Prague Film School

Course in Filmmaking

Filmmaking Year Program

The year program in filmmaking is designed to bring the participant to a level of professional competence upon course completion. Films made in the course of the course reflect a gradual progression from the basics of filmmaking to the successful completion of a well-crafted film. Each stage of the process is developed under the supervision of the faculty whose courses cover theoretical and technical topics aimed at deepening knowledge and honing technical skills.

The year program is divided into two semesters. In the first semester, each student completes foundation courses in screenwriting, directing, cinematography, and editing. Students also enroll in two elective courses while receiving additional training in sound, lighting, camera movement, and grip.

Practical exercises are integrated into the curriculum and each student works on up to 16 to 20 productions in some crew capacity within the first 4 months of the program.

During the second semester, students can specialize in the area of their choice. Each specialization has its curriculum. In all specialization areas, students are exposed to a significant amount of practical work on film sets.

The great emphasis of the second semester is placed on the Diploma Film, which should be of film festival quality.

Content of the 1st semester

The first-semester curriculum of the narrative filmmaking program covers foundation courses including (1) screenwriting, (2) directing, (3) cinematography, and (4) editing, in addition to several other subjects that can be taken as electives (see below).

Foundation Courses (obligatory)

• Screenwriting Course
• Directing Course
• Cinematography Course
• Editing Course

Elective/Specialization Courses (each student takes 2 courses)

• Acting
• Art Direction
• Advanced Cameras
• Aspects of Film Language
• Blocking
• Central and East European Cinema
• Czech Language
• Directing Actors
• Directing the Camera
• Documentary Theory and History
• Experimental Film
• Film Industry
• Film Comedy
• Film Analysis
• Lighting
• Master Shot
• Photography for Cinematography
• Post-production effects
• Post-production workflow
• Screenwriting Feature Film
• Sound

Production Workshops (obligatory)

• Operation of filmmaking equipment (camera, lighting, and sound systems)
• Crew production protocol
• Sound production (recording, mixing, design)
• Grip equipment (camera support systems)

Studio Work: End of Semester Film

64 hours of studio work.

Film and practical exercises play an extremely important role in the program. Classroom-based courses are supplemented with several practical exercises in the studio and at different locations. In the first semester, each student completes four film projects of his/her own, performing the functions of screenwriter, director, cinematographer, and editor on all of them. Each student works on another sixteen to twenty projects shot by other students.

Content of the 2nd semester

Second semester, students are encouraged to specialize in one of the core disciplines covered during the first semester.

Each specialization entails a group of courses that must be taken to complete the course.

The specializations and the required classes are as follows:

Screenwriting Specialization

• Screenwriting Feature
• Screenwriting Diploma Films
• Screenwriting Across Genres
• Screenwriting Adaptations
• Film Industry Business
• Film Analysis
• Diploma Film, Script

Directing Specialization

• Directing Workshop
• Directing Music Videos and Commercials
• Directing Actors
• Documentary and Fiction Film Practicum
• Screenwriting Diploma Films
• Editing Workshop
• Diploma Film, Directing

Cinematography Specialization

• Cinematography Workshop
• Camera for Cinematographers
• Cinematography Advanced
• Film Analysis
• Editing Workshop
• Diploma Film, Cinematography

Editing Specialization

• Editing Workshop
• Editing Techniques: Commercials / Music Videos / Movie Trailers
• Advanced Editing Theory
• Post-Production Workflow
• Computer Animation
• Diploma Film, Editing

Elective Courses (each student takes 1-2 courses)

• Acting
• Art Direction
• Advanced Cameras
• Aspects of Film Language
• Blocking
• Central and East European Cinema
• Czech Language
• Directing Actors
• Directing the Camera
• Documentary Theory and History
• Experimental Film
• Film Industry
• Film Comedy
• Film Analysis
• Lighting
• Master Shot
• Photography for Cinematography
• Post-production effects
• Post-production workflow
• Screenwriting Feature Film
• Sound

Second Year Program

Filmmaking Second-Year Directing Program

The second-year program aims to refine and broaden filmmaking skills through master class sessions with some of the Industry’s top international professionals. The program trains students for the production of longer format projects and involves them in substantial full-time work on sets.

The first semester of the course is driven by workshops with visiting filmmakers, coursework, consultations, and film projects. Visiting filmmakers lead 3-day to 4-week practical labs covering directing the drama, working with actors, art direction, visualization, script analysis, managing the production process, casting, rehearsals, and more. The semester also incorporates preproduction and preparation for the films which will be shot and edited second semester.

