What percentage of film school graduates move into the industry?

November 30, 2006 11:42 PM

What percentage of film school graduates move into the film industry? What about UCLA film school graduates?
posted by FearAndLoathingInLJ to Education (6 answers total)

Anyone who answered your very specific inquiry would be making a wild-ass guess, don't you think? Getting a figure depends on alumni registering with their alumni associations and then updating their employment information, and then all you get is the skewed sample of those who were motivated to do so.

You could ask them.
posted by planetkyoto at 4:05 AM on December 1, 2006

Just from loosely observed experience, half ditch that career path altogether and join father's business or some such, quarter in advertising or industrial video etc., quarter actually do something related to theatrical or broadcast production.
posted by StickyCarpet at 5:22 AM on December 1, 2006

Based on my graduating class, I'd say less than 10%. Into the proper film industry, less than 1. Keep in mind that film schools keep spitting out more graduates every year too.
posted by filmgeek at 5:27 AM on December 1, 2006

My class had results roughly equivalent to filmgeek's. Problably a little higher than 10%, but that includes kids that went into local news production and more journalism-y stuff like that. Some also headed towards the advertising world.

But, yeah, 1-2% max made it to the industry proper.
posted by dogwalker at 8:34 AM on December 1, 2006

Anecdotal, but I think that 1-2% is way off... Especially if you count Production Assistants. Do PAs count? What about working on commercials/music videos? Most grips/electricians take that work over features any day... it's soul-less but the rate is much, much better.

In my class (Emerson, '02) I'd say it was more like 10-15%. And that's a conservative estimate. I've seen tons of people I went to school with randomly on the streets unloading grip trucks and that's in New York, not LA. Plus, pretty much my entire circle of college friends (maybe 15 out of a class of 150 are in the industry, so that's 10% right there.
posted by nathancaswell at 12:07 PM on December 1, 2006

I also went to Emerson (WLP major, '04), and I'd say at least 10-15% of the film kids I know are working in movies/tv/video production/commercials. I know tons of PAs, some writers, some editors, a fair number of grips and similar positions, and many who still make their own movies. Some went to LA, some NY, some even out here to San Francisco.

I also know a fair number who went to LA, gave it a try, were reasonably successful, but decided not to stick with it. But, yeah, I think 15% is a fair, if slightly conservative number, from my experience.
posted by mostlymartha at 1:05 PM on December 1, 2006