Savannah College of Art & Design

tr. Current Student, 09-May-2010
The Savannah College of Art and Design is an excellent institution to approach the mastery of any aspect of film production and distribution. The resources are all available to students from a very early point. Thousands and thousands of dollars of equipment in my freshman year. To be clear: as a freshman I was handling an SDX900 and dozens of lighting kits with abundant amounts of grip and electric equipment to back this up. Like any moderately sized collegiate environment it can at times feel like you are moving through a system but what I have found is that small classes (my Lighting and Field class consisted of six people) and active participation on my part by asking questions and studying constantly has been very beneficial to me. As a student of cinematography I have been very pleased with the physical resources of the film department and their availability to me. More importantly though I am generally pleased with the schools resources over all. Guest speakers from every field of art are constantly arriving and speaking at the school and the resources for artists at Jen library are simply unmatched. I do feel the emphasis here clearly is on your fine arts education. I have however made a significant effort to grow in my liberal arts education and used the resources available from the library and liberal arts department to make this happen. The largest criticism I can give of the school is of the quarter system it abides by. The quarter system is very, very intense. Ten weeks flies by and when multiple films are due from concept to creation to final edit in three or so weeks it can be very, very overwhelming. At this time it also seems that the school is lacking in a lot of writers or even great storytellers. If you yourself cannot think of a strong story and compelling characters you might be out of luck if trying to find a collaborator here to help you. The quarter system can cause you to feel rushed through some classes which again is why I call for all students to ask as many questions as they can, attend their professors office hours, and be as involved as possible the whole way through. Another criticism of this school is the city itself. If you are interested in film or even art in general it is fairly likely you will have an urban personality. (at least this is what I have encountered and observed in my peers) While the historic district of Savannah may pass as a large city at times the longer I live here the more I am confronted with the ugly truth that this is anything but a large city. Where you live during college is a fairly enriching part of the experience. If you are willing to trade a cool town like Austin or New York for a better and in many ways more personal film school experience then either of those cities can offer then Savannah may just be a good way to go. In brief: Resources - fantastic. Best of the best. Faculty - has it's shining moments and it's not so great moments, asking seniors and successful students who to take clarifies that very quickly. City - not so great. Interesting, sure, but not so great. Leaves much to be desired. Like a good music scene, or a nice movie theater, or a nice theater scene. Closing thoughts: If you are a heavily self motivated student with a desire to be the best filmmaker you can possibly be you will receive abundant opportunities to grow in your craft as a storyteller here. The pieces are all here for you to learn how to make great movies and make them while your here. If you require motivation and a bit of a push... Well you probably should consider a different line of work anyway but this certainly isn't the school for you.

Carlos Current Student, 31-Aug-2006
Great school. Kick ass program. Nothing more to say.

Persival Former Student, 03-Aug-2005
The school is okay, but for the money it costs to go there... Everything is extremely impersonal, and the film program (along with the rest of the school) grows in population every year. You can still learn a lot though - there are some very good professors. If you don't mind paying a fortune just to be a number.

Yousof Lenjawi Current Student, 27-Sep-2004
I am currently enrolled in SCAD majoring in Film, I think it has an excellent program, and a high standards for the equipments they buy, so we don't have to rent anything from outside. Most of the professors that I met tell me that they chose to teach in SCAD because it is one of its kind when it comes to resources.

Noel Former Student, 12-Jan-2004
One of the few film schools where a filmmaker can learn from the first class til the last. Modern equipment from miniDV to DVCPro to HD cameras, from AVID to Final Cut Pro. SCAD is a true leader in film school education. The school will become the next UCLA before long. I'm proud to have recieved my MFA and highly recommend SCAD to any serious filmmaker (young and/or old).