Listen all you dumb lazy bastards knocking Full Sail it's what you put into it. And that lady who wrote complaining that her husband can't find work well boo hoo, get a job you lazy slut. you've never even been to this school so how the fuck would you even know what it's like. Your husband has to start out at the bottomn of the barrel in the Film industry just like the rest of us you fuckin ass head. He probably went to a studio applying for a d.p. well he didn't get it so what's wrong w/ P.Aing for a little while. Tell your husband to grow some balls and write about fullsail on his own and as for you get a job instaed of posting nude pics on fat tatooed whores on the internet to pay back hios loan. Sincerely Dave Franco

I think you misunderstood......the L.A film school DID NOT aquire Full Sail. Full Sail now OWNS the L.A. film school. And as far as whether or not one institution is better, or what sucks and what doesn't, or blah blah blah.....you're always going to have people on opposing sides. Film school is only meant to be a step in the process.....NOTHING MORE. It depends on the individual; you can expect out of it what you put into it. No one in this industry will just hand you a job based on the fact that you went to one particualar film school over another...IT SIMPLY DOES NOT MATTER. If you have a passion for filmmaking, than a film school can lay the foundation, but ultimately, it depends on the determination of an individual, and the motivation to succeed, AND THE OPEN-MINDEDNESS to accept the fact that the film industry is so multi-faceted and diverse-and realize your lucky to get a PA job on a Hollywood film. Take that PA job, work your ass off, impress a few people....and build your reputation from there.

this thread might be dead, but i'll throw my two cents in anyhow... i've been doing location audio for a couple of years now, and i have no formal degree. anyone who assumes that you can get a job because you went to film school has obviously never worked in the industry. however, the problem with full sail is that they promise you work after graduation and don't deliver. the funny thing about that guy saying that job placement keeps in contact with him regularly didn't say anything about actually getting work. no one should expect to get anything without working for it, but when you spend 16 hours a day and tens of thousands of dollars for an education, you should be able to be reasonably confident that you will come out of there ready to work with plenty of prospects. especially at full sail, where their primarily selling point is that THEY WILL GET YOU A FREAKING JOB. the sad truth is, you'd be much better off spending your $30,000 on not working for three years so you can be available to PA for free. i can confidently say that i am more marketable after having put in a year's worth of work (for which i actually MADE money) doing shitty commercials in a shitty market than i would be if i had spent the last year at fullsail. plus there's a lot of talk about contacts. obviously, you make many more valuable contacts getting people coffee on a set (with people who actually DO work in the industry) than you would with a bunch of film school students. getting people coffee is free. plus, on most non-hectic-crazy-balls-to-the-wall-poorly-scheduled shoots, anyone you ask will be more than happy to tell you how something works, why they did what they did, why something's important, etc. finally, like it or not, there's a lot of people who will actually throw away your resume because you went to fullsail. there's certainly plenty of people who would see a fullsail degree as an advantage, but there's still plenty who will assume that you are an idiot. this is not the case for people with a solid, working resume who got their start from thumbing through the phonebook and calling production companies, begging them to let them tag along. the fact of the matter is that it's simply not worth the tremendous expense. period. you can get a job without it just as easily as you could having attended. after being in a shitty subcontracting situation where i get paid less than a PA for day (while my boss takes anywhere from 1/2 to 4/5 of my money, leaving me with a paltry $100 for a 10 hour day), i've managed to make more contacts that i would've at fullsail. in september, i'll start working full time at my state's public television network doing assistant editing, audio and audio post, well on my way to becoming a legitimate, well-trained documentary film maker, which wouldn't be happening if i'd gone to fullsail. as for you, just keep talking about people "whining to their mommies and daddies" from your dorm room at your isolated, insular, head-up-its-ass school, and i'm sure you'll get hired in no time making dog food commercials. good luck!

