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On the Cutting Edge
Australian Technology Park in Sydney, is home to an inspirational film school. Participate Film Academy redefines what a film school is all about. It is a leader in innovative teaching methods with a strong commercial and youth focus. It mentors its candidature in the business of filmmaking by assigning the whole class to work on an actual feature length film, rather than individual projects, and moreover, formally contracts with them a share in the overall profits from the sale of the Movie. It also covers other activities related to the film industry, such as the running of festivals, promotional competitions, the making of documentaries and its very own T.V show!
Participate Film Academy opened its doors in 2005 and has plans for global expansion. This will provide great opportunities for Australian youth. Whilst its methodology is a world-first concept, Participate has designed a curriculum that provides a thorough grounding in all aspects of filmmaking: story development (writing), pre-production, production (acting, directing, filming), post-production (editing, sound mixing, special effects, etc.) and even marketing and distribution.
Participate’s philosophy is based on the belief that top quality education in filmmaking must not only provide its participants with the essential knowledge, experience and (feature) film credits, but also, the business acumen to get ahead in order to meet basic industry standards and attract investors for their own future film ventures.
The feature film chosen for development is selected on a democratic basis by the full student body from amongst a multitude of student story pitches. Then throughout the course students have the great opportunity to be mentored in their commercial project by real industry professionals from Hollywood and Australia, including among others Russel Boyd (DOP & Oscar Winner: Master & Commander, Ghost Rider), David Gribble (DOP: The World’s Fastest Indian), Jerry Jeffress (Academy Award winner, Special Effects: Raiders of the Lost Ark, Star Wars), Jim Muro (DOP: Crash, Swordfish, X-Men), Lewis Teague (Director Jewel of the Nile, Nash Bridges) Eugene Lazarev (Actor - The Sum Of All Fears, The Saint) and Dov Simens (voted Hollywood’s best film instructor).
Commercial and Business Aspects of Filmmaking
Participate Film Academy sets itself apart from other film schools by ensuring that all students who pass through the film school become well equipped to tackle every aspect of the film industry—this includes producing full length feature films.
Participate arms all its students with the entrepreneurial skills required to make it big in the film world, so that all students become business savvy. The course has a strong business focus and we have the privilege of UCLA offering their high profile tutors to teach theory, while local industry practitioners deliver hands on training.
The Film Revolution
The Participate film curriculum covers the how-to of making a film, from scriptwriting to Red Carpet Premiere and all the budgetary, contractual and personnel complications in between. The methodology is 100% experiential. This is commercial filmmaking at its best. It challenges its candidature to experience the reality of raising capital and highlights the facts and figures as well as legalities involved in shooting a script.
The revolutionary course is launching students into an exclusive and competitive arena, arming them with skills that they can carry on well into their filmmaking careers. Moreover, its essential reading list is to the point and includes classic youth accessible business books on managing people, personal growth and goal setting.
Accelerated Learning
The course activities and teaching is multi-faceted and non-linear, and hence the learning curve is exponential. This results in fast progress from novice to competency or mastery - within the course’s framework.
Marketing
Marketing is another vital aspect of the filmmaking industry, and it is taught by Participate from story development onwards, all the way through to post-production. Students design merchandising, promotional material, do voice-over radio interviews, write articles and press releases for their film, and make submissions to international film festivals and distributors.
Assessment
Participate believes that the best forms of assessment are those that allow students to gain hands on experience whilst allowing them to demonstrate their capabilities. This is why from day one, Participate conducts ongoing assessments of student ability, utilising short-films online and written assessment methods. Students rotate and gravitate into different cast and crew roles in each of the shorts. Over time the short films assigned get longer and more complicated. On the spot feedback is given to students during and after the making of films.
Camera and lighting techniques, body language, efficiency, manner, vocal assertiveness, social skills, teamwork as well as organisational skills are all assessed for competency and ongoing monitoring and remediation. Students are thrown in the deep end in teams, and must learn to produce a series of short-films for class critique, keeping in mind they must perform at peak level by the time the feature film production begins.
Class Film Festivals
After students write, produce, direct, and edit the short film group assignments, they screen it to an audience made up of their peers and mentors and engage in constructive discussion and critique. Students apply the experience gained through this process to the next project, and the learning process continues. Indeed, from day one, students are behind the camera, performing in a scene—learning by doing.
The course directors recognise that these class film-festivals represent a large captive “market research” or test audience. From the early stages of learning, a culture of open constructive critical feedback is established. Students from diverse backgrounds, from all countries and from all walks of life are welcome at Participate. This nurtures a supportive, positive atmosphere conducive to the level of collaboration required to make great film.
Where Artistry Meets Commerce
High-end standards of visual and creative perfection are transformed into mastery by visual arts specialists, in order that students meet the real commercial demands of the film industry. Learning activities include one-on-one mentoring, small and large group lectures and plenty of practical exercises with HD and digital film equipment. At the end of the day the final product is the widespread selling, marketing and distribution of a commercially viable feature film that is also highly artistic.
Teaching Macro Film Skills
Industry standards of punctuality, effective team communication, dress codes, commitment, finishing on time and to budget are some of the macro skills that are part of the weekly drill.
Flexible After Hours Learning
Students are attracted to this unique program as it is an opportunity to learn and get a return from that learning whilst still holding their day jobs and/or full-time study. Contact hours are flexible and kept primarily after working hours and weekends (Saturdays). The only time full-time commitment necessary is during principal photography (production).
Ultimately, how hard students work outside of hours will have a direct effect on the overall commercial success of the movie and the profit-sharing results. In short, students control the destiny of their learning and careers. This mirrors what happens in the real world. It’s not enough to say this course is hands-on: it is 100% experiential.
Equipment
Participate owns all the necessary state-of-the-art HD, film production and post-production equipment; therefore students are not required to buy or hire additional equipment for either the short film exercises or the feature film project. Participate professionals continually teach students how to care for and properly handle all equipment.
The End Result
At the end of the course, students earn a feature film credit in a professional grade feature film. Participate students will have accomplished what millions of people only dream about!
The course concludes with a Red Carpet Premiere and apart from a Certificate of Completion, a tangible and unique benefit to Participate Film Academy graduates is the award of Film Credit in the feature film. A further unique benefit is profit-sharing subject to the commercial success of the theatrically released movie.
Participate Film Academy …where film careers are made.
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