The AFI Conservatory is a
private non-profit graduate
film school in the
Hollywood Hills district of
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
. Students (called "Fellows") learn from the masters in a collaborative, hands-on production environment with an emphasis on
storytelling
Storytelling is the social and cultural activity of sharing narrative, stories, sometimes with improvisation, theatre, theatrics or embellishment. Every culture has its own narratives, which are shared as a means of entertainment, education, cul ...
. The Conservatory is a program of the
American Film Institute
The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the History of cinema in the United States, motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private fu ...
founded in 1969.
History
The Center for Advanced
Film Studies (later the AFI Conservatory) opened its doors at
Greystone Mansion on September 23, 1969.
Harold Lloyd screened his film ''
The Freshman'' and spoke with AFI Fellows on the school's first day. The first class included
Terrence Malick,
Caleb Deschanel, and
Paul Schrader.
In 1973, filmmaker
John Cassavetes was the first filmmaker-in-residence while editing ''
A Woman Under the Influence''. In 1975, filmmaker
Ján Kadár, director of the
Oscar-winning film ''
The Shop on Main Street'', became the Conservatory's second filmmaker-in-residence.
In 2013,
Emmy and
Oscar-winning director, producer and screenwriter
James L. Brooks (''
As Good as It Gets'', ''
Broadcast News'', ''
Terms of Endearment'') joined the AFI Conservatory as Artistic Director, where he provides leadership for the film program. Brooks' artistic role at the AFI Conservatory has a rich legacy that includes
Daniel Petrie, Jr.,
Robert Wise and
Frank Pierson. Former Deans of the AFI Conservatory include
Robert Mandel
Robert Mandel (born 1945) is a film and television director and producer from Oakland, California. He is best known for directing ''School Ties'', which includes early film roles in the careers of Brendan Fraser, Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Cole Hau ...
, Jan Schuette and
Richard Gladstein.
Susan Ruskin is the current Dean of the AFI Conservatory and Executive Vice President of AFI.
Among those AFI has bestowed
Honorary Degrees
An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hono ...
upon during its annual Commencement ceremony are
Maya Angelou
Maya Angelou ( ; born Marguerite Annie Johnson; April 4, 1928 – May 28, 2014) was an American memoirist, poet, and civil rights activist. She published seven autobiographies, three books of essays, several books of poetry, and is credi ...
,
John Williams
John Towner Williams (born February 8, 1932)Nylund, Rob (November 15, 2022)Classic Connection review, ''WBOI'' ("For the second time this year, the Fort Wayne Philharmonic honored American composer, conductor, and arranger John Williams, who w ...
,
Ken Burns,
Sherry Lansing,
Sydney Pollack,
Clint Eastwood
Clinton Eastwood Jr. (born May 31, 1930) is an American actor and film director. After achieving success in the Western (genre), Western TV series ''Rawhide (TV series), Rawhide'', Eastwood rose to international fame with his role as the "Ma ...
,
Jeffrey Katzenberg,
Kathleen Kennedy,
Spike Lee,
Rita Moreno, and
Quentin Tarantino.
AFI Conservatory thesis films have been nominated for 10
Academy Awards
The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence in ...
and earned 2 wins.
Academics
Rankings
In 2023, ''
The Hollywood Reporter
''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...
'' ranked AFI as the #1 film school in the United States.
Conservatory Program
AFI Conservatory is a five-term
Master of Fine Arts program in six disciplines:

Cinematography - Encompasses training from pre-visualization to advanced image manipulation and control, Cinematography Fellows develop their storytelling skills using formats ranging from digital video to 16mm and 35mm film cameras.
Directing - With a focus on narrative filmmaking, Directing Fellows learn diverse directing styles, techniques and strategies as they gain a thorough understanding of the production process, script to screen.
Editing - Editing Fellows master the skills needed to be editors, assistant editors and post-production producers while learning the technical, aesthetic and collaborative aspects of post-production with a primary focus on storytelling.
Producing - Producing Fellows study all aspects of creative, entrepreneurial production while developing and producing a minimum of three short films in their first year and a thesis film in their second year.
Production Design - Attracting artists from architecture, interior design, theater design and other related fields, the Production Design curriculum focuses on the creative process of visually and physically developing cinematic environments.
Screenwriting - Screenwriting Fellows conceive and write multiple projects in features, short films, long and short-form TV drama and comedy as well as webisodes and other Internet innovations. Fellows learn to collaborate with Directing and Producing classmates.
