How to Work in the Audiovisual Industry?

Want to create, thirst for recognition, desire to participate in a collective project… the film professions inspire many young people. The 6 students from the École Supérieure des Métiers Artistiques preparing to walk the famous red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival would not disagree.

After being received at the Ministry of Culture a few days ago, Marine, Eloïse, Louise, Amandine, Jonas, and Lucas will participate on May 17 alongside about twenty other film students in the hope of winning the short film prize awarded by the Cinéfondation. Sailor’s Delight, their animated short film, took nearly a year of work. It was selected from around 2500 graduation projects submitted by students from around the world.

Cinema, audiovisual: jobs for the future?

210 million admissions, around 1.4 billion in revenue, over 700 new films, and nearly 8000 distributed*… In France, cinema is doing quite well. Moreover, it is significantly ahead at the European level. In 2016, the support it received even led to the creation of 20,000 jobs.

The time when, according to Michel Audiard, “French cinema (was) a reflection of France: we do not have enough money and that’s the case in all areas,” seems to be over today.

However, considering a career in cinema or audiovisual, it’s a bit like wanting to venture into craftsmanship: the choices are vast as there are dozens of professions and many more training options.

While the director, actor, and screenwriter remain among the most iconic for the average person, others, more numerous and for some more accessible, offer more opportunities.

Working in cinema or audiovisual, but doing what?

Costume designer, camera designer, set designer, editor, props master, manager, lighting designer… the first question to ask when looking to study in cinema or audiovisual is about the professional activity that will follow.

For those who wish to evolve in this universe at all costs, two main scenarios can be presented:

the world of cinema or audiovisual attracts you, but you have no clear idea of the profession to pursue: rather creation or technique? Production or logistics? Are there written opportunities? How much would I earn as an editor?
… your professional choice is made; your questions mainly concern the training that will allow you to achieve it: long or short studies? Public or private? In France or abroad?

…

Whatever your situation, Tonavenir Advisors can guide you. Contact the person closest to you for a first no-obligation meeting.

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Studying film: which training to choose?

The heterogeneity of existing professions makes any type of classification difficult. The Parcoursup platform requires you to choose a type of training before accessing a long list of specialties. As for the orientation portal for all, although it offers multi-criteria search, it may not necessarily suit those who wonder about becoming a professional.

Cinema is a strong desire to marry image with sound.

Since most cinema and audiovisual professions require both image and sound, this definition of cinema, proposed by David Lynch in an interview with Studio Magazine, could have served as a first step. But it does not take into account the disparities in training that pertain to one or the other.

It is therefore easier to try to list the main channels offered.

Short studies for technical professions in cinema and audiovisual

Production management, image or sound professions, editing and post-production, engineering techniques… the BTS in audiovisual professions has fewer than a dozen specialty options. It is open to holders of a baccalaureate, S, ES, or Professional depending on the chosen option. These two-year courses are offered in both public and private institutions and allow access to positions as an editor, sound technician, camera operator…

Fémis and ENSLL: the reference film schools

The greatest filmmakers are not all students of the most prestigious schools. Jean-Luc Godard in his time, or more recently Xavier Dolan or Quentin Tarantino have shown that self-taught individuals can succeed without the prerequisites of formal training.

Fémis (formerly IDHEC) and the École Nationale Supérieure Louis Lumière, both public, are nevertheless a key to those seeking recognized training. These two highly selective schools are “accessible” through competitive exams for Bac +2 students.

Abroad, INSAS in Belgium, Centro Sperimentale di cinematografia in Italy, MET Film School in the UK, School of Cinematic Arts at the University of Southern California in the United States… are equally high-quality alternatives.

Private training: covering most cinema and audiovisual professions

Directing, image, sound, editing and post-production, screenwriting, set design… there are dozens of training courses in cinema and audiovisual professions. For certain disciplines, such as 2D and 3D animation, some applied arts and design schools may be able to complement this already long list. This is the case, for example, with La Poudrière in the south of France.

Given the sometimes high costs of these private training programs, but also because the differences between the promises of glamour and professional reality are not uncommon, it is necessary to take some precautions before choosing one:

Prefer a school recognized by the state that guarantees you student status.
Ask former students of the school you are targeting if possible.
Discover the “cinematographic” or “audiovisual” backgrounds of the educational team.
Ensure that the student/teacher ratio is not disproportionate.

A NEW PRIVATE TRAINING REFERENCED ON DATADOCK

Stardust MasterClass offers innovative online training courses dedicated to the cinema, audiovisual, and writing professions. Comprehensive courses, exclusive videos from renowned professionals, a competition, and much more…

At university, film culture, but not just that…

In a baccalaureate, there are nearly a hundred courses in performing arts throughout France. Theater studies, Cinema, Audiovisual, Visual Studies, Multimedia and Digital Arts, Music and Sound Professions… The options are numerous, the descriptions are not always easy to identify, and the connections even less so.