During the second semester, students shoot 15 to 30-minute-long films. Students are in production for 45 to 60 days. Following the production of the diploma film, students engage in post-production, post-production workshops, and classes relating to the business of selling and promoting films.

Elements of the second semester include: preproduction and consultations prep work for film, production of films, post-production, and seminars on sales, festivals, and distribution.

Filmmaking Second-Year Cinematography Program

The second-year PFS cinematography program deepens the skillset developed in the year course through hands-on workshops in the classroom and full-time work on film sets.

The first semester is broken into two parts:

1. Shooting for the genre and the film camera
2. Showreel development and shooting for commercials

The first part of the program is designed along the lines of genre, working in different styles of lighting, format, and lens selection to achieve certain looks in preparation for working with the PFS directing students for their second-year projects. Class projects include the usual hi-key, low-key, mixed lighting situations in the studio but also involve shooting on location. Location work inculcates a better understanding of color temperature, electrical power, and the instruments used for different situations. The connection between the creation of the image in the camera and how it is read and interpreted by the color correction system is also treated. Students will also be introduced to the film camera and have the opportunity to shoot on Super 16mm film stock.

The showreel development and shooting for commercials part of the first semester will involve cinematography students shooting commercials for their showreels. The sessions will introduce students specifically to the world of the cinematographer in TV commercial productions. Students will go through all the steps of the process: scouting locations, planning shots, casting, shooting, color-grading, and editing the commercials. Each student will DP on one commercial and work in the camera or lighting unit on another three. Each student will cut his/her version of each commercial.

We want to send our cinematography students out into the (real) world with a contemporary and professional-looking showreel, a body of work that gets them in the door and working and earning a living. The aim of the workshops is two-fold: to help students build a body of professional-grade material for their showreels, and to instruct cutting-edge lighting and camera techniques under the mentorship of one of Prague’s leading DPs.

During the second semester, students shoot up to 30-minute-long films. Students are in production for 45 to 60 days. Following the production of the film, students will be involved in post-production (including color correction), post-production workshops, and classes relating to showreel development.

Filmmaking Semester Program

The semester program at Prague Film School is a highly intensive, praxis-oriented course with a steep learning curve. The objective of the program is to instruct concrete craft skills through substantial production and coursework. By the program's end, students will have developed a certain fluency in both the technical aspects of filmmaking and film language in general.

Students enrolled in the semester program are required to follow courses in each of the core modules of screenwriting, editing, cinematography, and directing. Students attend classes in sound, camera-related workshops, and two elective courses from a menu of courses listed below. Within the semester, each student can direct four film productions while working on up to an additional 16 - 20 film sets.

By the end of the course, students will be competent in: shooting with RED, and Black Magic cameras; operating and designing with lights ranging from dedos to 4K HMI, editing with AVID Media Composer systems, color grading, applying graphics and animation using After Effects, location sound recording and sound post-production. Students will have also received training in screenplay structure and dramaturgy, character development, script analysis, visualization, color theory, directing the camera, directing actors, and more.

The semester program is the first semester of the year course. It is possible to enroll in the semester course and then prolong one's studies to the second semester of the year course while studying in the semester program. However, doing so incurs higher fees than enrolling in the year program directly. Kindly refer to the application form for fees.

The semester curriculum of the narrative filmmaking program covers foundation courses including (1) screenwriting, (2) directing, (3) cinematography, and (4) editing, in addition to several other subjects that can be taken as electives (see below).

Foundation Courses (obligatory)

• Screenwriting Course
• Directing Course
• Cinematography Course
• Editing Course

Elective/Specialization Courses (each student takes 2 courses)

• Acting
• Art Direction
• Advanced Cameras
• Aspects of Film Language
• Blocking
• Central and East European Cinema
• Czech Language
• Directing Actors
• Directing the Camera
• Documentary Theory and History
• Experimental Film
• Film Industry
• Film Comedy
• Film Analysis
• Lighting
• Master Shot
• Photography for Cinematography
• Post-production effects
• Post-production workflow
• Screenwriting Feature Film
• Sound

Production Workshops (obligatory)

• Operation of filmmaking equipment (camera, lighting, and sound systems)
• Crew production protocol
• Sound production (recording, mixing, design)
• Grip equipment (camera support systems)

Studio Work: End of Semester Film

64 hours of studio work.

