Ecole Superieur de Realisation Audiovisuelle
ESRA

ESRA is our program for French filmmakers here in the United States where we provide practical training for all aspects of filmmaking.

The New York program of ESRA FDDA Stonestreet is only accessible to French ESRA graduate students after 3 years of studies in one of our schools in France (3 locations: Paris, Nice, Rennes). As far as we consider our students ready to be working in all different areas of the entertainment business, we decided only to include in the program classes that would point out the difference between French and American cinema/television.

The program is divided in three parts: Class and pre-production, thesis film and in-company training (2 to 4 months).

Filmmaking classes

SCREENWRITING (24 hours over 12 weeks)

Through class lectures, discussions and exercises, the course is designed to introduce general film students to the fundamentals of screenwriting craftsmanship. Upon a successful completion of this course students will be able to: format an industry standard screenplay, synopsize a script for industry-standard coverage, and understand the fundamentals of the screenwriting process.

DIRECTING THE ACTOR (36 hours over 12 weeks)

Through classes, the process of directing the American Actor will be explained and demonstrated to the students. To be able to analyze a scene, the students will be able to discuss it with American actors and dramatize it using stage and film techniques. While working with them in preparation of their own original film project, the students will learn to use a language recognizable by actors.

MUSIC FOR THE SCREEN (24 hours over 12 weeks)

The understanding of the film scoring process will be taught to the students, as well as the visual structure of the film and what requirements it imposes (if any) on the music score. Upon a successful completion of this course students will hopefully have a multi-layered understanding of the entire film scoring process, from beginning to end, as done by the most famous filmmakers in the world. The students will come away from this class with a better understanding of how music can be a very powerful tool if used with care in ways meaningful to their film.

TECHNICAL ENGLISH (18 hours over 12 weeks)

The purpose of this course is to prepare students for a film production internship in New York. Lectures include brief overviews of film production departments, essential film/set terms as they relate to those departments, film/set etiquette as well as resume writing. Upon a successful completion of this course students will be able to compose cover letters and resumes in preparation for their internships; understand the workings and etiquette of a film set, a production and post-production office in the U.S.; and use their new skills to obtain and excel in their chosen internships.

FILM AESTHETICS (36 hours over 12 weeks)

Through close study of complete, films, screenplays, and scenes from specific films, students will explore the various cultural, aesthetic, technical, and structural criteria that taken together, lend a film its uniquely American tone. The class will view a diversity of film styles, both mainstream and independent, as well as relevant short subjects.

PRODUCTION (36 hours over 12 weeks)

This is a course designed to provide students with a framework for understanding the

dynamics of producing (as an art form and a business profession) a finished creative product on Film. The course is designed to educate the student in the process of feature film and long form television production from the initial concept of the story, or acquiring property rights for preexisting story material, through script development to completion of the project. The students will learn the basic concepts, terms, principles that apply to the role of producer in the entertainment & media industries.

Workshops including

CINEMATOGRAPHY WORKSHOPS (18 hours over 6 weeks)

Through these workshops, the students have the opportunity to get a hand on the real technical equipment. It will offer a chance to the students to know how to use their equipment in a professional way, before shooting their own short movies. More than that, it will help the students to learn about the American technical vocabulary. Students will be more confident on the making of their movies and more knowledgeable of the filmmaking industry. Students will have access to the technical equipment (grip, lighting, cameras), and will be explained different ways of lighting through on set exercises.

SCREENWRITING WORKSHOPS (96 hours over 12 weeks)

Through these workshops, the students develop their screenwriting skills and get help with the techniques of writing, development of their characters, for the screenplay they write for their thesis films, they will shoot during the second trimester.

PRE PRODUCTION WORKSHOPS (32 hours over 4 weeks)

The students will work per team, to organize all of their pre productions needs, legaldocuments, going through, scout locations, to technical breakdown, storyboarding, call sheets among others.

Audio Engineering classes

The sound students have common classes with the Filmmaking students; the list above show the class that are specific to the sound program.

SOUND PRODUCTION (24 hours over 12 Week)

Through a critical overview of industry practices for film sound post-production, this course covers the musical, aesthetic, and technical processes of assembling and shaping a film’s soundtrack in collaboration with the filmmaker. Topics covered include ADR, dialog editing, sound design, assembling a “temp” music track, conforming, and preparing the soundtrack for the final film dubbing session.

Students will gain knowledge of and practical experience in performing each duty required of a film sound editor. Through course lectures, exercises, critiques and collaborative sound editing projects, students understand sound designer’s and sound editor’s position, artistic scope, responsibilities, and techniques in the post-production process of a film.

SOUND CREATION (24 hours over 12 weeks)

The student will learn the basics of production and post-production motion picture sound. Each will master the operation of various digital recorders as well as microphone placement and booming.

PROTOOLS SESSION (36 hours over 12 weeks)

From a completion of a Pro Tools project, to initial setup to final mixdown the students will be given all the basics to understand this particular software. Using Pro Tools 8 we will cover the multitude of new functions and feature enhancements that this software offers. From a recording of live instruments to audio looping, this course will give the students the basic steps to a more in depth and detailed approach.

SOUND ANALYSIS (36 hours over 12 weeks)

In this class the students will learn how to be able to listen and understand how the sound was taken. From a direct sound to a diegetic sound the students will be taught how to make the difference of the technique used and to understand why.

Workshops including

PRE PRODUCTION WORKSHOPS (32 hours over 4 weeks)
The students will work per team, to organize all of their pre-production needs, legal documents, going through, scout locations, to technical breakdown, storyboarding, call sheets among others.

SOUND ENGINEERING WORKSHOPS (68 hours over 10 weeks)

The students will have access to Quad studio, where, with the help of a professional sound designer, they will develop their skills of mixing, recording and sound engineering.

POST PRODUCTION WORKSHOPS (12 Hours over 4 weeks)

The students will have access to Night Owls studio, where, with the help of a professional sound designer, they will practice techniques of sound post production, going from recording foley, to creation of your own track.

For Sound and Filmmaking

In company training program

Our partners include such prestigious companies as Eastern Effects, Arri CSC, Paradoxal,the Samuel Goldwyn Company, CUNY TV, MTV Networks, the Tribeca Film Festival and the Film Society of Lincoln Center. Each year we provide training programs and internships for our students with our more than 100 partner companies and media professionals, all of whom have had nothing but the highest praise for our students