One class stands out, even after all these years,” says uber-producer-director Shawn Levy of his time in the MFA program at USC’s famed film school. “[Producer and film historian] Bruce Block’s class on visual expression was revelatory. I still to this day think about and use the things I learned in that class.”
While the programs on The Hollywood Reporter’s annual list of the nation’s best film schools only run two, three or four years, the lessons learned and connections made last a lifetime. Just ask Danya Jimenez and Hannah McMechan, who met as freshmen at Loyola Marymount University’s film school and last year co-wrote the Netflix animated hit and Oscar winner KPop Demon Hunters.
As the industry begins openly courting AI advancements, schools that introduced the controversial technology into the curriculum two years ago continue to double down, with UT Austin adding even more dedicated AI classes to their course catalogs. At the same time, other schools like AFI and Wesleyan are bolstering their celluloid offerings at a time when analog film is becoming an increasingly large selling point.
Even with a top education, employment in the contracting entertainment industry is far from ensured, and student loans continue to be a massive burden for any aspiring filmmaker. But schools are looking out for students even after they turn in their cap and gown. At Chapman University, a seven-figure donation will be going toward the school’s career center. And then there are the fully-funded MFA programs at Northwestern for an entirely tuition-free (albeit competitive) graduate degree.
With all of this in mind — and after many calls, emails and all-nighters in the campus library — THR unveils its 2026 list of the nation’s top film schools.
Source: Hollywood Reporter — This article was automatically imported from the source. Read full article at original source →
