There is somebody in my family who is learning to be a filmmaker. My son, who is now 20 years old, has desired to make films since his early teens. He has passion and dedication as well as a lot of natural talent. Unfortunately, he is dyslexic and has never attended a traditional school, and the idea of having to attend a film school is making him anxious. Even so, his enthusiasm has driven him to find other methods to learn.
He did what anybody with a need would do, he trained himself and became responsible for his on success.
My boy had been home schooled since the 2nd grade, and since identifying his dyslexia, we'd already begun using alternate methods to teach him. We need to convert his home school into anything more or less similar to a film school when he decided to study in order to become a filmmaker. We expended in a quality camera and PC. We turned movies into classes and read many books on moviemaking and storytelling aloud and we also talked about concepts for a film. As he studied movies and books about movies, my son was amazed at how many of his favorite directors had never been to (or completed) film school - people like Christopher Nolan, Robert Rodriguez, and even Stephen Spielberg. He then thought that if they were able to do it then he is in a position of making it at the same time.
Making two short films was most likely the most significant aspect of his filmmaker's training. He used the tales in his mind and composed a script. He used a storyboard for his screenplay and plotted the sequence of the shots, just like in the textbook. Friends and family became cast and crew, and on one event he even held a casting call at a local modeling school. He visited places to look for shooting locations and obtained the necessary papers in order to be able to film there. During the first short film, he dealt with many pitfalls and a lot of stress, as he experienced firsthand the reality of what it takes to make a film. But by the second short movie, he understood a lot more about what he was performing. He anticipated the unexpected (as much as possible), and took things in stride, thinking more on his toes and making changes on the fly when required. He acted like a professional on the location.
At present, my son's second short movie is entered in competition in film festivals around the nation, and is getting seen by people in the business. He intends to use his short film as an introduction to individuals who might give him the backing he needs for his first full-length film he is currently working on. This is my son's ongoing journey of studying to be a filmmaker.
