MFA Creative Writing, Screen Writing, or Film Making? Program Recommendations

Tony_Ferguson

Tony_Ferguson

New member
Hello,

Incredible group of users here--I hope any of you can share some good advice and information with me.

I am looking into doing an MFA in Creative Writing, Screen Writing, or Film Making. I am currently a studio artist (injured in a car accident nearly 3 years ago) with a variety of skills including writing. I've made a short film which I will post very soon. My undergrad degree was in English composition and literature--tons of writing courses--love of a good story, drama, love, poetry, all of it.

I know I don't need to do an MFA to write scripts. The MFA is more of a backup as I have a wife and 4 kids and I am a better than average college level Art instructor.

What MFA programs would anyone recommend if someone wanted 2-3 years of concentrated time to learn the craft of screen writing, make some shorts, learn from some instructors who really know their craft, and come out with 2-4 full length feature scripts and understanding and knowledge that is worth something? I don't know if I should go Creative Writing and pick a screen writing track, or go MFA Script Writing, or go MFA Film Making.

What do you guys think? Turned 39 yesterday.

Thank you,

Tony
www.tonyferguson.net
 
Welcome to dvxuser Tony. I don't know any answers to your questions, hoping some veterans here can provide some helpful advice. An MFA in sw is likely a bit different than an MFA in filmmaking (is there such a degree?), you might have to make a decision to go the sw path or the fm path. It would be nice to find an MFA program in sw where the instructor and your advisor actually did what they preach, i.e. wrote and sold a screenplay.
~randall
 
I don't have an answer - I'm a community college drop out (after 3 years at a 2 year college) who has worked as a pro screenwriter for almost 20 years with 19 produced scripts and #20 coming next year to a theater near you.

I just wrote 1 good page a day (that's 3 scripts a year) and made short films...

Now I'm getting ready to shoot a feature out of my pocket. I pitched the story to a few producers and distribs - they all wanted it - so it's a good bet one of them will want the finished film.

There is all kinds of information out there - books, websites, etc. You can learn outside of an institution, and keep working.

- Bill
 
Bill I just laughed my arse off-- I clicked the link to your site, and saw the sidebar about Message Boards. "Message Boards-- A great way to avoid writing". LOL, that is so funny because it is so true! Here is another one-- Watch More Movies-- a great way to avoid writing! I think Karl Iglesias said that recently in some article about a writer's new years resolutions; watch fewer movies, write more.
randall
 
Thanks Randy. I think the key is finding expertise in the institution--I don't want to feel like I did not 't get my monies worth learning from instructors who have themselves not written and sold scripts or made films. I suspect the expertise is off the charts on this list so I am looking forward to hearing from people with experience like Bill and hopefully people they know who are teaching in MFA programs.

Tony
 
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Hey Bill. Do you have a link to any of the work you have done? I agree with what you said. Just gathering information to help me in my decisions....thanks again.

Tony
 
Too many "higher education" institutions unfortunately these days are not giving students much of worth in the real world-- depends of course on the college major, track of study of course. But many students finish a college education having earned little more than a pile of student loan debt and a boring job for the next 20 years. Yeah, choose wisely, find a program of study, a college that will give you quality instruction for your hard earned money.

Tony_Ferguson said:
Thanks Randy. I think the key is finding expertise in the institution--I don't want to feel like I did not 't get my monies worth learning from instructors who have themselves not written and sold scripts or made films....
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Bill, your accomplishments are epic, you should be proud of what you have done with all the hard work, hours writing and more. Kudos. I listened to some talking heads recently on public radio, the gist being that college degrees today are not always the best track for people to run down. Times have changed. Sometimes people are better getting a trade, or self-learning like you did, make their destiny happen!

wcmartell said:
I don't have an answer - I'm a community college drop out (after 3 years at a 2 year college) who has worked as a pro screenwriter for almost 20 years with 19 produced scripts and #20 coming next year to a theater near you. I just wrote 1 good page a day (that's 3 scripts a year) and made short films...

Now I'm getting ready to shoot a feature out of my pocket. I pitched the story to a few producers and distribs - they all wanted it - so it's a good bet one of them will want the finished film. ...- Bill
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hey tony, welcome to the site. im actually just finishing up an MFA at florida state (one more semester to go after this). the program here gives you a pretty good variety of writing experience - you spend almost all of your time (2 year program all year round, so the equivalent of a 3 year with summers off) going back and forth between screenwriting and writing for the stage (theatre). dunno if you have any interest in theatre, but ive found it very valuable experience, even if just for what its taught me that ive brought to screenwriting. you also spend your first semester in production, so you get to shoot a short film and learn the basics of pretty much all atl and btl positions.

its very conceivable to get 2-4 scripts finished in this program (im going to have 3 if all goes as planned), possibly more but a lot of it comes down to taking advantage of your time, fitting in some independent studies 1 on 1 with instructors, and working outside of the school with your classmates.

one of the downsides of fsu is that tallahassee doesnt have a film industry like la or even nyc since its much smaller, so you wont make many connections outside of your classmates (though just among my class ive made more than a few lasting friends and collaborators who i will continue to work and consult with after graduation), but the city is very receptive to the film school and it has access to pretty good equipment so the finished results are strong. the acting program here is pretty good as well, which is good for the shorts you work on and the plays that get put up.

some other programs that ive got friends in and have heard good things about (and some i looked into myself) include UT in austin, USC and columbia, but theres plenty others out there as well.

hope this helps! any other specific questions, feel free to ask!
 
Lt. Col Wade, I would imagine writing for the stage/theater would force a writer to really buff up on writing dialog, since that is much of a stage play script? Secondly, what is atl and btl?
 
theatre writing has definitely helped with dialogue, especially with controlling the information the audience receives as far as backstory / twists, creating compelling character situations that will draw the audience in and making sure that every word counts. after all, dialogue is one of only a few tools you have when writing for the stage. on the other hand, on the stage in front of a live audience, some actions can have an even bigger impact than they would on screen and unlike many film people think (especially some film professors), plays arent just people talking. even though in screenwriting you get many more freedoms as far as using action to move the story forward, ive found it very helpful to examine how i use these techniques on a scene by scene basis.

atl and btl are 'above the line' and 'below the line' - atl generally includes director, dp, producer and here also includes the production designer (the jobs that are working way before shooting starts) while btl encompasses everything from grips and gaffers to sound team and script sup (whose jobs mostly start on set or closer to shooting).
 
Lt. Col Wade, thanks for the info. Gathering perspective on this. With 4 kids I need a backup--and since I have a MA in Visual Art and have been a studio artist (potter and photographer) and adjunct college teacher and I understand craft and the creative process, I figure I just need to take what know and understand about craft and apply it the craft of script writing--so my logic goes.

I figured the MFA in Creative Writing--Script Writing--would serve me will if I teach or need to teach in the event I am unable to sell my scripts or while I am working on new ones. The car accident I had calls into question my ability to work in the clay studio and produce work at the moment.

I've taught on and off my whole life so it seems like a natural direction to go. I figure my chances and odds are better with screen writing because much of my preparation has been writing, studying of The Masters in literature and writing. So, we'll see I guess. Talk is cheap...proof is on the page.

Say, where do I post my first short film or do I just link it to my website?
 
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