US Performing Arts Camps launched one of the country’s first digital film summer camps for high school students. The year was 2001 and the US Performing Arts Film Camp was with USC Film Professor, Peter Exline. The summer film camp was held at Pepperdine University set above the beach in Malibu, California. In 2002 US Performing Arts Camps offered Digital Filmmaking programs through UCLA School of Theater Film Television.

For the 2010 season US Performing Arts has three film camp offerings at two locations, Pepperdine University and UCLA.

Film Camp
Pepperdine University

Perfect the art of visual storytelling. Become the filmmaker you dream you are. For one week you will eat, drink, and sleep movies.

Program Director: Peter Exline

By the end of the first day of camp of this Pepperdine University Digital Film Camp, each group has begun the process of learning about movies by completing a short five shot exercise in camera. During the week campers will drink, eat and sleep movies working with a state of the art digital camera, Apple computer and Final Cut Pro editing software. Guest speakers will feature their work on Hollywood movies and talk about storyboarding, cinematography and editing. Groups of five or six campers will write, storyboard, direct, act and shoot their own movie, then edit on Final Cut Pro. Camp starts each morning with a production meeting viewing movies made by former campers, challenging the imagination as we see what works and how movies get put together shot by shot. It’s a week crammed full of information, new friends and exciting possibilities with a final screening of the “Works in Progress” on Saturday afternoon.

Often campers who have come to the Digital Film Camp have continued their studies in some of the best film schools in America. Former campers now attend film schools at U.S.C., New York University, Chapman University, as well as Loyolla-Marymount, UCLA, Cal Arts and other schools. Often, campers draw on their experiences at camp to determine which direction they will take in college.

Film Camp
UCLA School of Theater, Film, and Television

Program Director: Duane Dell’Amico, David Worth

UCLA School of Theater Film and Television has an international reputation for quality education in developing individual voices of the next generation of filmmakers. This same passion and quality is now being brought to a younger generation of voices with the UCLA Arts Camp in Digital Filmmaking. This camp is being taught by award winning professionals who have contributed as faculty of the UCLA Film and Television Department. Basic techniques of digital production and postproduction will be taught while maintaining an understanding of storytelling. Using the same state of the art equipment as the Advanced Digital Filmmaking Camp, campers will be immersed in the creativity of image storytelling using supportive sound to speak their message through the digital medium. No previous experience is necessary, just a passion for storytelling through images.

This summer we are offering two sessions of Digital Film Camp which focuses on story telling while introducing elements of digital production and post production to the campers. You may have done some filmmaking in school or with your home camcorder and you will find that in the Beginning Digital Film Camp you will be using State of the Art high end digital equipment: the same equipment that is used by digital feature film makers in Hollywood. The digital camps meet on an actual soundstage in the Film, Television and Digital Media Department of the School and will experience the creativity that is immersed in the halls of the film school.

Both the Digital Film and the Advanced Digital Film Workshops use the same state of the art equipment that is used by our own film students. Our Canon, Sony, and Panasonic cameras record in mini dv. And the editing facilities use the same Final Cut Pro systems that are used in the motion picture and television industry. Workshops are held in the schools’ soundstages, screening rooms, edit rooms, foley and mix stages as the workshop meets in the building that houses the internationally recognized UCLA Film and Television Department. However, the workshops focus on story telling regardless of the tools available so all the bells and whistles that equipment may have does not make a good movie.
Students attending this program may earn 2 college credits! Click here for more information.

Advanced Digital Film Camp
UCLA School of Theater, Film, and Television

Program Directors: Michael Wohl, Myrl Schreibman

The Advanced Digital Film Camps for the summer of 2010 is now a two week camp experience. This has come because of the many requests that came from those of you who were in that camp last year and asked to have more intensive training in such areas as digital cinematography, camera direction, story telling, and editing. So we have met that request and have re-visited the curriculum into a two week program. The camp uses state of the art digital filmmaking equipment and is supported by Apple with the schools Final Cut Pro editing lab. Campers will have the experience of editing all night on their projects if they wish as Apple will be providing additional editing suites which will be placed at the dorms for the campers to use. We believe in total emersion in creativity and nurture our campers to be creative while they are at the camp. The program is headed up by Michael Wohl and Myrl Schreibman two professionals who bring the quality and expertise for which the UCLA School of Theater Film and Television is internationally known. Other faculty (based upon their availability) will be coming in from time to time to lend their expertise to the campers including Tom Denove who is the leading cinematographer in Los Angeles in digital cinematography since that is an area that many of the campers had asked about last year. So if you are planning any one of the two sessions of this camp, make sure you come with stories you want to tell and images you would like to see.

