able to work efficiently. If you join our Associate’s program, it includes ownership of a Zoom F6, whose 32 floating bit technology simplifies audio recording, making you more efficient.

2) With us you will learn how to self promote. 

Our Career Portfolio class teaches you how to show the world what you’ve got and what you’re worth. It teaches you how to create your own website and significant online presence, the best self promotion tools available nowadays.

3) Your success is our success. 


We’ve built ourselves around the idea that film students deserve more. They deserve ongoing support, including after graduation. All DFA students and graduates have lifetime access to our equipment, facilities, and exclusive Jobs Board.

If you’d like to hear more, join us for an Open House. If you’re in the Atlanta area, we’re excited to invite you to our first in person Open House at our new Atlanta Campus, located in the heart of downtown! You can also attend online through zoom.

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Overcoming Limitations

Overcoming Limitations and make great media

I’m a firm believer that everyone is capable of making really great media. So where does all the bad media come from? Limitations. People are limited by budgets, availability, time, weather, and global pandemics. The thing stopping us from making great media isn’t a lack of ability. It’s the outside pressures pulling at our attention, telling us “no”. 

So how can DFA help?

We help you overcome the limitations in a number of ways. With Pre-Production, making sure you know exactly what you need and how to get it.  DFA students have access to professional equipment for life. So even long after you’ve graduated you’ll still be able to use our equipment for Production, reducing budget limitations considerably.
And finally through Post-Production. In response to Covid-19 DFA has made our cutting-edge computers accessible remotely online. So you can edit in Davinci Resolve, Avid, Pro-Tools, After Effects, and many other softwares from the safety of your own home, and your client can dial in and go over the project with you live, from anywhere in the world! 

When you study at DFA you have every resource at your fingertips to turn yourself into a lean mean filmmaking machine. Someone who can navigate the hurdles in your way to deliver clean powerful content. 

If you’d like to find out more, please join us for an Online Open House (complete the form to add your name to the guest list, then watch your inbox for the confirmation email) Thursday February 18th @ 1pm EST, or check us out online at any of the links below and see if we’re a good fit for you.

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Chase a Story not the Gear

What camera did you use? What editing software? What LUT? Which filmmaker haven’t ever heard these questions? We are being bombarded with new releases from established equipment brands being announced constantly, and it’s hard to keep up with the always evolving technology surrounding film gear. People are consuming more content now than ever, spending more time in their phones and computers and Content Creators have a lot to work with.

But can a camera make you a better filmmaker? It’s a valid question in today’s filmmaking world but the answer is no. As filmmakers, our goal is to tell stories through our unique experiences, our knowledge, and, most importantly, our feelings and emotions. The cameras and gear you use are nothing without the eyes and brains behind it. 

Even when you tell stories that were already told more than once, they are not the same stories. The perspective and the point of view of who is telling the story can change everything.

But won’t the equipment help the story?

New equipment gives the filmmaker the opportunity to get results that he/she couldn’t get before, and if that’s not why you’re using it, then you don’t need it. It’s simply expanding your palette of colors for painting your story, nothing more and nothing less.

You need equipment that allows you to deliver your story. And most of the time, you have plenty of options of equipment to use (DFA students and grads have free lifetime equipment access through LEAP: https://www.digitalfilmacademy.edu/why-dfa/). But if you don’t have a good story, it’s not the gear that will make it interesting.

So first of all, work on your script. Creating good stories is demanding and it takes effort. “Screenplays are not works of art. They are invitations to others to collaborate on a work of art” — Paul Schrader

Are you ready to start facing those blank pages?


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