Arts camp offers experience to variety of college students

For college students who have been thinking about entering the entertainment industry, a new program hosted at UCLA this summer provides the opportunity to take a swim in Hollywood’s waters without worrying about drowning in the process.

As part of the U.S. Performing Arts and Media Camps founded last year, the UCLA Arts Camp this year will introduce academies that are geared exclusively for college-level students and above. Currently, none of the other camps offer programs above the high school level.

The four different academies — Performance for the Camera, Digital Filmmaking, Musical Theatre Performance and Presentation, and a Certification Program for Technical Theatre — are open to anyone who wishes to register. So students of all skill levels can hone their interests and perfect their techniques by attending one of the four sessions over the summer,

“The academies give the (film and television) department the opportunity of extending and expanding within the UCLA community beyond our own majors because we are such a small school,” said Myrl Schreibman, a UCLA professor and head of the Performance for the Camera Academy. “We have to say ‘no’ to other students on campus participating in our (film and television) classes. This now gives folks an opportunity to participate in our course of study with nobody saying ‘no,’” Schreibman said.

According to Judith Patterson, founder of the summer UCLA Arts Camp, the academies seek to present students with a well-rounded preparation for the entertainment industry and expose them to Hollywood professionals. In addition, students will work side-by-side with UCLA professors, an opportunity usually only reserved for those majoring in theater, film and television.

The length of each program lasts between one to two weeks, with each day consisting of eight to 12 hours of instruction and hands-on participation.

For the Digital Filmmaking Academy, students will take part in every aspect of the filmmaking process, attend lectures presented by Academy Award-winning professionals, and visit local studios on VIP tours. During the two week program, students will develop, produce, and edit a short film.

In the acting academies, various UCLA faculty and alumni will train students and help them improve their skills.

Students will attend presentations from seasoned veterans within the industry and UCLA alumni, including Jerry Franks, former president of the Casting Society of America, and Justin Lin, director of “Better Luck Tomorrow.” Also, students will work with Academy Award-winning professionals such as UCLA professor Tom Denove, former head of the cinematography department at the American Film Institute.

“I think one of the reasons why our faculty participates is not because of the money, but they’re participating because they’re at a point in their lives that they want to give back to the next generation of people,” Schreibman said.

“Anybody else on the campus (not majoring in film and television) can’t take a film production class of any sort or work with this faculty or these courses. So in that sense, this is a terrific experience,” Schreibman continued.

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