A new university film program with New York’s Killer Films is teaching students how to find financiers and make money in the movie biz.
Christine Vachon, the indie producer of close to 80 films (including award-winning “Boys Don’t Cry”) and co-president of Killer Content, parent of Killer Films, has teamed up with the Stony Brook University.
Vachon is director of the program that provides exposure to working directors, actors, producers and editors. “We are working all the time and actually making a living on film sets, and this makes an enormous difference,” says Vachon.
The goal is to have a film program with hands-on training and for students to graduate without massive debt.
NYU’s three-year program costs $45K a year. Columbia is a minimum three years at $53K a year. But at Stony Brook, the cost of the entire 46-credit program is less than $30K for New York state residents.
Vachon helps students plan business strategy and gives them access to funders, distributors and packaging agents. Students last year met with Ed Burns, cinematographer and director Ellen Kuras, director Todd Haynes, producer and screenwriter James Schamus and Tribeca Film Festival executives.
Graduates have gone on to work on Killer productions including “Still Alice,” starring Julianne Moore, Alec Baldwin and Kristen Stewart, which is going to the Toronto Film Festival.
Vachon has also been working on “Carol,” starring Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara and directed by Haynes. Both films are due out in 2015.
Application deadlines for the Stony Brook Killer Films Digital Filmmaking Program are from Aug. 1 to 20.