Interested in film production? These 15 best online filmmaking courses will guide you through whether you take it as a hobby or want to kick start your career in the filmmaking industry.
The presence of online learning has reduced the need to attend an offline school, in fact, there is absolutely no need for it if the course you want to study is online. This spreads across various fields of learning and filmmaking is one of them.
You really don’t need to go to a film school to learn videography, you can learn these skills online. And you will be learning from top filmmakers, directors, and producers. In fact, these producers and directors find it easier to teach their profession online rather than moving around from school to school.
This is why there is a host of online film making courses provided by top filmmakers in the industry. These professionals offer in-depth insight, knowledge, skills, and techniques that you need to kick start your own career in the industry and be successful as well.
So, with your computer or tablet, a stable internet connection, and your enthusiasm you can learn filmmaking online. To become known in the filmmaking industry, education and experience are key and fortunately for you, we at Study Abroad Nations have compiled the best online filmmaking courses.
These courses are designed to point you in the right direction in film production, it starts from scratch like film theory and pointing a camera to actually producing and sharing your films to the world. The best online filmmaking courses listed in this article include both free and paid.
The difference?
While a free course will teach you the basics of filmmaking and just scratch the surface, more like build your fundamental knowledge on filmmaking. The paid courses will get you courses provided by popular, professional filmmakers and these courses goes much farther into what film production is all about.
Offering both theoretical and practical aspects of it, teach you tricks and certain techniques that will help you to establish a career in filmmaking. If you can afford the paid courses excellent, and if you can’t then you should get busy with the free courses.
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Can I get a certificate in film making online?
Every course you study online comes with an attached certificate that may be free or paid, whichever way, there are always certificates. And film making is not exempted. So when you study film making online and complete the course you can earn a certification of completion.
Your certificate will easily help you gain employment in the industry and trust clients to approach potential business offers.
How much do filmmakers earn?
New filmmakers earn around $250,000 to $500,000 per film.
Experienced filmmakers earn between $250,000 to $2 million per project.
Studio filmmakers earn up to $1 million per movie.
How can I learn filmmaking online?
It’s pretty easy since you have the internet at your disposal. Simply search on the filmmaking course you’d like to study and enroll, if it isn’t free then proceed to make the necessary payments and you can start learning how to become a filmmaker.
To make it much easier for you, this article contains a compiled list of the best online filmmaking courses just waiting for you to click on the one you chose to learn and get right to learning them. So, keep reading and enroll in any of the courses that interest you.
Best Online Filmmaking Courses for Students
The following are the 15 best online filmmaking courses for aspiring film producers and new students interested in the film making industry;
- An Introduction to Screenwriting
- Explore Animation
- Film Distribution: Connecting Films with Audiences
- Explore Filmmaking: from Script to Screen
- Complete Filmmaker Guide
- Hollywood Film School: Filmmaking & TV Directing Master class
- DSLR Filmmaking: From Beginner to PRO
- Making a Short Documentary
- Cinematographer’s Preparation
- Shooting the Scene
- Making a Short Film: Start to Finish
- Video Interview Production Techniques
- Color Grading: Creating a Cinematic Look
- Introduction to Lighting for Videography
- Movie Directing Made Simple: How to Direct Movies
1. An Introduction to Screenwriting
Screenwriting, which may also be referred to as scriptwriting, is the art of writing scripts for the production of a film. With this basic definition, you have seen how much of an important role screenwriting plays in filmmaking.
No screenwriting, no film. It is the foundation of every film making and you must know what it takes to be a screenwriter so that you can be an excellent one. And you can achieve that through this course, as it takes students to explore the major concepts and fundamental principles involved in writing scripts.
The course, Introduction to Screenwriting, is one of the best online filmmaking courses offered by the University of East Anglia and delivered online by FutureLearn. The course has both free and paid packages, you may try the free package first and if it satisfies you, you can go ahead to pay the $59 for extra benefits which will take you deeper into the course.
2. Explore Animation
You’ve seen how far animation creation has come and it is really hitting big in the film industry. If you are interested you can start a career in animation production but firstly, just like every other career, you need to study for it.
Fortunately, we have made it possible and easy for you, and with just a click of a button, you can begin to learn amazing animation techniques such as stop motion, 2D, CGI, and pixilation. Which are taught by expert animators from the National Film and Television School (NFTS) and delivered online by FutureLearn.
The course duration is four weeks long with a weekly effort of three weeks. The course has both free and paid packages, and you can get the paid package for just $59 to explore the course further.
3. Film Distribution: Connecting Films with Audiences
How does your favorite movie come to be in cinemas? Have you ever thought about that? Maybe you should stop thinking about it and learn how it happens by signing up for this course. You will be learning how films are distributed to meet the general public.
After you have created your film(s), you also need to distribute it to various public channels for the enjoyment of the public. This includes distributing your film to television screens and cinemas, which is an important step for the growth of your career. Enroll in this course and learn the processes required in effectively distributing your work to big screens and TVs.
This film distribution course is one of the best online filmmaking courses that will take your career to the next level. It is offered by the Film Distributors’ Association and delivered online by FutureLearn.
4. Explore Filmmaking: from Script to Screen
The first course listed in this post is “An introduction to screenwriting” which you may have completed, and now that you have perfected your screenwriting skills you need to progress. After writing, what comes next is to take it to screen, that is, producing what you have written as a film and this script to screen online course is something you should check out.
And that as well, you need to learn. This course takes you through the various processes involved in going from script to screen. It is taught by experts from the National Film and Television School (NTFS) and the British Film Institute (BFI) and delivered online by FutureLearn.
