Vancouver Film School

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Vancouver Film School
Established	1987 (1987)
Type	Open
President	James Griffin
Location	Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Website	Vancouver Film School

Vancouver Film School (VFS) is a private entertainment arts school located in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Founded in 1987, it has achieved international recognition.^[1] The Vancouver Film School has campus locations around Downtown Vancouver and comprises six buildings.^[2] As part of the school's 20th anniversary in 2007, in August 2006 one million dollars was set aside in scholarships for new students.^[3] In March, 2008, Vancouver Film School and YouTube launched a competition for three full-tuition scholarships for the creators of the three videos submitted and voted as favorites by the YouTube community ^[4].

In November 2007, the school was ranked No. 5 worldwide by the American magazine "3D World," with criteria such as the distribution of student films and prizes in festivals around the world.^[5]

History

VFS opened in January 1987 with a single class of six film students^[6] and has steadily expanded since. Recent milestones in the school's history include hosting the annual Game Design Expo in Vancouver, which began in January 2007,^[7] and partnering with YouTube to launch a 2008 scholarship competition for the creators of three videos submitted and voted upon by the YouTube community ^[4].

Programs

VFS offers one-year, hands-on production programs,^[8], including Film Production, 3D Animation & Visual Effects, Classical Animation, Acting for Film & Television, Digital Design, Entertainment Business Management, Foundation Visual Art & Design, Game Design, Makeup Design for Film & Television, Sound Design for Visual Media, and Writing for Film & Television. The school also runs a four-month Acting Essentials course and a 6-month Digital Character Animation program.^[9]

Notable faculty

• Alastair Macleod, Head of Animation & Visual Effects - Animation and Motion Capture Supervisor on The Matrix Revolutions and The Matrix Reloaded and Motion Editor on Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
• Stan Edmonds, Head of Makeup Design for Film & Television - Key Makeup Artist on The Butterfly Effect, Get Carter, and Scary Movie, and Makeup Department Head on I, Robot
• Robert Grieve, Head of Sound Design for Visual Media - Emmy winner for his work on the HBO film 61*, a Genie Award for The Changeling, and two Golden Reel awards for Wolfen and Wyatt Earp, and an Oscar nomination for Best Sound on Silverado
• Michael S. Baser, Head of Writing for Film & Television - writer/producer whose credits include Good Times, Three's Company, The Jeffersons, and Maude (TV series)
• Marv Newland, Instructor - Animator of the 1969 short Bambi Meets Godzilla

Notable alumni

• Magda Apanowicz – actor known for her roles as Andy Jensen on the TV series Kyle XY and Lacy Rand on Caprica
• Neill Blomkamp - director of District 9 which is produced by Peter Jackson. Director of Halo: The Movie; In November 2006, the film was officially put on hold^[10] and Blomkamp has since said that the film is "entirely dead"^[11]
• Sara Canning - co-stars on the television series The Vampire Diaries
• Jonathan Cherry - actor in House of the Dead, Final Destination 2 and many other television and film productions
• Colin Cunningham - actor in Canadian television and film
• David Gratton - Founder and CEO of digital agency Work At Play
• Neil Kopp - producer of Old Joy and director Gus Van Sant's 2007 film Paranoid Park for which Kopp won a 2008 Independent Spirit Award^[12]
• John G. Lenic – TV producer and production manager best-known for his work on Stargate SG-1, Stargate: Atlantis, and Stargate Universe
• Alec McClymont^[13] - lead CGI artist and animator who shared a 2007 Primetime Emmy Award for Special Visual Effects - Series on Battlestar Galactica (2004 TV series)
• Chad Moffitt^[14] - Academy Award–winning animator on The Lord of the Rings^[15]
• Lon Molnar - co-founder, CEO, and senior visual effects supervisor at Toronto-based visual effects studio Intelligent Creatures
• Scott Mosier - film producer, editor, and cameo actor who produced the Academy Award nominated documentary Salim Baba. He met Kevin Smith and cinematographer Dave Klein at VFS, and since graduating, the three have collaborated on the films in the View Askewniverse^[16]
• Andrew Overtoom - Animation Director on SpongeBob SquarePants, for which he was nominated for Emmy Awards in 2004 and 2007
• Kevin Smith - director of Clerks, Mallrats, Chasing Amy, Dogma, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Jersey Girl and Clerks II; Smith dropped out in 1990^[17] and was presented with an honorary diploma in 2005^[18]
• Tara Spencer-Nairn - actor in Corner Gas
• Jewel Staite - Canadian-born actress famous for her work on Joss Whedon's Firefly, and Stargate: Atlantis
• Emilie Ullerup - actor in Sanctuary

References

See also

• Higher education in British Columbia

External links

• Vancouver Film School
• The Canadian Film Centre Website
• The Worldwide Short Film Festival Website
• GIFTS indie film school official site

v • d • e Universities in British Columbia Public universities Capilano University · Emily Carr University of Art and Design · Kwantlen Polytechnic University · Royal Roads University · Simon Fraser University · Thompson Rivers University · University of British Columbia · University of the Fraser Valley · University of Northern British Columbia · University of Victoria · Vancouver Island University Private universities Fairleigh Dickinson University · Quest University  · Trinity Western University  · University Canada West