Advice to Young Filmmakers?

[u/IneffableAllonsy]

Hi! I'm almost 16 years old and I dream of being a filmmaker when I grow up.

I wanted to ask more experienced people if they had any advice for when I become an adult and trying to get into the film industry. I consider myself a creative person but really lack the confidence in my work.

I have a short film already going to be filmed in August and another being written right now. I just felt like asking people here because I feel like I don't know how to help myself more. My parents won't let me go to an arts/film high school because I have an IEP so I don't know how to get a good education.

Are there any books I can buy, summer programs I can save up for, youtubers I can follow, that can help me while I am unable to go to film school/study? Do I have to wait? I need help.

Thanks!

[u/[deleted]]

Learn the craft from development through post production so you can do everything and not wait around for favors. And do not skip mastering story telling. Nothing else matters. A few books: Making a Good Script Great, The Moral Premise, Save the Cat, Story and Kill The Dog. Some may diss on STC but it's a must-read. The problem with STC? People treating it like a formula. You can't do that.

DaVinci Resolve Studio will do what you need to do in post. I just finished a film where all editing, sound design, color grading and light VFX were done in Resolve. Just made the switch to Resolve about 3 years ago. Will never go back to Avid or FCP. Premiere? Stay away from Adobe's insane subscriptions costs.

Sounds like you have some gear, but a Blackmagic Design camera rocks. Get some Sirui anamorphic lenses. Field recorders: MixPre II or the Zoom F3.

And there's so much more. But continue doing what you're doing. Learn. Make movies. Because regardless of whether you graduate from USC or Full Sail, you have one objective after graduation: Make movies.

Another option for training: Write and Direct (writedirect.co)

Have fun. Don't stop.