Both the Digital Film and the Advanced Digital Film Workshops use the same state of the art equipment that is used by our own film students. Our Canon, Sony, and Panasonic cameras record in mini dv. And the editing facilities use the same Final Cut Pro systems that are used in the motion picture and television industry. Workshops are held in the schools’ soundstages, screening rooms, edit rooms, foley and mix stages as the workshop meets in the building that houses the internationally recognized UCLA Film and Television Department. However, the workshops focus on story telling regardless of the tools available so all the bells and whistles that equipment may have does not make a good movie.
Students attending this program may earn 3 college credits! Click here for more information.

US Performing Arts has a Film Camp that is right for you. Join us this summer for an unforgettable experience!

This is always an exciting time of the year for theater-lovers enthralled with the legend of Broadway. The announcement of the American Theater Wing’s Tony nominations was made this morning. It’s a wonderful mix of well-known stars and stars perhaps only known to inveterate theater-goers.

New plays and new musicals, mixed with revivals of productions from times long gone bye, have received the nod from the American Theater Wing this year. Although the Tonys don’t receive quite the same kind of buzz that the Oscars do you can bet you’ll see may of those nominees as guests on the early morning and late night shows.

It’s also interesting to take note of those nominees that are no longer running on The Great White Way. I love the fact that we can honor good work and pay tribute to the craft without concern for the end result. That’s not to say that financial success should be disregarded. In my opinion financial success should be the inevitable result of the passion that wends its way into the fabric of the production. Sometimes however, the slightest ill wind can push a production helplessly off course with no land in sight. It can be as slight as a rumor passed along the internet or a misspoken word by a critic. A downturn in tourism, a harsh winter, threats of terrorism, all can adversely affect ticket sales. Producing is enormously expensive today and many productions can not stay afloat to weather those ill winds when a negative campaign hits them. So thank you American Theater Wing for acknowledging those performers and productions as well.

Speaking of productions, there is no doubt that the Tony Awards take center stage when it comes to producing the best Awards show. Since most of us can’t be in the live audience when the presentations are made let’s make a pact to share it together “live” on television on Sunday June 13th. In the meantime we can begin to form our own opinions of who will be handed that Tony when the presenter says, “And the Tony goes to…”

What will your choice for summer camp be this summer? Acting Camp? Theater Camp or Theatre Camp?

“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet.” Wm. Shakespeare

We all know the story of Romeo and Juliet whether we’ve read it in Shakespeare’s words, seen West Side Story or any number of movies whose general theme is taken from the original plot. Romeo and Juliet meet, fall in love, and then realize that their families are at war with one another and that their fate is sealed. As Juliet reaches out to salvage their love before seeing its doom she attempts to convince Romeo that his name does not define him.

That’s pretty much the way I feel about acting. You can call it by any name you wish but it’s all still about truthfully inhabiting a character and the technique you employ to come to that place. That is what underlies the craft. To me there is no such thing as a film actor or a television actor or a stage actor. An actor acts in whatever medium is at hand. That said, there are basic skills an actor must learn in order to succeed in each of the mediums.

I always liken an actor’s “bag” to any good craftsman’s toolkit. It makes a great metaphor and one to which we can all relate. Everyone has seen a skilled working carpenter with his tools. The carpenter brings his toolbox to the job and then selects the right tools to put in his/her belt depending on the job to be done. So it is with the actor. First you must begin with the basics. Good sound acting begins with the foundation of an established proven technique. That’s where you establish the essential tools. Every good craftsman must have a hammer, screwdriver, and wrench. Every actor needs to know how to break down a script, find her essential core of emotional truth and how to connect it with the author’s intention of the role the character plays within the story. You don’t learn this in one class or workshop. You don’t learn it in a year or two either. It is an on-going process for the actor. As you continue to perfect your work in class you will become more facile with your tools. You will become precise, specific, a director’s delight, and an audience’s inspiration.

So now with the underpinnings firmly in place how does an actor make the leap to the big and small screens?  With the vocabulary of the actor firmly in place it’s time to learn the intimacies of the camera and to understand what the camera sees. It’s also the time to learn how to work in different environments to achieve the same truth. The process in theater is luxurious. There is time, albeit not as much as producers and directors used to give the actor. In film the process is so truncate that the actor needs to learn how to approach their homework as well as their on camera scene work. In television the process for the actor is almost non-existent. By the way, there’s nothing to stop you from study the craft of the theater and the camera simultaneously!