Film and practical exercises play an extremely important role in the program. Classroom-based courses are supplemented with many practical exercises in the studio and at different locations. In the first semester, each student completes four film projects of his/her own, performing the functions of screenwriter, director, cinematographer, and editor on all of them. Each student works on another sixteen to twenty projects shot by other students.

Filmmaking Summer Workshops

Covering screenwriting, directing, camera, editing, and sound, the four-week summer workshops at Prague Film School are designed to lead the student from story idea to finished short film.

The first two weeks of the program are classroom-based – introducing the fundamentals of directing, screenwriting, editing, cinematography, and sound while also prepping students for their end-of-workshop short film. Each student writes and directs his or her short while also working on other student productions in various crew capacities.

In the third week, students shoot their films – five minutes in length and shot with the assistance of the school production office, providing access to one of Europe’s largest props and costumes studios and the city of Prague as the film set.

In the final week of the program, students edit their films, all of which are screened at a public cinema and reviewed by the faculty. Some might even end up hitting the festival circuit.

Week I (classes)

Monday - Friday

• Screenwriting: 9.30 - 11.15
• Directing: 11.30 - 13.15
• Cinematography: 15.00 - 16.45
• Editing: 17.00 - 18.45

Saturday

• Film exercise shooting: 9.00 - 18.00

Sunday:

• Film exercise editing: 9.00 - 21.00

Week II (classes, consultations & pre-production for film shoot)

Monday - Friday

• Screenwriting: 9.30 - 11.15
• Directing: 11.30 - 13.15
• Cinematography: 15.00 - 16.45
• Editing: 17.00 - 18.45

Saturday - Sunday

• Shooting of student films

Week III (shooting of student films)

Students shoot their films, and crew for other students.

Week IV (post-production & evaluations)

Monday - Thursday

• Post-production

Friday

• Public screening: 9.00 - 11:30
• Evaluations with faculty: 12.00 - 17.00
• Closing event: 20.00

The majority of Prague Film School students come to us in hopes of using us as a stepping stone into the Industry. While the backgrounds of our students are heterogeneous, their aims for the future are homogeneous – to make a living making films. The first thing the school does to help them in this pursuit is equip them with the skill set to make it in the real world. Distinguishing Prague Film School graduates from those of many other film programs is that all our alumni have the skills to fill all crew positions upon graduation. As such, Prague Film School graduates have been uniquely successful at forging careers in filmmaking after graduation.

What makes Prague Film School special?

Praxis-oriented

One would be hard-pressed to find a program that provides as much practical exposure to filmmaking. More than 400 films are shot per year at Prague Film School: each student in the year program can produce 4-5 films of his/her own and participates in as many as 30 other productions. The operating principle of Prague Film School is training, and we believe as with instruments or with languages, the only way to develop fluency is to practice.

High-end facilities

Prague Film School is well-stocked with the latest cutting-edge equipment used in professional film productions throughout the world. Students have immediate access to the school's fleet of cameras, including RED, Arri, Blackmagic, Canon, and Sony high-definition cameras, in addition to high-end lighting, sound, and grip. The equipment can also be checked out for personal work/projects.

Intensive

The type of student who chooses Prague Film School comes to us because he or she has essentially only one year in terms of time or financial resources to cross from where he or she is in life at the moment into the world of professional filmmaking. We then have only one year to bring these students to a level of competence where they can operate professionally. As such the program is highly squeezed, with up to 10 hours of classes daily, and weekend practical activities.

Faculty-student relations

Core faculty are brought in from around the world. While all teachers are accomplished professional filmmakers, their primary purpose in Prague is to teach students at Prague Film School. The dynamics are then what you find at exclusive boarding schools and small colleges in the U.S., where the teachers are highly devoted to their students and accessible. Faculty also embody the school’s ideology of integrating European art houses with American independent cinemas.

Diversity of student body

In a student body of 100 students, 30-35 countries are represented. Nearly every other student is from a different part of the world, but there’s a sub-cultural glue binding them together. Students live and breathe film together.

Liberalism

Most students at our school have completed undergraduate studies and see their time at film school as a cherished chance to wed their deep interests with a vocation. As such, the administration treats all students as responsible adults and trusts students to take full responsibility for their studies. The school does not interfere with students’ artistic choices.