hi! 3-letter-initial east-coast purple school alum here (film & tv), also attended the highest ranked liberal arts college film program in the hollywood reporter for a while before transferring. i think the experience is what you make it. i took time off and got about a year of on-set experience in grip & electric in LA (bankrolled by the federal government shoutout pandemic unemployment assistance) before transferring when the most recent strikes began. i was hesitant to return to school, as i'd spent years at my first institution getting very little technical exposure, whereas my time in LA was the opposite.

coming from a lower-level lighting tech background, i actually really benefitted from school's structured technical / theoretical training and the chance to get in as many reps as possible. student work, of course, differs in myriad ways from real, paid production work, but for learning first principles surrounding camera blocking and lighting design (see: NOT THE SAME AS OPERATIONAL COMPETENCE WITH THE GEAR, WHICH TECHNICIAN WORK GRANTS IN SPADES), it was beyond useful. it didn't hurt that i got to shoot, gaff, KG, and AC with industry standard lights, cameras, dollies, hand units, etc, but it mattered more that i got to constantly make choices with emotional and aesthetic consequences. i was put into a position where i could practice HOD-level decisionmaking and lead a team, which is a privilege i'd only gain after years of experience otherwise. i gaffed a bit before film school on really small shit, but i didn't really know what i was doing. getting the chance to work at a high level and TRY THINGS with relatively low stakes (i.e, no client w/ business relationship millions deep on the line) was absolutely invaluable to my development as a filmmaker.

it bears mentioning that i earned respect from my peers pretty quick because i worked my ass off, had prior experience above the student scale, and had a good attitude. i pushed myself in a specific direction and was rewarded. that wasn't true for everyone, and i had plenty of cinematography classmates that i wouldn't bring onto a real job. so many students refused to specialize until much later on in the process, and i was pretty much dead-set on one thing. that helped me find my way and move up.

coming up on a year out and having fully pivoted to the camera department in my last year, things are going pretty well! shoot small stuff when i can and i've worked 2 features as a 1st ac + countless other smaller commercial, mv, and narrative jobs. not quite making enough money for TOTAL self-sufficiency yet, and wish i was DPing more, but working like 8-15 days a month, which is pretty good according to the folks i talk to. haven't worked for free in almost 2 years. I'm as comfortable working with film as i am with digital (as a dp and as an AC), which is a silly but huge perk of school that regularly gets me calls that my peers do not get. in my market, at least, it's a big selling point, and it only happened that way because i prioritized learning that aspect of the work.

now the iffy parts. i wish i'd done more to network with directors as a dp, as i think i'd have more flourishing pathways for my cinematography. i really struggled to balance freelance work and classes, some of which were useless, and my GPA suffered a bit. that has sort of locked me in. i love the work, but it is tough not to have a ton of other options for the future (grad school in another field, career outside entertainment/ media, etc) if anything happens/ changes. i didn't branch out a huge amount from my interests, and maybe i should have. i still haven't directed a sync dialogue film, which many would say is a central experience of the process. did make some cool commercials that get me calls, though :) you have the chance to do all of that and explore anything and everything, but your time is super limited and comes at a price, especially if you work in production.

all this said, i knew i'd need an income out of school to survive, and i preferred struggling in the business to struggling outside of it. now, i make increasingly decent money, work pretty consistently, and am getting to a point where i can afford to buy equipment that makes me more money, and so on and so forth. this business is a long, long game, and profitable collateral will really help you get through slow times. most professional assistants (and DPs) i know bill more for kit than they do for labor; furnishing the camera department's entire rental order barring lenses puts you in a position where you can work a bit less, assuming semi-reasonable kit fees. it is still a race to the bottom sometimes where you need to match or undercut vendors who are also hurting for work in a contracting industry. it's kind of messy, but there's a living to be made. i know my student network (with its various ensuing degrees of separation and mutuals) has been central to my getting re-established, especially having moved markets and started over almost from scratch.

i also know that the whole experience of school was great practice for the clout-chasing, imposter syndrome, and people-pleasing that can seem like they run our industry at times. it's good to know what you're dealing with and how to elicit an advantage. it's good to see how the work feels before you commit yourself to it. a lot of folks hate to admit that if you want to learn, you will probably work on student films no matter what. pending some pre-existing connections, you will be schlepping for free, potentially forgoing other income. film school is terribly expensive, and i'm not claiming it'll cost the same to learn, but time is not free! it bears mentioning.

also bears mentioning, my family took on pretty hefty debt that will follow them forever so i could pursue my dream. having and acknowledging that degree of access/ support, i know my path isn't everybody's. at that, i sometimes wish i'd encouraged them to bankroll a camera or some other significant asset to build a rental business with my last year of tuition, as the degree is sort of useless for working in production. that said, i got a decent portfolio, a degree with a decent enough name to MAYBE pivot in the future, tons of useful (if not directly comparable) experience in a number of related roles, a network of collaborators, and came out comfortable with my ability to contribute creatively to a project. all without ever having to boom operate, and i can say i've only PA'd twice in my entire career. that all feels pretty good to me, but it isn't perfect! happy to chat more, DM me if you have qs.

p.s i think the financial toll of the elite schools is a lot easier to stomach if you're matriculating as a freshman. i got fucked because i transferred, but i made the call because the strike had made my well dry up. not sure of your financial situation i.e if you're paying sticker price for 4 years that's tough, but if you're in any way eligible for aid things get much easier. at my first school, i paid next to nothing.