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"What an amazing hands-on experience in filmmaking! The teachers and counselors were excellent. They made learning fun and made me feel comfortable even though I was new to film. They were always there to help. Excellent program!"
-Robbie H., Utah



SOCAPA FILM


SUMMER FILMMAKING CAMPS:
Film Production Intensives
OVERVIEW
SOCAPA mixes the best of elite film programs and exciting summer camps. Nowhere else will you find this level of filmmaking intensity combined with this much fun. Each SOCAPA student writes, directs and edits three films of their own during the three-week program. Students in the abbreviated programs make one film per week of attendance. Students in the six-week program form the Advanced Filmmaking class for the final three weeks and make two additional films.

16MM & HDV CAMERAS AND FINAL CUT PRO
SOCAPA offers the immediate opportunity to learn the most recent digital technologies. For their final projects, students choose to shoot using either 16mm film cameras or state-of-the-art, 3-chip high-definition video cameras with synchronous sound. Regardless of the capture format, all students edit on Final Cut Pro non-linear, digital computer systems. This lets them create an elaborate multi-track sound design for each of their films, incorporating music, voice-over, sound effects and dialogue.

THREE-WEEK CURRICULUM:
Each SOCAPA student writes, directs and edits a film of their own per week of attendance. In addition, students are expected to work in small crews for one another.

lumiere film

1) The Lumière Film (Week One)
In a single shot of up to one minute, the student tells a simple story with a clear beginning, middle, and end. The project takes its name from the first films by the 19th-century pioneers of early cinema, Pierre and August Lumière.
porter film

 

2) The Porter Film (Week Two)
Edwin Porter was one of the first filmmakers to consider the possibilities of editing shots together in a continuous fashion. He led the way in creating the illusion of "continuity," where material shot over the course of days or weeks looks, once it is cut together in sequence, as if it all flows together over the course of minutes. His famous film, The Great Train Robbery, is the inspiration for this second film, where students explore the same issues Porter faced, and make a 2 to 3 minute film that focuses on continuity.
kubrick film 2

 

3) The Kubrick Film (Week Three)
Perhaps the greatest and most innovative filmmaker that America has produced, Stanley Kubrick made one masterpiece after another over his five decade career. He set the standard for cinematic excellence in a multitude of genres, combining staging, lighting, set design, acting, and editing to create a radical new vision of what film can do. With films such as "2001: A Space Odyssey," "Dr. Strangelove," "Barry Lyndon," "Lolita," "The Shining," and "Full Metal Jacket," Kubrick proved himself again and again to be a master of his craft. For their third film, a 4-6 minute project, we challenge SOCAPA students to take everything they have learned in the previous weeks and to forge their own masterpiece.


SIX-WEEK CURRICULUM:
Students in our Six-Week Filmmaking Program go on to form the Advanced Filmmaking Program after the first three weeks. Returning students from prior summers join the group and they each make two longer projects, the Hitchcock and Kazan Film, in the final three weeks. See our Advanced Filmmaking page for more details.

"My son attended your film program last summer and due very much to SOCAPA will be attending NYU Film School starting in a few weeks. He went to SOCAPA with some interest in the movies but with no real experience. He came home after three weeks with a love of film, the desire to make it his life's work, and an 8-minute film that became the basis of his NYU application.

His high school does have a film program, but they were unable to get the kids to produce in four years what you were able to do in three weeks. Needless to say, his film teacher was really impressed by your program. His grades and scores did not make him a shoo-in for NYU, so we have to believe his film was an essential part of his application. We certainly can't thank you enough!"
-Bonnie S., Florida



SOCAPA | 375 Greenwich Street | New York, NY 10013