In other words, the actors’ work is never done. There is always more to learn about your craft and there will always be more to discover about the character you’re creating. Perhaps that is why I am so enamored with actors like Meryl Streep, Robert Duval, Helen Mirren, and Dame Judi Dench. They are at home on any stage, in front of any camera…and I believe everything they do!

Acting Camp, Theater Camp or Theatre Camp? It doesn’t matter what it is called or how it is spelled. What matters is the training it will give you. What’s important is that you commit and that you are fully vested while you are there and that you take the principles you are taught and build on them when you leave.  I guess that’s why at US Performing Arts we say, “Your Future Begins This Summer!”

If you’re not in or aspiring to the entertainment industry the title of this blog might immediately elicit visions of air shows or the testing of new airplanes but for many hopefuls it is “green light” season. The time when the television networks and independent production companies fund new shows in hopes that they will have a “winner” for the coming season.

The very interesting thing about pilot shows is that they rarely make it to air. Often the pilot cast doesn’t make it to the series as series’ regulars or even recurring roles. It is a general misconception that the pilot is the first show of the season. Generally the pilot is used to help the studios have a more visual and concrete sense of the pitch and that can make everyone pretty expendable. By the time a show is finally green lighted for the season the creative team may have done a complete overhaul. However, that doesn’t diminish the excitement of pilot season for new faces. In fact, often it’s the “new face” that has the eventual success.

This is the time of the year that managers, agents and casting directors are looking for any young actors that fit the breakdowns. I get calls constantly for referrals. We tend to be pretty protective of our young artists knowing how easy it is for them to be used by unscrupulous individuals out to achieve their own agendas.

Every year during pilot season we receive calls from students who have been in our workshops telling us that they are in Hollywood and need advice on where to go for coaching, how to get signed with an agent, how to wait out the waiting, etc., etc. Quite a few go on their own for several months with their parents to see if they can “make it.” Others have been enticed out to Los Angeles because they participated in a weekend workshop that talked about the fame that can come or they have a local agent that suggests they might get cast. Families are separated for a couple of months while the kids go the through the process. They are often home schooled or sign up with a studio teacher. It’s all a big gamble and there is a better approach.

Earlier this season we decided to find out how many of our students were thinking about throwing their hat in the pilot season ring. We thought there would be about 10 or 12 and that we could get them connected with the right people so that no one took advantage of them. We offered them an opportunity to receive coaching from a well-established acting coach who could get them prepared for any auditions. Did we ever underestimate the response. An e-mail was sent announcing what we were offering and within five minutes the response overwhelmed us!

I personally took calls as our phones lit up all over the office and e-mails poured in. It was a quick and decisive learning curve. We confirmed that we have an important role to play in facilitating the next generation – this generation- of artists. We also confirmed the fact that it isn’t enough to teach the craft, it is imperative to teach the business of the craft in order to protect and benefit our artists. We’re in the process now of planning some very exciting things that we think will be very helpful to promoting the growth of today’s artists.

Film festivals abound these days. It wasn’t too long ago that festivals were extremely elite and few and far between. If you were lucky you either went to Cannes, San Francisco, New York or maybe Toronto. Then came Sundance and suddenly filmmakers were able to really attract attention. Soon film festivals began to proliferate and each have a purpose. Every major city and small hamlet alike have some type of festival these days. They are a great way to have your films seen, be noticed and eventually distributed.

Now many festivals are sporting a youth division and that by the way, is exciting. These divisions highlight student films and often have reviewing and critiquing panels well suited for making comments that guide young filmmakers on to making better and better films. We hope and expect our summer intensive students to take their knowledge gained in our workshops and make films outside of camp. We encourage them to look into entering their films in local and national film festivals and ask them to keep us informed of how their films are received. We want to celebrate their work.

Today we received an announcement of the 11th Annual Newport Beach Film Festival and its call for 2010 Youth Division Entries. There will be a free screening of the chosen films on April 25, 2010 and a Q & A with the audience. For more information and entry form instructions visit the festival website.  The Newport Beach Film Festival runs April 22-29, 2010 and whether you enter a film or not go and enjoy the films. You might discover a new favorite filmmaker…or revisit an old favorite.  Even better, maybe your film will be in the spotlight. Let us know.