I have been reading through this website over the past few months, as I am currently looking to go to film school next year. I'm from the UK and planning on moving to the US to study. I know a lot of people say, for all the money you pay for film school, you might as well work as a runner etc for free and gain experience and contacts etc. I think with this industry, it really is based both on luck and determination. Over the past year I've been working in the industry, taking whatever work I can get, from runner, to Production assisting and will be assisting the director on a low budget film in september. This has been great experience for me, even though I'm completely broke, I still feel its been worth it. Though my reason for going to Film School is basically because I want to learn the more technical side also, and haven't really been able to learn this from work experience. I haven't decided where to apply to yet, I was set on NYFA (hollywood), though after finding this site and reading all the reviews I decided to keep my options open and do some heavy researching on all the schools. Though its quite a hard decision to make as there is always going to be someone dissing every school/university. I don't think goin to Film School will be a waste of time or money for me, because I will get the opportunity to work with the cameras and edit my own films, meet like minded people and hopefully (though some people tend to disagree) make valuable contacts. Though at the end of the day, you can't expect the school to do everything for you, you have to do your own networking, jobhunting...thats the thing with this industry, if you want to make it, you have to be ready for alot of hard work. I think this site is great for everyone to voice their opinions about film schools, and its helped me alot...I've been able to shortlist the school (well I have 10 now instead of 20 haha). these are: USC Columbia Texas Florida State San Francisco Vancouver Loyola Marymount Full Sail NYFA New Orleans

Yeah even I know it's up to me but I don't have to curse. Just proves who is dumb. I am currently attending Full Sail and after all the glitz and glamour and of course hard work, I am finding the school to be less than what it is and what it claims to be. Yes, I know that it is what I put into it, but when you have instructors telling you discouraging things it makes it hard not to wonder if you made the correct decision on schools. I choose Full Sail because I was led to believe that they had a quality program and quality instructors, so far I have seen 3 or 4 so far, and I am not impressed with their work. And if this is how "professional" students and graduates of Full Sail act toward people looking for facts and opinions about the school, maybe that says a thing or two about the school and the people they allow in. Many don't realize the hard work it takes living in the real world, I know I do and I resent people telling me to suck it up when I am working harder than they are. I also resent those who think that anyone that complains is whining or belly-aching. Sometimes it is good to get things off your chest, but in a tactful manner, not attacking them because you don't like what they are saying. Remember folks, this is America and we have First Amendment rights that we should all exercise. Trust me if you had attacked my wife like that I'd post my address and phone number and tell you to come see me face to face and say it. Anyone can say anything online and feel like they are some kind of bad ass... let's see you get in someone's face and prove what you say is true. To all of you Full Sail grads that think the school is good, use actual facts not profanity or anything of the like to prove your point. Your actions also reflect on the school, your industry, and yourselves. As far as I can tell Full Sail has not lived up to their motto of "We take your dreams seriously" and for all of you who think I am a lazy dumb bastard, tell me it to my face... not online. I will get through this school and I will get what I paid for, BUT I will not take anything from a school that mistreats or abuses students or sells itself as a springboard to greatness when only a handfull of students supposidly make it, no matter how hard you work. I want to see facts, figures, names, not "a friend". And I still haven't been in a class with a so-called "guest speaker" has been present. I have been ignored by instructors, lab techs, and suffered abuse from the secretaries working there. And I have a standing appointment with the program director, Pete Bandstra, to talk about the things that have happened here at the school. Best advise I can give to anyone looking at any college, university, or tech school, on the tour if you see students, ask them their opinion of the school, if anyone from the school's admissions office tries to stop you then you should steer clear of that school. I wish I had done more research before coming here, but here I am and here I will stay. Any inquires can be made to cona...@hotmail.com for anything concerning the school, apartments, or anything else. I live within a 5 min. walking distance to all of Full Sail's buildings and can help if you need any questions answered that you can not get answered by the school. Parents and Students please feel free to contact me anytime if you have questions concerning the area and places to live. BTW, prior to attending Full Sail, I was teaching adults back home in Texas, so I do know something about teaching and life outside of a school.

