The Portable Film School: Everything You'd Learn in Film School (Without Ever Going to Class)

by D. B. Gilles

Overview

The Portable Film School is a private tutorial from an instructor at one of the nation's most prestigious film schools. D.B. Gilles explains the fundamental skills and techniques of screenwriting and making a short film arming you with the two calling cards you'll need to break into Hollywood – without having spent the tuition or a minute in a classroom.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780312347383
Publisher:	St. Martin's Publishing Group
Publication date:	10/01/2005
Edition description:	First Edition
Pages:	272
Sales rank:	233,613
Product dimensions:	5.65(w) x 8.32(h) x 0.69(d)

About the Author

D.B. Gilles, author of The Screenwriter Within, has taught in the Undergraduate Film & Television Department at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts for fifteen years. He has also taught in NYU's Department of Dramatic Writing and in the Graduate Film Department at Columbia University. Many of his former students have been finalists in screenwriting contests, gotten deals, sold scripts and directed films. He has written for the stage, screen and TV and is a member of the Writers Guild of America.

Editorial Reviews

The Portable Film School should be mandatory reading not just for those unable to go to film school, but for anyone thinking about it or even currently attending it.” —David Benullo, former student and co-writer of the screenplay for Around The World In 80 Days

“A crash course in a film school education. The Portable Film School is rated "R" for required reading.” —Sheldon Woodbury, author of Cool Million: How to Become A Million-Dollar Screenwriter, and screenwriting professor in the Department of Dramatic Writing at New York University

“An excellent starter set for the fledgling filmmaker.” —David McKenna, professor at Columbia University, Film Division

“Not only is The Portable Film School loaded with pertinent and valuable information told in an easy to absorb style but also it's truly enjoyable and fun to be in his "class." This instructor deserves high marks himself!” —Rick Rosenberg, Chris/Rose Productions, Emmy and Peabody Award Winning Producer. "The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman," Miramax’s "Down In The Delta," A&E’s "The Crossing"

From the Publisher

DIY film literature grows with these two additions to the genre. Drawing on many years of experience as a screenwriting professor and story analyst, Gilles (NYU Tisch Sch. of the Arts; The Screenwriter Within) now attempts to venture into a broader topic: the experience of going through film school. Readers hoping for a comprehensive encapsulation will be disappointed. Direction is only touched on and technical aspects are barely considered in favor of a focus on writing (not a bad strategy for film beginners to adopt). Included are essays on finding script ideas, writing exercises, writing short scripts, and rewriting, as well as extensive guidance on treatment writing and outlining and advice about working with agents. Filmmakers Mark and Michael Polish employ a drastically different style and method, culling their experience writing, producing, and directing three moderately successful feature films-Norfolk, Jackpot, and Twin Falls Idaho. Chronicled here is the entire filmmaking process, from conception and fund-raising to shooting and finishing to selling and marketing one's film. Overall, the Polish brothers, joined by Jonathan Sheldon, head of their company's development, write in a way that illuminates the details more clearly than most technical scribes. While this approach doesn't raise Declaration above some of the genre's standards, e.g., Lenny Lipton's Independent Filmmaking, the authors' narrative form will certainly appeal to aspiring filmmakers. Meanwhile, what Gilles really offers is explicit guidance on film writing; that isn't to say that his book doesn't have a place in the growing canon of filmmaking books for neophytes, just that the title is misleading. Both works are recommended for general collections and especially for film libraries and performing arts collections.-Michael Tierno, New York Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.

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