In December, three prominent film schools announced a collaboration to create a completely Internet-based curriculum for filmmakers. The Global Film School is a joint project of the Australian Film Television and Radio School , the National Film and Television School of Great Britain, and the UCLA School of Theater, Film, and Television . Online distance learning has already become a major development in education, allowing students to take everything from basic job training to graduate-level courses entirely over the Net. And it's a trend that's expected to continue. A recent study by the National Center for Education Statistics concluded that 82 percent of postsecondary educational institutions plan to increase their use of the Web and email for distance learning by 2001.
Film schools are relative newcomers to the world of Internet-based education.
The Global Film School, scheduled to begin teaching classes as early as winter 2000, will allow students interested in television and film careers to study directing, producing, screenwriting, music composition, and other related skills online. Because of the limited number of students that conventional film schools can accept, competition is fierce among aspiring filmmakers, according to the Global Film School's administrators, who say the Internet will help satisfy the worldwide demand for film education. The digital nature of the courses will also make it easier to keep students current on the latest high-tech production techniques that are becoming increasingly important in film and television production, Bayly said. The Global Film School isn't the only place to learn filmmaking online. The school's areas of focus include screenwriting, film history, the societal impact of films, stars and directors, and cult movies.