Sample Film Studies Personal Statement
When I began my study at the University of Salzburg I also started a career [JB1] as an unpaid movie critic. My first reviews were quite a mess, composed with inadequate research and prioritising the build up of my online presence instead of producing quality content. Generally employing the subtlety of a sledgehammer, I tried to establish a personal mark but mostly ended up with a disrespectful and forced review. My work improved, of course. The words were chosen with greater care and improved sensitivity towards the film itself. Without this greater level of engagement, and the will to start a career as a journalist, I ultimately wouldn’t have been able to write this motivated letter. The further I ventured in the medium of film, however, the more I understood how insignificant and interchangeable critics could be considered. Every reviewer must resign himself to the truth that his work will never be nearly as exiting, unique and precious as the product he criticises. I do not want to degrade this professional guild, nor question its right to exist, but with this example I would like to make clear why I want to make films.
In summer 2010, I began my first short film project with the ambition to create a project that seemed very professional, despite its amateur status. I cast the actors, scouted the locations and created a production plan with a clear logistic structure. We were a far from professional film production, of course, and the whole team clearly lacked experience but the experience offered the opportunity of undertaking a film shoot with a necessarily small time frame. The unique work flow, looking for the connections between all the disparate elements of the project, the strain briefly before the flap falls, the interaction with the actors; all those aspects which make a film shoot so exciting were all present on this project here in a truly stunning way. It was this unique mood on the set that fascinated me from the beginning.
To direct people in a way that allows the final product to come close to my wishes was an enormously exciting and demanding responsibility. Nobody on our team was a professional in his or her field, but each of us stood behind the project and therefore the film was formed by all of our different personal approaches.
From the first day of shooting I was sure that film would play a significant role in my future. It was also clear to me, therefore, that I would need a suitable education in the medium. I have chosen the London Film School because of its ambitious program. The idea of teaching the medium on the basis of short films appears to me to be exceedingly sensible. Furthermore, the wide range of esteemed training staff assured me of a competent and effective education. I am also sure that the international character of the city will prove is quite important for the production of open-minded work.
London is the ideal city and the London Film School the perfect university to find my way and to develop my true potential.
We hope that this sample Film Studies personal statement proves to be a good point of reference and provides inspiration for the writing of your own statement.