Other name | GFA |
|---|---|
| Motto | We Make Makers |
| Type | educational and professional |
| Established | 2015 |
| Director | Scott Votaw |
Academic staff | 40 |
| Students | 2,000 per year |
| Location | , U.S. |
| Website | georgiafilmacademy |
The Georgia Film Academy (GFA) is a not-for-profit entertainment arts program based in Atlanta, Georgia. It is a collaboration of the University System of Georgia and the Technical College System of Georgia created in 2015 by Georgia state leadership to meet education and workforce needs for high-demand careers in Georgia's film and creative industries. [1]
The GFA offers professional training to prepare students for union-covered film and television and post-production production craft internships and placement in creative industries, apprenticeships, and jobs. [2] [3] [4]
The GFA High School Initiative offers training to high school teachers in GFA-developed courses. High School teachers receive training in current methodologies and equipment used in motion picture production, along with training in how to teach Avid Media Composer editing and dramatic writing on the high school level. The dramatic writing course meets the U.S. Department of Education standards for English language arts and theater. [5]
GFA started with three campuses — Clayton State, Gwinnett Tech and Southern Crescent, and has expanded to 24 partner colleges and universities across the state of Georgia. [6] Students sign up within their college and then take classes at one of these GFA locations: Pinewood Atlanta Studios in Fayetteville; OFS Studios in Norcross. Tyler Perry Studios trains students as well. [7] A typical class is one day a week for six hours. Successful students are placed on a paid internship. Currently, 75 percent of GFA students receive one-semester internships. GFA program graduates receive a GFA production certification card after completing the three courses required for the certificate. [8]
GFA courses include Intro to On-set Film Production, Set Construction & Scenic Painting, Lighting & Electric, Grip & Rigging, Editing with Avid Media Composer 100, Media Composer 200 and Pro Tools, Special Makeup Effects, Production Accounting & Office Management, Production Design, and Motion Picture Set Lighting.
In 2020, the GFA partnered with the University of Georgia (UGA) to offer film programs with the UGA Masters of Fine Arts. [9]
The Georgia state legislation created tax incentives for production companies in 2002, and then boosted these credits again in 2008. A film production company that meets the requirements can receive up to 30% back in Georgia State tax credits. [10]
To create more local jobs in the film industry, Governor Nathan Deal worked with the Georgia legislature in 2015 to set aside an appropriation, administered by the Board of Regents, to create and fund GFA. The Board of Regents appointed Atlanta native Jeffrey Stepakoff to be executive director the same year and GFA began offering courses in January 2016: [11] [12] Introduction to On-Set Film Production and an accompanying internship program. The two programs were initially offered on the campuses of Clayton State University, Gwinnett Tech and the Southern Crescent Technical College. Twenty GFA interns were used for the first time for the production of Krystal (film), starring William H. Macy, in March 2016.
In June 2016, Stepakoff negotiated an arrangement with IATSE to allow GFA interns to train/intern in union covered crafts where they would be able to work under experienced union members on production sets. [13]
The GFA has issued over 1,000 certificates since its founding in 2016. [14]
Gwinnett County is located in the north central portion of the U.S. state of Georgia. It forms part of the Atlanta metropolitan area. In 2020, the population was 957,062, making it the second-most populous county in Georgia. Its county seat is Lawrenceville. The county is named for Button Gwinnett, one of the signatories of the Declaration of Independence.
Fayetteville is a city in and the county seat of Fayette County, Georgia, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 18,957, up from 15,945 at the 2010 census. Fayetteville is located 22 miles (35 km) south of downtown Atlanta.
An internship is a period of work experience offered by an organization for a limited period of time. Once confined to medical graduates, internship is used practice for a wide range of placements in businesses, non-profit organizations and government agencies. They are typically undertaken by students and graduates looking to gain relevant skills and experience in a particular field. Employers benefit from these placements because they often recruit employees from their best interns, who have known capabilities, thus saving time and money in the long run. Internships are usually arranged by third-party organizations that recruit interns on behalf of industry groups. Rules vary from country to country about when interns should be regarded as employees. The system can be open to exploitation by unscrupulous employers.
The University of Georgia is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Athens, Georgia. Founded in 1785, it is one of the oldest public universities in the United States. It is the flagship school of the University System of Georgia.
The University System of Georgia (USG) is the government agency that includes 26 public institutions of higher learning in the U.S. state of Georgia. The system is governed by the Georgia Board of Regents. It sets goals and dictates general policy to educational institutions as well as administering the Public Library Service of the state which includes 58 public library systems. The USG also dispenses public funds to the institutions but not the lottery-funded HOPE Scholarship. The USG is the sixth largest university system in the United States by total student enrollment, with 333,507 students in 26 public institutions. USG institutions are divided into four categories: research universities, regional comprehensive universities, state universities, and state colleges.