If you are looking for the best online filmmaking courses to kick start your career in the filmmaking industry then you should go on to enroll for this. You can try it out for free and if it interests you, you can go on to pay a small fee of $74 for extra benefits that will provide you with an in-depth understanding of film production.
5. Complete Filmmaker Guide
This is one of the best online filmmaking courses offered by Udemy and it is designed to make you an expert video creator. Unlike the courses above that comes in free and paid packages, this course is a paid one which you can buy at approximately $130.
Enrolling in this course will teach you total mastery over lenses, lighting, sound recording, cinematography, and editing. And with these new found skills you can be able to create your own videos from scratch.
6. Hollywood Film School: Filmmaking & TV Directing Master class
As you are working your way up the ladder to become a successful filmmaker, getting to Hollywood is the target and being recognized as well. This course trains you on how to become a working Hollywood director and take your filmmaking skills to the next level.
This Filmmaking course by the Hollywood Film School is one of the best online filmmaking courses offered by Udemy and it comes at a flat fee of $140. You’ll learn to direct a short film, feature film, or any narrative content.
7. DSLR Filmmaking: From Beginner to PRO
With a flat fee of $70, you can finally leave the beginner level of a filmmaker and become a pro. This course will guide you through the right process and equip you with effective skills in being a professional filmmaker.
In this course, you will learn how to utilize your DSLR in full manual mode, gain essential camera techniques, learn the basics of visual storytelling, and lighting principles. If you are looking for a filmmaking course that will take you to an expert level, then enroll in this course.
8. Making a Short Documentary
In just 35 lessons which you’d be taking online using your computer, smartphone, or tablet you will gain incredible skills in making short documentaries. Whether it is to start a career, for fun, or for a school project this course will equip you with skills to document a story from start to finish.
The class is top by experts in the field, Julie Winokur and Ed Kashi, who will teach you how to create a story arc, prepare for and efficiently conduct interviews, and lots more. To participate in the short documentary making online course, students are required to pay a fee of $59, it is one of the best online filmmaking courses that will take your documentary production to the next level.
9. Cinematographer’s Preparation
To become a successful filmmaker you need to acquire skills in cinematography, and if you don’t possess the skill and knowledge already then this course is for you. This course prepares you for cinematography jobs by equipping you with the necessary skills and techniques you need to excel in the field.
The course is $17 only, learning to aesthetically and technically analyze a script, evaluate and provide for the practical requirements of a scene, and every other effective approach to shooting. You can also enroll in the course if you are a cinematographer, camera operator, and filmmaker it will help in upgrading your skills.
10. Shooting the Scene
With 15 lessons and only $29, you can learn all the processes involved in shooting film scenes. The course is offered by Jim Denault via CreativeLive and it is one of the best online filmmaking courses that you may consider enrolling in.
At the end of this course, you will be able to take a production plan and shoot efficiently, economically, and artistically. You can also be able to set up the technical and aesthetic approaches for each shot, determine how many shots you want in a scene, and a host of other scene-shooting techniques.
11. Making a Short Film: Start to Finish
Lynda or LinkedIn Learning – as it is now known – is taking students to explore the basic elements involved in screenwriting, production, and directing. It is a course specially designed for beginners who want to share their stories with the world through short films.
This online course for making short films is one of the best online filmmaking courses offered via the LinkedIn Learning and covers topics such as writing your script, lighting your shoot, working with actors, running your shoot, budgeting and scheduling, and lots more.
12. Video Interview Production Techniques
You may want to start a new YouTube channel for interview niches and have zero skills and knowledge on how to go about it, then this course is for you. Or you want to prepare a project which requires you to interview a series of people and you have no idea how to begin.
This video interview production course is designed to guide beginners through the process of video interview production and equip them with skills and techniques to excel in the field. Thus, providing better video for the audience.
The course is one of the best online filmmaking courses provided by LinkedIn Learning and taught by John David Pond – the director of photography for the LinkedIn editorial team.
13. Color Grading: Creating a Cinematic Look
Do you know what a cinematic look is? Do you know how to create a cinematic look in your films? Not to worry all of that will be explored when you enroll in this course. The course will go over what makes up a cinematic grade and how to get there.
This video color grading program is one of the best online filmmaking courses that filmmakers should look into. It covers various topics that will help you in learning a wide variety of cinematic terms such as depth of field, lens choice, film grain, frame rate, composition, and more.
14. Introduction to Lighting for Videography
Lighting is the essence of videography and if you don’t know how to make proper use of lighting for your video creations then you might come up with some quick results.
Join Jordy Vandeput – an expert filmmaker and YouTuber – on Skillshare as he shares the secrets, skills, and techniques of lighting for videography. With this skill, you can be able to make use of lighting the right way and produce awesome videography.
15. Movie Directing Made Simple: How to Direct Movies
Directors are important in filmmaking and if you want to learn how it works then you should enroll in this movie directing course. It is one of the best online filmmaking courses from Udemy that teaches individuals to be movie directors.
You’ll learn how to work with actors and a production crew professionally, and also gain skills that will make you be the kind of director that producers love to bring on to a project.
These are the best online filmmaking courses that you should learn if you are eyeing to start a career in the filmmaking industry or want to start a filmmaking hobby.
Conclusion
Thanks to online learning you can become an expert filmmaker from the comfort of your home or anywhere that is convenient enough for you. The course provided here covers a wide array of filmmaking and you can enroll with just a few clicks.
Although the industry is highly competitive when you have the right skills you stand a chance to be noticed and by reading this post, you have begun to create the pathway to your success in the filmmaking industry.
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Thanks
Kimmy Khan