Taught By:
Charlie Hamilton

Have you ever wondered what it would take to write a screenplay? Award winner writer/director Charlie Hamilton walks you through his process from research to handing the drafts over for notes. Focusing on short form, Charlie explains the tools he draws on to sketch out the story and then put it on the page.

Taught By:
Charlie Hamilton
Anna Jane Edmonds
We are introduced to the first role of a Producer in this episode as Anna Jane Edmonds works with Charlie to build his next script into something that will be seen on screen by as many people as possible. This is where we combine business acumen with the creative process and explore the foundations of storytelling for a wide audience.

Taught By:
Gina Simone
Anna Jane Edmonds

In this course we work with Gina and AJ to breakdown the new script into it’s essential elements to effectively find out how long the film will take to make, and what will be required to make it.

Taught By:
Karl Janisse
Anna Jane Edmonds
Pack a what? Who am I asking for money? This can be the most confusing part of film and television to some, and in our experience and research, the open aspect of our industry that goes un-taught and un-discussed outside of top ($100k) film programs in the US and China. In this episode, we give you a basic rundown of considerations to make in the development phase of your film to make sure you can get enough money to make it. And target it towards the eyeballs you want watching your story. From shorts to features, this is not to be an overlooked step in the filmmaking process.

Taught By:
Gina Simone
Anna Jane Edmonds

Welcome to the chaos room. Your production office will become your home, your paperwork your best friend, and organization will be the key skill to ensuring you can be ready for a sharp and well planned production. Gina and AJ walk you through the various forms you need, the best ways they have learned to organize and how to prepare yourself for all the inevitable issues that are bound to arrive.

Taught By:
Gina Simone
Karl Janisse
Zach Ramelan
Anna Jane Edmonds

The script is written, the film is cast and the crew is secured, now the day has come to jump into the deep and get on set. What is the first thing to do, where does everything go and who should be there first? Gina and AJ take you through how to set up, where to be during the day, and how to be ready for all on set issues. And then, Karl, Zach and Gina walk through the moment-by-moment instructions on make your day and keep everyone on the same page. In our experience of how often these basic steps are not followed… this may become your most-watched class.

Taught By:
Zach Ramelan

Award-winning director Zach Ramelan takes you through his creative process as a director, as well as some of the pitfalls you my find on your journey and finally offers some advice and philosophy on how to take the next steps to chase your passion to direct and make it a career.

Taught By:
Karl Janisse

The art of the moving image. In this class Karl Janisse, associate member of the Canadian Society of Cinematographers gives an overview of the art and craft that is cinematography. Will offering first-hand insights on how to navigate the sometimes complicated mix of politics and art when leading a department. Finally, he offers tips and suggestions on how and where to break into the industry as a cinematographer.

Taught By:
Vince Moskowec
Melanie Garros

With a focus on ‘on-location’ designing, Melanie takes you through her process of building a world for a set that is inside a house/location. She also explains the difference between a location and a set. Vince is a world-travelling production designer who is renowned for his set builds and imaginative designs. He is admittedly a hoarder who loves to draw on the peculiar for the sets he creates. Throughout this episode Vince offers tips and tricks to finding the best pieces for your set, the tools he uses all the time and the props he’s built in the past.

Taught By:
Anna Jane Edmonds

This is the moment all the organizing you did at the beginning comes together and you pat yourself on the back for having an amazing production binder and for keeping all your receipts. AJ will guide you through returning gear, expense reports, invoices, how to pay people, and the wrap binder. Not the most fun part of production, however this is where you get to determine how under or over your budget is and make sure you are covering all the basis to pay people and keep them happy so they come out on your next shoot!

Taught By:
Gina Simone
Zach Ramelan
Sydney Cowper

Gina Simone walks you through the process of saving footage and making sure everything is organized so you don’t lose hours upon hours trying to hunt through folders for the right shot. And then Zach Ramelan takes you through his process of how to cut a scene for the emotional reaction you want to elicit from the audience, and gives you some of his tricks on how to streamline this process to make it as simple as possible. Then Sydney teaches you how a union editor manages multiple media sources on a bit production.

Taught By:
Zach Ramelan

Zach Ramelan walks you through how sound makes up the films you see, some easy to follow best-practices when recording it. And how to use sound design in emotional storytelling when you hit the editing room.

Taught By:
Spencer Creaghan

Ever wonder how music is built into a scene? How does a composer know what music goes with what genre? Award-winning composer, Spencer, takes you through his process of working with directors, building atmosphere and tone, and organizing your thoughts to stay on task.

Taught By:
James Young

James Young takes you through the basics of how to use VFX on set to augment your scene and when to, and when not to “fix it in post”. This is the director’s guide to VFX and gives an overview of how powerful this tool can be for storytelling.

Taught By:
Karl Janisse

In the digital era, capturing the image is only half the battle. In this episode Cinematographer, Karl Janisse, wraps up cinematography by helping you through the basics of grading your final picture in DaVinci Resolve. As well as offering tips and guidance for getting the most out of your image.

Taught By:
Zach Ramelan

Zach Ramelan helps you press the final “render” button and make sure you are ready for distribution. Formats and file-types are key here.

Taught By:
Zach Ramelan
Anna Jane Edmonds

So! Your film is locked and you’re ready to send it out into the world. But… where should it go? Zach and AJ walk you through the options for screening and how to decide what to do.

Taught By:
Karl Janisse
Gina Simone
Zach Ramelan
Charlie Hamilton
Anna Jane Edmonds

In a world where competition is high, finding people to lean on and work beside is key to the success of your film but also your career. In this round table discussion, these 5 filmmakers review the challenges and rewards of collaboration and the invaluable nature of building a strong team and give an overview of the importance of collaboration before you hit record on the camera and how a good team-working environment can make or break your film. This is literally where we see most indie films fail – so don’t skip this course!