Faculty
The AFI Conservatory has a faculty of working professionals including Todd Cherniawsky (art director, ''
Star Wars: The Last Jedi''),
Stan Chervin (writer, ''
Moneyball''),
Destin Daniel Cretton, (director, ''
Short Term 12''), Matthew Friedman (editor, ''
The Farewell''), Joe Garrity (production designer, ''
Best in Show''), Susan Littenberg (editor ''
Easy A''), Stephen Lighthill (recipient 2018
ASC President's Award),
Elvis Mitchell (film critic), Michele Mulroney (writer, ''
Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows''), Martin Nicholson (editor,
The Alienist), Lauren Polizzi (art director, ''
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1'' & ''
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2''), Louis Provost (VP Production,
Walt Disney Studios),
Patricia Riggen (director
The 33), Russell Schwartz (marketing executive on films including
Chappaquiddick),
Anna Thomas (co-writer
El Norte), Jennie Tugend, (producer,
Free Willy),
Janet Yang (producer,
The Joy Luck Club).
Seminars
The
Harold Lloyd Master Seminar series, named after the silent film star who gave the first seminar, takes place on campus and runs throughout the academic year. It brings AFI Conservatory Fellows together with artists to share their work and experiences in an informal setting.
Alumni
The program has graduated more than 5,000 Fellows. AFI Conservatory alumni include:
*
Andrea Arnold, (''
American Honey'', ''
Fish Tank'', ''
Big Little Lies''),
*
Darren Aronofsky (''
Requiem for a Dream'', ''
Black Swan
The black swan (''Cygnus atratus'') is a large Anatidae, waterbird, a species of swan which breeds mainly in the southeast and southwest regions of Australia. Within Australia, the black swan is nomadic, with erratic migration patterns dependent ...
'', ''
mother!''),
*
Ari Aster (''
Hereditary'', ''
Midsommar''),
*
Julie Dash
Julie Ethel Dash (born October 22, 1952) is an American filmmaker, music video and commercial director, author, and website producer. Dash received her Master of Fine Arts, MFA in 1985 at the UCLA Film School and is one of the graduates and filmm ...
(''
Daughters of the Dust''),
*
Sam Esmail (''
Mr. Robot''),
*
Todd Field (''
In the Bedroom'', ''
Little Children'', ''
Tár''),
*
Jack Fisk (''
Badlands'', ''
Days of Heaven'', ''
There Will Be Blood''),
*
Scott Frank, (''
Out of Sight'', ''
Logan''),
*
Carl Franklin (''
One False Move'', ''
Devil in a Blue Dress'', ''
House of Cards''),
*
Liz Hannah (''
The Post''),
*
Amy Heckerling (''
Clueless'', ''
Fast Times at Ridgemont High''),
*
Patty Jenkins (''
Monster'', ''
Wonder Woman
Wonder Woman is a superheroine who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in ''All Star Comics'' Introducing Wonder Woman, #8, published October 21, 1941, with her first feature in ''Sensation Comic ...
''),
*
Janusz Kamiński (''
Lincoln'', ''
Schindler's List'', ''
Saving Private Ryan''),
*
Matthew Libatique (''
Noah'', ''
Black Swan
The black swan (''Cygnus atratus'') is a large Anatidae, waterbird, a species of swan which breeds mainly in the southeast and southwest regions of Australia. Within Australia, the black swan is nomadic, with erratic migration patterns dependent ...
''),
*
David Lynch (''
Mulholland Drive'', ''
Blue Velvet''),
*
Terrence Malick (''
Days of Heaven'', ''
The Thin Red Line'', ''
The Tree of Life''),
*
LaToya Morgan (''
Duster'', ''
The Walking Dead),
*
Rachel Morrison (''
Mudbound'', ''
Black Panther''),
*
Victor Nuñez
Victor Nunez (born 1945) is a film director, professor at the Florida State University College of Motion Picture Arts, Florida State University College of Motion Picture, Television and Recording Arts, and a founding member of the Independent Fe ...
(''
Ruby in Paradise'', ''
Ulee's Gold
''Ulee's Gold'' is a 1997 American Drama (film and television), drama film written and directed by Victor Nuñez and starring Peter Fonda. Co-stars include Patricia Richardson, Christine Dunford, Tom Wood (actor), Tom Wood, Jessica Biel, J. Kennet ...
''),
*
Wally Pfister (''
Memento'', ''
The Dark Knight'', ''
Inception''),
*
Robert Richardson (''
Platoon
A platoon is a Military organization, military unit typically composed of two to four squads, Section (military unit), sections, or patrols. Platoon organization varies depending on the country and the Military branch, branch, but a platoon can ...
'', ''
JFK'', ''
Django Unchained''),
*
Ron Underwood (''
Tremors'', ''
City Slickers'', ''
Heart and Souls'').
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Afi Conservatory
Film schools in California
Universities and colleges in Los Angeles
American Film Institute
Cinema of Southern California
Los Feliz, Los Angeles
Private universities and colleges in California
Educational institutions established in 1969
1969 establishments in California