Talking With Blake (LINK)
April 11th 2008 05:34
I met Blake in Northern California pizza restaurant. We shared a couple of beers while Blake answered my questions about the screenwriting process, producing and directing. He also talked about his first independent film, Skin Art, which he produced, directed and scripted. I found him to be a very warm, good-looking, charismatic and genuinely great guy. .
So, asked him about film school, and has being a graduate of NYU helped his career. This is what he told me.
From an artistic sense, NYU offered an opportunity to shoot a lot of film for a fraction of what it would've cost to do it without university backing. The students were of a very high caliber, and the environment was definitely conducive to exploration and the pursuit of "high art." From a practical standpoint, finishing a major film school gives you a wafer-thin shred of legitimacy in the industry, which is a hell of a lot better than nothing. NYU, by virtue of its East Coast locale, doesn't offer the immediate alumnae networking advantages of the LA schools, but I'm finding now, in my thirties, many of my colleagues have finally risen to positions of modest power. And we have been able to grease a few wheels for each other...
So, asked him about film school, and has being a graduate of NYU helped his career. This is what he told me.
From an artistic sense, NYU offered an opportunity to shoot a lot of film for a fraction of what it would've cost to do it without university backing. The students were of a very high caliber, and the environment was definitely conducive to exploration and the pursuit of "high art." From a practical standpoint, finishing a major film school gives you a wafer-thin shred of legitimacy in the industry, which is a hell of a lot better than nothing. NYU, by virtue of its East Coast locale, doesn't offer the immediate alumnae networking advantages of the LA schools, but I'm finding now, in my thirties, many of my colleagues have finally risen to positions of modest power. And we have been able to grease a few wheels for each other...
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