Heh, forgot to mention this from an earlier post... "Full Sail simply is not a quality learning institution. A few years ago their Audio for Film teacher was a 19-year-old. He is now 22. The instructors are scratching by to make a living in the industry, so if they get a job working on a commercial, you may completely miss that part of your education. " 1) The class for Audio Post (there isn't a class called Audio for Film) is in the recording arts program, NOT the film program. 2) The instructor for that class, who I've known for longer than the post claiming this, is not only NOT 22, he's considerably older. 3) Film students do get a lecture from an instructor about audio for film, but it's a one-day lecture, and that guy is in his late 30's. If you want to learn "Audio for Film" (sic) I recommend the recording program, not the film program. 4) Instructors do NOT disappear to go earn money. A few of the lab specialists in the film program do work on other projects, but you'll never know it because it's on their day off. Many of them are professionals in their field, and sometimes students have had the chance to work on faculty independents, stuff that gets submitted to Sundance, etc. (These would NOT be "Full Sail" projects) To reiterate my earlier point, ANY school can be "not a quality learning institution" if you choose to let it not be so. It's what you make of it. I learned a ton, and I learned a lot of stuff not in the books/lectures. Wasn't even very hard, all I had to do was ask, and listen. You'd be surprised how FEW students do that. ----------------------------------------- Here's an example (from the Recording Arts program, but you get the idea): My lab instructor for Session Recording was Mike Reaves. He's now one of the instructors, I got lucky and had him as a lab instructor when he first came to Full Sail. A lot of students really disliked him. He demanded respect, he demanded a quiet learning environment, and he demanded that you either pay attention, or get out of his classroom. So, people bitched, people tested him, and people complained. They whined, begged, pleaded and made excuses. Meanwhile, I took advantage of the fact that this guy worked in Los Angeles and New York for years as an Engineer, on many well-known projects. I picked his brain, as did my entire lab group. Guess what happened? Two of the six in the group actually got help from Mike getting into studios in NY and LA after graduation. He helped my friend find a reasonably priced apartment in LA. I still email him on occaision. This is just one example of how one person's gripe is another person's treasure. People get so riled up and excited about complaining, they never stop to think about what they're missing while whining.

I signed up for the school with my brother last September. We left the school after 4 months. I'm not one for talking trash but facts. I was taking film and not once did I get an instructer with a degree of any form in film. The screenplay teacher not only wasn't a degree holder in writing of any type he has never sold a screenplay but he's written some commercials in the 5 years plus he's been in the "field". The school doesn't grade you on your ability but rather your ability to mold to their style. My screenplay wasn't graded on the story and writing style but rather if it fit their ideas. Hell they said my formatting was wrong...guess Final Draft should get sued. The teachers have a "who gives a fuck" attitude. It's a money grubbing school that only wants your money. It's funny how a school could be open for so long but have no bragging rights on thier students. They bragged about 3 kids getting jobs at EA Sports for game design...but left out the part where the three were friends and one of their dad's was on the board. I'm sure if our fathers were on the board for Universal Pictures I could get a job there too. Bottom line is this. If your really interested in film or any media program...go some where else. The facts just keep piling up. 1) They have maybe one or two teachers with degrees...some of which are full sail graduates who graduated and became a teacher at the school. Why pay for a college kid to teach college kids? 2) They have no success rate. Look at how long the school has been open and ask yourself one question. Why do they not have ONE name. Every real media school has a big name in the industry. Spielberg, Kubrik, Hooper but Full Sail in about the decade they've been around has not had one NAME. And when your rate of finding your graduates a job is a single digit percentage...something is wrong. Here's a list of Full Sail graduates I know. Kayla = Sushi Waitress Robert = Back home looking for another school to get another degree. BP = Back at home working 3 jobs to pay for college loans. 3) this one you'll love. They jam everything you should learn in 2 years into 13 months. Meaning your only getting half of what you need but are paying more then twice as much. And as a side note, when Hurricane Charlie just hit Florida and Full Sail was closed for 4 days they're not changing the graduating day. They're just blowing off those 4 days but those students will still pay. Guess those 4 days aren't that important. The decision in the end is yours. I could go on longer explaining how if you question why your teacher doesn't have an eduacation in the subject he's teaching, you're suspended for a year but you still pay for the 13 months....Full Sail...Can't be full with no air in them.

