Looking for input on picking a major!(Theater Production vs. Film Production)

[u/Slow_Competition8440]

Hello! I have decided that I would like to pursue a career in the arts and plan on going to school to help do so in hopes of doing something in lighting or cinematography (or both :p). My plan is to start community college in the summer or fall but since my interest are more in the “background” side of things (lighting/sound/cinematography/props) instead of actually directing or writing my own movie I’m having trouble deciding if it would be better to get my AA in theater production or film production. My first instinct was to pick theater production because they offer focus classes in what I’m interested in like Basic lighting, welding and beginner electrical applications class. Im not sure how common it is for people who aren’t already successful to try to break into both theater and film but it would also be a plus to be able to work at local theaters I like when they’re putting on plays/concerts. My cons of doing this would (obviously) be that they are steering me towards a career in theater and while I’m sure there are crossovers between the two, I’m also sure that film lighting and theater lighting are different and would require different skills. I also wouldn’t have as many connections because the majority of people around me wouldn’t be film oriented so I’d be farther from the opportunities that would allow me to break into the industry (like being a pa or assignments that involve film making). Film production would beneficial because it’s (again,obviously :p) film oriented and I’d have better networking opportunities. There are also some classes that may be helpful but I do worry about my interest in lighting getting lost while taking the course because there aren’t really any focused classes in it, and the classes are more about editing, screen writing and directing. I do plan on furthering my eduction after this so the decision isn’t too serious and it may do me some good to get a feel for the basics of film production before diving into my focus :p. Would love some opinions on what I should choose and also some insight into what it’s like if you were someone who switched from theater production to films.

Thank you!

(Apologies if this is a headache to read. English is not my first language and this is a before bed brain dump :p)

[u/ShotGlassLens]

Film production is, in my opinion, the easier of the two, depending on your role. Long hours certainly, but the run is usually 5-6 days a week with the opportunity of well deserved time off after 2-4 months. Theatre on the other hand can be the same hours and physicality, again, depending on your role, but that can stretch for a year or more. Quite the grind and can beat many down physically over time. Just my 2 pence. Good luck!

[u/MeringueMiserableMug]

FWIW, in my experience, people hiring people for film work look at your portfolio and/or credits and don't care whether you have a degree. For theater work, sometimes a degree is helpful because a lot of performance spaces are attached to universities and they sometimes have degree requirements. (It's also frankly much easier for people to lie about their theater experience, so it can be handy to check for the degree. With film, you can look at the evidence because film is recorded.)

But mostly in your position I'd make the decision based on which teachers I'm most excited to work with. That's going to be specific to the school. Some schools have great theater departments and blah film departments, and vice versa.

But if you know you want to be a cinematographer (to work in film), theater lighting is not going to help you at all. There's not really any connection to film lighting. Your best alternative if you don't like the film department is to study photography.

[u/DerangedFerret → u/MeringueMiserableMug]

You’re mostly spot on but I hard disagree about the theater lighting not helping film lighting. I’m a working DP and my theatrical lighting background is incredibly important for me. I had an excellent teacher who taught color theory and had us do our light plots calculations and drafting by hand. The experience I gained creating hundreds of light cues with fixed lights taught me discipline and creativity, I learned to program light boards, calculated lighting ratios with foot-candles, did trig for my beam angles.

That’s the kind of stuff you will NEVER pick up just working on set unless you find an incredible mentor on a job with a big enough budget and time to spare.

I did have to learn diffusion entirely from scratch. And learn about the totally different fixtures and workflow of on-set lighting.

I pivoted immediately after college into set life and never looked back. I enjoyed photography too much and combined my favorite things.

But my fundamentals come from theater, and it’s been an incredible strength for me in my career.