Germania [DE]

ifs internationale filmschule köln

www.filmschule.de

ifs internationale filmschule köln aggiornamento 16/05/2011 - Presentation & Philosophy: The ifs international filmschule köln is a recognised full study and further education institution serving aspiring media professionals. The school is an initiative of the NRW state government and the Filmstiftung NRW and was founded in 2000 as a non-profit company. The ZDF, along with the Filmstiftung NRW, is also a principal partner of the ifs.
The ifs offers students a hands-on artistic education under one roof – three Bachelor programmes with a total of five majors (Screenwriting, Film Directing, Creative Producing, Director of Photography and Editing Picture and Sound). The first Master’s degree in Screenwriting is set to start at the ifs in the 2011/12 Winter Semester. Ten further education programmes provide training to young audiovisual media professionals supporting them to meet the constantly growing demands of the industry both nationally and internationally.
Individual and intensive supervision is the core focus of the study and further education programmes at the ifs. The education and training is focused on combining a foundation of scientific-theoretical and technical skills with artistic hands-on project work. Close collaboration with national and international teachers from both the industry and academia guarantees the students a first-class education, comparable to international standards.
The ifs offers its students an innovative media education that imparts the artistic and technical skills and foundation for professional filmmaking, thereby integrating new technological developments as well as promoting and conveying aesthetic and dramaturgical potential.

Number of students/ full-time/ part-time workshops: The ifs admits students to all of the BA Study Programmes every two years; Number of students: ca. 90; Number of participants in further education programmes: ca. 120

Number of students in film/animation studies: ca. 90

Number of international students: 12

Number of teachers: 10 professors, ca. 150 lecturers

Degree category / length of studies:
Bachelor of Arts, Master of Arts:

BA Film Studies Programme (Screenwriting, Film Directing, Creative Producing): 7 semesters
BA Study Programme Director of Photography: 7 semesters
BA Study Programme Editing Picture and Sound: 6 semesters
MA Screenwriting: 4 semesters

Programme objective and content:

BA Film Studies Programme (Screenwriting, Film Directing, Creative Producing):
Through its joint study structure for future screenwriters, directors and producers, the Film Studies Programme with a specialisation in Screenwriting, Film Directing and Creative Producing provides a job-oriented specialisation as well as promoting a common understanding of narrative material, dramaturgy, artistic expression, and production strategies.
- Specialisation in Screenwriting: The key focus in the first year for the screenwriting students lies in storytelling exercises in dialogue and text as well as story development in teams. In their second year, students deepen their skills with regard to creating characters and their worlds through scene work with actors as well as independently reworking scenes through dialogue and structure. Alongside seminars on classical dramaturgy and current genres, the screenwriting students write short film scripts for directing. In their final year, students work on their own full-length screenplay.
- Specialisation in Film Directing: In their first year, students learn how to develop filmic stories and then make them together with their fellow students. Each student makes a short documentary and a short feature film as an exercise project in which they also practise working with actors. In their second year, students expand their knowledge of filmic and directorial forms of expression. Two short film projects are additionally supported by seminars. The directing students work together in teams consisting of all the filmmaking professions. The fifth semester is largely defined by a large documentary film exercise. In their sixth and seventh semesters, the students develop and make their final graduation films.
- Specialisation in Creative Producing: The ifs programme defines the role of the creative producer as the unifying force between the artistic, organisational and commercial aspects of a film. Together with the screenwriters and the directors, the producer develops a common vision. He/she is the motor that organises and leads all common efforts and excitement for the film and must be willing and able to take on the financial and personal responsibility. Every step a producer makes requires excellent communication skills, ideas, powers of persuasion and a large measure of motivation.
BA Study Programme Director of Photography:
The Programme offers extensive cinematography training, providing students with the skills required to carry out a solid artistic design of a film’s aesthetic in close collaboration with the director, set designer, sound designer and picture editor. The programme also supports the students in the development of their own personal and distinctive style.
BA Study Programme Editing Picture and Sound:
In the programme, we aim to impart a basic understanding of “Storytelling”. The programme is based on the firm principle that the dramaturgy of picture and sound is what lends film its complexity and allows the emotional potential of a film to fully unfold. In 6 semesters, students learn to professionally edit a film and build its soundtrack, to develop their own style and signature, and to take up a position in their work, and thereby play an active role in creating the form and shape of a film’s dramaturgy.
Postgraduate Programme MA Screenwriting:
A collaboration between the ifs internationale filmschule köln in Cologne, Germany; the School of Media, Music and Performance at the University of Salford in Manchester, UK; and the Tampere Art and Media School at the University of Applied Sciences in Tampere, Finland.
This programme offers writers an environment in which to develop scripts for an international market that are not only innovative, but also commercially viable. The programme’s key objective is to strengthen the economic and creative viability of European writers, and it offers access to an exclusive European network while encouraging intensive dialogue between students. Students will complete two feature film scripts during the course of the programme.

Entry requirements:

BA Study Programmes
- General higher education entrance qualifications
- Should general higher education entrance qualifications not be available and the applicant displays strong artistic aptitude, the required qualification can be determined in a separate procedure
- Entrance Examination
- Good German and English-language skills
MA Screenwriting
- Bachelor’s degree from an accredited university or an equivalent. The department welcomes applicants who have received degrees in unrelated fields. Applicants without a degree who show strong artistic skills may also apply by submitting a detailed explanation of relevant writing experience.
- Entrance Examination
- Good English-language skills