For whatever reason, Full Sail has created one huge, hateful, loathsome community online. In a class of about 90 most of the kids there are rich college drop-outs, a fairly malcontent group to begin with. I'm not quite sure what these people want, their arguments waiver whenever they're told to do something that offends their sense of laziness. Which is it, do you want more time on the equipment or do you want easier lab hours? That dichotomy is was fueled an hour debate in my class with Dave Franco, the course director of the film program (obviously not the gentleman claiming to be Dave Franco in his inflammatory post). It ended with Mr. Franco making concessions to us. Our class has probably been given more lee-way and wiggle room for grades and attendance than any class in history. Being that I graduate in a month I just wanted to offer the following insights: Audio is covered for more than a single day. That claim may have been true when you heard that, however our class covered it for one month, thankfully. The classes attending after us will study the same material, but spread out over the year. And film has a good audio teacher in Dave White (16mm). Full Sail could best be described as a boys' summer camp that just happens to teach film on the side. This perception is due in some part to the lacking maturity levels of my fellow students, and also the levels of the lab instructors in 16mm who like screaming at people and making them cry. But those two things in and of themselves aren't really Full Sail's fault, though they are responsible for marketing to upper middle class males. If you doubt me just start asking everyone where they're from and look at what kind of car they drive. At Full Sail you are afforded many opportunities to touch things you may have never gotten to touch (Panavision camera, hello? Sexy.) and meet people that would have never given you the time of day. If that sounds like fun and you're trying to impress someone (or yourself) by getting a degree, by all means, pay your 40 grand and go to Full Sail. You'll be handed your degree, like everyone else who paid. If you want to be an artist go to a film school where they actually talk about movies abstractly and the teachers have real credentials. At least teaching credentials. Do you want to interpret or do you want to lay low down in the trenches and learn through trial and error? This is a matter of preference. Me, I'm a very straight-forward person. I don't need art explained to me like a child. I already know what I want visually and emotionally. I need tips on how to achieve those effects. Full Sail was the answer for me. I'm sorry for the plight of any person who can't get a job in what they love to do. I havn't even graduated yet and I'm a intern, thank goodness. I can't tell you if it's luck or determination. Probably lots of both, because it wasn't Placement, or peer networking (which is equally overrated if you ask me. Out of 90+ students I want to work with four professionally). Whoever mentioned something about Screenplays... Yes. What a waste of money. The instructor and his assistants are arbitrators of good taste, who pigeon hole you into a production format that only a few good films have ever been made in. And while Star Wars is an exemplary storyteller's film, it's also one of the most well-known (and hackneyed) stories ever told in modern America. You simply can't use it to effectiely illustrate even half of general screenplay technique.

Here is a brand new discussion group that focuses on the Full Sail School. Is it really a scam? or is it real? Everyone and Anyone can join and voice all of their opinions. http://groups.msn.com/FullSailSchoolSCAMorREAL/_whatsnew.msnw

Why we complain so much.?We should grow a bit more and realize that life is not "pink".At Full Sail what you get is the oportunity to work with gear and the pleasure of getting a bit of the knowlage how the real world works.Is up to you to grasp as much as you can so when you get out there you are not in "pampers" and make a fool of yourself...no matter in which dept you are in I've been doing it for over 25 yrs and is marvelous! cant coplaint of the industry!!!!

