Be a Master of Film. Direct and DP a 35MM sync sound film or Produce two international 35mm films in the Czech Republic.
Carry out the vision for your story in a city whose cinematic history stretches back to the early days of the art form itself. From the late 1800s, when the first Czech films were made in the region of Bohemia, through the political struggles of the 1960s that spawned the Czech New Wave, the film heritage of this country will give you a rich tapestry of material to draw from.
"You gotta be ready to work. It's a work program. You're there to make a movie, you're there to learn film. It's very much a 9:00 to 9:00 kind of schedule. On the weekends you're planning your movie. So it's pretty grueling, but it's the most enriching kind of program that's here."
— Miko Reyes, 35mm Visual Storytelling
at FAMU - Prague, fall 2016
The Tisch School of the Arts and NYU Prague offer this program in collaboration with FAMU (Film and Television School of the Academy of Performing Arts), one of Europe’s oldest and most prestigious film schools. FAMU is an independent academy which focuses on audio and visual media within a cinematic framework. FAMU alumni include Jiri Menzel (Closely Watched Trains), Milos Forman (Amadeus and One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest) and Agnieszkha Holland (Europa Europa).
The FAMU faculty are active members of the Czech filmmaking community (including established cinematographers, directors, editors, scholars, and writers). Under their guidance, you will have the opportunity to study filmmaking from an entirely different tradition and culture. Additionally, the program partners with Barrandov Studios, one of the oldest and largest working film production studios in Europe (Mission Impossible, Casino Royale, The Hypnotist). From props and costumes to film scanning and production services, Barrandov Studios will provide another valuable resource in your filmmaking in the Czech Republic.
The 35mm Production Program offers the aspiring director the opportunity to study the traditions, technology, theory and practice of 35mm sync-sound film production techniques and storytelling. Students will direct one short 35mm film project and work as the director of photography on another. While shooting in Prague on 35mm film is one of the unique experiences of this program, it should be understood that this is primarily a writing/directing/production class/program with a cinematography component. Students will have the opportunity to learn working with 16mm and 35mm Arriflex film cameras, support equipment and post production services at Barrandov Studios (film scanning and supervised color correction sessions while all original 16mm and 35mm negatives are scanned).
The allotment for this program consists of: camera package, film rolls and post-production services, as well as actors, production manager, camera assistants, location, props and costumes. Please note, itemized film budgeting is not a part of this curriculum.
Students on this program will round out their curricula experience with a History and Criticism course at NYU Prague, entitled Central European Film.
It is recommended that students bring their own laptops with the editing software Adobe Premiere installed.
Your semester abroad consists of three core production courses, focused European producing modules delivered by FAMU and one additional companion course delivered by NYU Prague, completing an 18-unit, full-time semester.
Please Note: Students studying abroad on a Tisch track are not eligible to pursue an internship (except for Theatre in Ghana and Television Writing in London). Tisch programs do not provide work visas.
Focusing on the techniques and aesthetics of 35mm production, students are trained for hands-on camera operating, exterior and studio lighting design, exponometry, and color correction, as well as mise-en-scène and the fundamentals of cinematic language. Through this course students will engage in 16mm exercises and 35mm exercises. This course is coordinated with Directing Traditions for the production of individual, 35mm narrative film projects and includes lectures, workshops, consultations, and on-the-set supervision.
This course is offered by FAMU.
Note for NYU Tisch Undergraduate Film and Television Majors: The maximum length for an intermediate film to be eligible for NYU Tisch Film festivals is 8 minutes.
Students receive hands-on training in 16mm and 35mm filmmaking both as director and as director of photography on two separate individual projects. Using Intermediate Production as a conduit, this course includes workshops and theoretical seminars in screenwriting, directing, and editing and a weekly series of master classes. Rushes are screened with intensive faculty critique sessions, and students finish with a final off-line group edit. Each student completes a 35mm film with synchronous sound that may be submitted to various film festivals.
This course primarily prepares students for the production of their short narrative films. It explores feature-length and short films from a dramaturgical perspective to demonstrate diverse narrative techniques, dramatic structures, and genre forms as well as examines the craft of screenwriting. Aside from weekly lectures on script analysis, students prepare regular assignments. The course culminates with a production-ready short screenplay and final test in feature film analysis.
The goal of the course is to give students picture of main streams in development of Czech filmmaking from its origins to present times. The phenomena will be explained in the international context regarding the influences and original innovations in style and in national economical and political relations. The major interest will represent new tendencies from “velvet revolution” of 1989 till contemporary situation. Lectures will be supplied by screening of characteristic excerpts from films, eventually of entire movies.
Students take all of the courses (Intermediate Production, Directing Traditions, Screenwriting Analysis, and Central European Film) together. Embedded in these courses are producing lectures focused on producing international films in Europe. You will produce two films and work with FAMU production managers on budget, location, casting, scheduling, call sheets, etc.
Student Arrival: August 27, 2023
Student Departure: December 15, 2023
Program dates are tentative and subject to change. Visit the NYU Prague website for more information.
NOTE: Beginning in fall 2022, 35mm Visual Storytelling in Prague will only be offered in the fall semester.
Admissions
Prerequisites:
Film/TV majors: Sight & Sound Filmmaking and one more Sight & Sound of your choice, Production Safety & Set Protocol (FMTV-UT 101). No exceptions will be made for the prerequisites. Prerequisites will not be waived. For Tisch Film majors in the cinematography concentration: It is suggested that you participate in Prague after taking Camera I.
NYU Students: Fundamentals of Digital Filmmaking (OART-UT 560) and Fundamentals of Digital Filmmaking II (OART-UT 561) and Production Safety & Set Protocol (FMTV-UT 101).
Visiting students: College-level experience in narrative film production.
Application: Please read the following admissions information before starting your application.
Note: Students should wait to receive their admissions notification and confirmation that the program is running prior to purchasing airline tickets. Students accepted to the program should purchase refundable airline tickets and/or travel insurance in the event the program is canceled or program dates are changed due to world events. It is strongly recommended that students purchase insurance for trip cancellation, flight cancellation, luggage loss or damage, as well as medical and accident coverage.