St. John Bosco High School (SJBHS) is a Catholic, all-boys college preparatory high school located in Bellflower, California, and conducted by the San Francisco Province of the Salesians of St. John Bosco. St. John Bosco High School is named after Saint John Bosco, an Italian saint known for his dedication to educating and advocating for youth and for his "Home-School-Church-Playground" model of education. Bosco was founded as an elementary and intermediate boarding school in 1940. The first high school class graduated in 1956, and in 1979 the boarding school closed.
The C. Herman and Mary Virginia Terry College of Business is a constituent college of the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia, United States. The business college offers undergraduate programs, MBA programs, specialized master's programs and doctoral programs. It was founded as the first business school in the American South in 1912. The Terry College MBA Program is often recognized as a top 40 graduate business program and has a selectivity rate of approximately 35%.
Peachtree Corners is a city in Gwinnett County, Georgia, United States. It is part of the Atlanta metropolitan area, and is the largest city in Gwinnett County with a population of 42,243 as of the 2020 US Census.
Parkview High School is a public high school located near Lilburn in Gwinnett County, Georgia, United States. It is operated by Gwinnett County Public Schools. The current principal is David T. Smith.
Dunwoody High School is a public high school in Dunwoody, an incorporated city in DeKalb County, Georgia, United States.
The Gwinnett School of Mathematics, Science, and Technology (GSMST) is a special public school in Lawrenceville, Georgia, United States, and a part of Gwinnett County Public Schools. Students are admitted through a county-wide lottery, whose participants, since the school dropped its charter status in 2016, must meet multiple requirements. It features a heavy focus on project-based STEM education. Its rigorous course offerings and high student graduation rate make it one of the most prestigious high schools in the state.
Northview High School is a public high school in Johns Creek, Georgia, United States, serving grades 9–12. The school is a part of the Fulton County School System. Its students primarily reside inside the city of Johns Creek, though the school also serves part of Alpharetta. All students from River Trail Middle School feed into Northview.
Buford High School is a public, four-year, comprehensive high school located in Buford, Georgia, United States, in the Gwinnett area of Northside Atlanta
Jeffrey Stepakoff is an American television writer, producer, and author.
The film industry in Georgia is the largest among the states of the United States for production of feature films by number of films produced, as of 2016. Atlanta is the center of the film industry in Georgia with Turner, Tyler Perry, and EUE/Screen Gems studios located there.
The Atlanta economy is the 10th largest in the country and 18th in the world with an estimated 2014 GDP of over $324 billion. Atlanta is one of ten U.S. cities classified as an "alpha-world city" by a 2010 study at Loughborough University, and ranks fourth in the number of Fortune 500 companies headquartered within city boundaries, behind New York City, Houston, and Dallas. Several major national and international companies are headquartered in metro Atlanta, including seven Fortune 100 companies: The Coca-Cola Company, Home Depot, United Parcel Service, Delta Air Lines, AT&T Mobility, and Newell Rubbermaid. Other headquarters for some major companies in Atlanta and around the metro area include Arby's, Chick-fil-A, Earthlink, Equifax, First Data, Foundation Financial Group, Gentiva Health Services, Georgia-Pacific, NCR, Oxford Industries, RaceTrac Petroleum, Southern Company, Mirant, and Waffle House. Over 75% of the Fortune 1000 companies have a presence in the Atlanta area, and the region hosts offices of about 1,250 multinational corporations. As of 2006 Atlanta Metropolitan Area ranks as the 10th largest cybercity in the US, with 126,700 high-tech jobs.
OFS is an American technology company known for designing and manufacturing fiber optic solutions. Since the mid-2010s, the company's headquarters in Norcross, Georgia was used as a film studio.
A nexus degree is an undergraduate degree awarded in Georgia, United States, after a course of post-secondary study. It is a level of qualification with hour requirements comparable to an associate degree. However, it incorporates an internship or apprenticeship requirement as well as a number of upper-division specialization courses that are more typical for a bachelor's degree or master's degree. The nexus degree can serve as a first degree or a professional degree depending on the context.
Trilith Studios is an American film and television production studio located south of Atlanta in Fayette County, Georgia. Originally known as Pinewood Atlanta Studios, the studio has been used to produce many films and television programs, particularly those produced by Marvel Studios. Trilith Studios encompasses a 700-acre site, with a 400-acre backlot and 24 soundstages. A virtual production volume, Prysm Stage, opened in early 2022. As of 2021, Trilith Studios is the largest production facility in the state of Georgia.