Sorry if this sounds broad, but I think the general consensus of people saying its ultimately up to the individual to find work is true. BUT, if they worked hard in school and actively look for jobs daily, then they have a valid complaint. Most of you say, its ultimately up to you to find the work, but schools like Full sail and the DAVE school advertise huge aggressive job placement and that the work force is looking for grads from their schools, because they know how to train. I'm a DAVE school grad and have been actively looking for work for 15 months now, kissing ass, sending reels, emails, made a portfolio site, constantly updating. I busted my ass while in school, never late, but always stayed late. I think one expection that should be guaranteed is that either school use and exhaust every contact they have to everyone to help find work. Rather from what I have seen is they do only for a few. Because like most of you have said things like "your new....why do you thknk you deserve a job as a newbie,.....", thats exactly the point, we are new, we were given false promises of being guided in the right direction by those with the experience. I think either school has a high price tag on cashing in on a students dreams if they can't help with employment. IF they know that newbies will have such a hard time and that their placement will suck, maybe the schools should rethink their existence or advertise honeslty and be up front with prospective students. I was promised the world, told I'd be working 3 months after graduation making a 1000 or more a week to start. Now I'm 25k in the hole, drained bank account and barely paying rent with my big shiny new school loan. THe point of going to school is to better yourself and create a better standard of living by making enough to live life comfortably(and easily pay that big school bill on top of everything else). Just my 2 cents anyways.

This might be a dead thread but I graduated from Fullsail and now go to SVA for my second degree (computer animation from fullsail, computer art at SVA). Any school where you learn an "art" is going to be 100% of what you put into it. I enjoyed my class and my experience at Fullsail but it wasn't enough for me to get a job. It was a great way to learn the basics of everything though. (Their programs are so fast paced you only have time for the basics) Combined, Fullsail gives you a lot of the technical knowledge, and SVA gives you all the art and creative knowledge to make GOOD projects. Its hard to say which one I would have picked if I only had the chance to go to one... But it would be SVA in the end, mainly because of its location. I've met so many industry people out here in New York from the conventions not related to the school, SVA works with you to get internships WHILE you're still going to the school, and each teacher is required to be a working professional outside of teaching so you know their knowledge is up to date. I loved going to Fullsail but honestly it wasn't enough to become an artist as opposed to an equipment/technology jockey. My 2 cents.

I am a union member and I've worked in entertainment as an electrician for seven years. I work with full sail grads as well as Valencia grads. As far as the quality of work ethic goes, the full sail grads don't have a clue. I know this from experience. They don't bring the proper tools (if they bother to bring any) they don't want to actually work and they are cocky as hell. My union has no respect for them. Most companies in Orlando are turned off when they see full sail on a resume. When I was 16 I wanted to go to school there. I went to the facility and all the bells and whistles had me impressed. Than they told me I would have to give them 600$ in order to hold my seat and that is non refundable and this would not guarantee that I got in when I wanted to. Also I would not be able to have a full time job while going there because of the hours. I told them I would think about it and I went home and looked up about 25 different recording studios in Florida alone. Each one basically said that they are not impressed with degrees period but especially from full sail. Long Story short, if you want to go to school for a technical degree, at least go to Valencia. It a 1/4 of the cost and you will have the respect of your peers when you enter "the Business" But to be totally honest, you don't need a degree. Just a good work ethic, willingness to learn and have the ability to get along with others. Todays co-worker could be tommorrow's boss and no school can teach you that.

FullSail is a place where you can go full of dreams and ambitions and they tear them away while keeping your money. I am currently a student and the work ethic of the teachers is the poorest I have ever seen. They preach professionalism at this school. When the teachers themselves cannot even show up on time.
They upgrade software without letting students know, and the teachers are snobby, stuck up losers. Most of them do not belong in this school even more so the actual industry. I have met only a few teachers that have actually taught me something that I couldn't have found in a book that would be priced way less than this black hole.
This is a business not a school. They take your hard earned money and crank out clones, that will have to fend for themselves when it comes to job searching because having fullsail on your resumes sure as hell won't help you.
On Top of everything else the "intelligent" people at the Florida education board thought it would be a god idea to grant them University status. What a joke maybe they should actually do some studies on the school and its "students". I have wasted my time here and once established in the industry will remove it from my resume.

My opinion find somewhere that's worth it.