Vancouver Film School Courtesy of School Share on Facebook Share on X Share to Flipboard Send an Email Show additional share options Share on Reddit Post a Comment Share on Whats App Share on Pinterest Share on LinkedIn Print the Article Share on Tumblr Australian Film Television and Radio School Australia's national screen academy AFTRS has been churning out award-winning talent since its founding in 1973. The Sydney-based school counts a who's who of regional cinema among its alumni - Oscar-winning auteur Jane Campion (The Piano) and Hollywood director Phillip Noyce (Patriot Games) are graduates - with generations of Aussie filmmakers from directors and cinematographers to editors getting their start here. AFTRS offers industry-driven programs covering every aspect of filmmaking, and its close ties to Australia's screen sector help ensure a steady pipeline of Aussie creatives into the local and international business. Beijing Film Academy Known as the "cradle of Chinese cinema," Beijing Film Academy - established in 1950 - is China's premier film school and the largest in Asia. Over seven decades, it has built a multidisciplinary program encompassing directing, acting, cinematography, animation and more. Virtually every major Chinese filmmaker has passed through its halls: Fifth-Generation legends like Zhang Yimou (Raise the Red Lantern) and Chen Kaige (Farewell My Concubine) are among BFA's alumni. The academy grants bachelor's, master's and even Ph.D. degrees in film, and its graduates have carried Chinese cinema to the world stage - from winning awards at Cannes and Berlin to earning Oscar nominations. ECAM Spain is one of the few regions that can boast of a film and TV boom - Netflix and others have invested heavily in the production in the country - and Madrid-based film school ECAM, with its practical approach and close industry ties has been one of the main beneficiaries. Their school-to-studio pipeline is exemplified by the multi-Goya-winning director-writer team Rodrigo Sorogoyen and Isabel Peña, who met at ECAM and went on to success on screens both big (The Beasts, The Candidate), and small (acclaimed Spanish series Antidisturbios, The New Years). Elsewhere, the second edition of ECAM Forum in June brought together international projects and co-productions seeking partners and financing. The school also launched the first edition of FINDE, a new event designed to connect the independent film sector with private investment. ESCAC Catalan's premium film and TV training ground - located in the city of Terrassa north of Barcelona - boasts Oscar-nominee Juan Antonio Bayona (Society of the Snow, The Impossible) among its alumni and prides itself on a balance of film theory and practical training. It's in-house outfit ESCAC Films helps produce and market its students' work and close ties with the likes of Warner Bros., Pedro Almodovar's El deseo and Spanish giant Telecinco Cinema, provide an easy industry on-ramp for graduates. Offers a one-year introductory filmmaking course in English and a bilingual stunt academy. FAMU Prague The alumni of Prague film school reads like a who's who of eastern European cinema and culture: Czech New Wave pioneer and two-time Oscar winner Miloš Forman (Amadeus, One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest); Polish auteur Agnieszka Holland (In Darkness, Green Border) and Czech novelist Milan Kundera (The Unbearable Lightness of Being). FAMU remains the gold standard of European film schools and includes accredited programs in English in directing and script-writing. Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts Hong Kong's premier performing arts conservatory, HKAPA, has been nurturing the city's stage and screen talent since 1984. Its School of Film and Television, housed in a campus in Pok Fu Lam since 2007, offers practice-based programs in directing, acting, cinematography, producing and more. Uniquely interdisciplinary, the Academy brings together filmmakers, actors, musicians and designers under one roof. The results shine in the industry: HKAPA alumni are behind some of the region's biggest hits. Infernal Affairs co-director Alan Mak is a graduate of the film program, as is actor-director Anthony Wong. From art-house directors to TV stars, HKAPA's graduates have dominated Hong Kong's screens. Korean Academy of Film Arts Korea's top film school, the Korean Academy of Film Arts (KAFA) in Seoul, has been a springboard for the nation's cinematic New Wave since its founding by the Korean Film Council in 1984. The elite two-year academy keeps class sizes small (around 30 students) and offers intensive training in directing, cinematography, producing and animation. In 2006 KAFA launched a feature filmmaking program that immerses students in real film productions - turning out about seven student-made features each year - many of which have won awards at festivals from Busan to Berlin. The alumni list reads like a who's who of contemporary Korean cinema: Parasite director Bong Joon-ho is a K