On the other hand, contrary to a commonly held belief, the university does not only train scholars of Andrei Tarkovsky and other specialists in a cinema that would be purely academic. While the time spent studying film history in certain degrees is not negligible, some universities, like Paris 8, have chosen experimentation and practice.

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Enjoying free film and audiovisual training?

That is now possible. Shooting, framing, writing, editing, mixing, directing… have always been part of your dreams? For those whose study budget is closer to the budget allocated to the film El Mariachi ($7,000) than that devoted to Pirates of the Caribbean ($350 million), there are two schools that do not require a diploma or tuition fees.

The École de la Cité, founded by Luc Besson in Paris, and the CinéFabrique in Lyon should delight young cinema lovers. On the other hand, the entrance exam should help you understand your future motivations as a filmmaker.

INTERVIEW WITH LAURENCE PICOLLEC

” data-srcset=”https://www.tonavenir.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/laurence-picollec-66×66.jpeg 66w, https://www.tonavenir.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/laurence-picollec-100×100.jpeg 100w, https://www.tonavenir.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/laurence-picollec-200×200.jpeg 200w, https://www.tonavenir.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/laurence-picollec.jpeg 285w” data-sizes=”auto” data-orig-sizes=”(max-width: 285px) 100vw, 285px” /> Producer and Executive Producer after having been the director of the Cinema division and Administrative and Financial Director respectively at Bonne Pioche Productions and Arena Films (which was part of the Pathé Group for 5 years), member of the Investment Committee of a Sofica or the Cinema Commission of the Languedoc-Roussillon Region, script reader for the CNC… Holder of a Master 2 in Finance, Laurence Picollec could have chosen derivatives, corporate bonds, or stock swaps in the City of London to brighten her professional days. Her passion for cinema took precedence.

She has actively participated in the production of more than thirty films such as “The Fox and the Child,” “Once Upon a Forest” by Luc Jacquet, “Sentimental Destinies” by Olivier Assayas, “Pola X” by Leos Carax, “Life Doesn’t Scare Me” by Noémie Lvovsky, or “We Know the Song” by Alain Resnais.

” data-orig-src=”https://www.tonavenir.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Picto-1.png” alt=”picto tonavenir.net” width=”16″ height=”24″ />Given the number of possible professions, it is difficult to advise a high school student considering a career in cinema or audiovisual. But do you think some professions are more promising than others?

Due to the recent evolution of consumption patterns, the audiovisual sector is an extremely dynamic market, and the professions offered by this sector are rich and evolving. The multiplication of broadcasting channels (cinemas, televisions, mobile media, video game consoles, virtual reality headsets, or AR glasses) brings new professions to the emergence of new professions. Traditional audiovisual professions are not disappearing but evolving according to technical advancements and are now less insulated between fields (cinema, video games, digital series, etc.). It is storytelling that remains paramount, not the means of distribution. On the other hand, besides writing, technical professions are strongly impacted, and a deep knowledge of the various trades (lighting, sound, editing, etc.) is an asset, even becoming essential, to adapt to new media or new immersive experiences, for example.

” data-orig-src=”https://www.tonavenir.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Picto-1.png” alt=”picto tonavenir.net” width=”16″ height=”24″ />Your studies did not predispose you to work in the cinema field; how did you manage to adapt to the constraints specific to this universe?

It is rare to arrive in this field by chance. These are demanding professions, very engaging, and that fit into long cycles that do not suit everyone, despite the glitter and glamour image that this sector exudes. The passion that drives the majority of those who choose it remains our smallest common denominator. You must be able to accept pressure, time and budget constraints, and serve a project, led by a woman or a man, the director, with a vision, that you must know how to support throughout the process of its development, but also its exploitation, both in France and internationally.

” data-orig-src=”https://www.tonavenir.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Picto-1.png” alt=”picto tonavenir.net” width=”16″ height=”24″ />How do you see the cinema market in the next 10 years? Are there emerging trends? New professions? New forms of distribution?

… As I said, we are only at its beginnings with the arrival of new forms of storytelling and emerging new markets that will see new digital experiences offered by digital series, video games, virtual reality, or mixed reality, for example. The entire chain of a project, from conception to writing, to production or distribution, is affected. These professions, still to be discovered for some, will not be the sole prerogative of the “entertainment” sector since traditional industrial companies working in other sectors (banking, tourism, leisure, etc.) are already beginning to use them today.