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Once concentrated almost entirely in the southern part of California, film jobs and film internships have become much more prevalent throughout the United States as production continues to migrate to "third coast" areas. With more and more film production now taking place in various locations across the United States, the need for talent around the country has increased significantly.

Southern California, once the almost exclusive sphere of Film and TV production does, on the other hand, continue to be a major hub of the industry. The most well-sought professionals - writers, actors, directors, editors - are still in the Los Angeles area.

On another note, because several critically acclaimed cable TV series have been using New York as their home base, the city witnessed an increase in production. The city also maintains a healthy level of commercial and feature film production.

In between the coasts, however, a whole new era in feature film production has been inaugurated in so-called "third coast," areas. Gulf states like Texas, Louisiana as well as Florida have seen a dramatic increase in production over the last decade. The key positions are still being imported from Los Angeles but the production crew have been hired locally. This then resulted to a major increase in the number of film jobs offered in these states. Accordingly, the said area has an increased demand for film talent.

Metropolitan areas such as Minneapolis, San Francisco and Chicago have also began to establish themselves as production hubs. For instance, TV drama, "The Beast" (starring the late Patrick Swayze) and major film production "The Dark Knight" have been the filmed in Chicago.

The film industry has proven itself to be strong during the past economic downturns - but this does not mean that the industry is totally recession-proof. This can be explained by the fact that people try to find solace in entertainment - in television shows and movies - when recession comes.

The fact that production has entered the digital age also resulted to a boost in demand for talent. With film production done in new places and in new ways, the demand for talent has perhaps never been this high.

Just as films require new directors and writers, the business also needs new faces. This paves way for the increase in demand of "below-the-line" talent in key production functions. Talented, trained personnel to work as art directors, sound people, cinematographers, grips, and lighting people, are an invaluable element of any film production.

The need for these talented, trained professionals to work film jobs and film internships in new media and in new areas shall continue to rise as long as film production continues to migrate from the coasts and diversify.

Link: http://www.billboardmama.com/how-to-find-film-internships-p-368.html

Do you that that only the cities of New York and Los Angeles have film internships? Well, you might want to think again. Truth is, you can get a fantastic film internship virtually anywhere in the United States. Want to become the next Quentin Tarantino or Angelina Jolie? Whether your passion is directing, acting, editing, or anything else, you can find film internships to help you learn your area of expertise, bulk up your resume, and make valuable connections to professionals in your field.

You may not believe that the film industry is present in your locality, but carry out a little research. You can even give your mayor's office a ring if you like to know if a particular production is shot near your place. (Tax incentives are driving many film corporations to cities like Boston and Seattle, and everywhere in between.) You may also refer to Craigslist.org to help you on your search for film internships - or search for local film production and special effects companies or television studios. Refer to their websites - surely, they'll have a list of internship openings. Another option is for you to call their recruitment officer and ask about internship opportunities. Inform them where your interests lie and bring your skills to the table, and you might find yourself in a film internship that didn't exist before your phone call.

If you're a college student or alumnus, check in with your institution's career services department. More often than not, local schools are tapped by these film production companies. You can even make use of the list of alumni to call those who are in the entertainment industry. (Don't be shy about talking to them, they've explicitly agreed to be contacted by other alumni, so chances are, they'll be more than eager to help you out.) Even if they do not live in your locality, they may have helpful tips on where to look for film internships, or know of colleagues in the field who are looking for interns.

If you've gone the film school route, many film schools have established internship programs that allow you to earn credits as you break into the biz. For people who want to keep away from the relocation and tuition costs that a large percentage of film schools require, there are also established mentoring and internship programs throughout the United States that allow you to apprentice with professionals in a variety of fields, without leaving your area.

Lastly, the expression "it's who you know" is doubly true in the film industry. Does your mother go to a hairdresser who has a talent agent for a cousin? Maybe, your roommate's uncle is a film composer? Spread the word that you're searching for an internship in the industry, and you may be amazed to learn the connections you already have.

Start with your area - do your homework, make some calls. You may realize that the film internships that you're looking for may just be lurking in the corner.

Link: http://www.billboardmama.com/are-filmmaking-and-film-school-going-down-the-drain-p-367.html

Today, there are a lot of home-made movies that have been circulating the web; this makes us question, "is filmmaking - and proper training film school - still profitabe?" Does film have a future?

To answer that question accurately, we have to appropriately define our terms. Films don't have a future. More often than not, movies are shot and projected digitally. There are holdouts in the industry. Steven Spielberg shoots on film and has not wanted his works to be projected digitally. But even the great Spielberg needs to give in - this happened with "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull." The distribution mogul, Paramount Pictures, released it both on film and in digital format. The movie icon Michael Bay expresses himself in these words: "I'm old school because I like to shoot on film." He points out that he prefers his movies to play in theaters, that "Transformers" was not downloadable for an iPod. Bay and Spielberg may be the exceptions when it comes to shooting on film, but they are still part of the school of filmmakers around the globe who want to tell stories professionally on the big screen.

But does that type of cinema have an audience any more? This is the kind of filmmaking that necessitates the simultaneous editing of set-ups. The fact that today's biggest hits are home-movie clips of "The Worst Ice Cream Ever" and "Spider-Tard," prompts us to ask: are people still going to watch feature films?

Cory Doctorow, a writer who considers that "commercially minded" big budget films "might simply die", claims in an online article called "Media Metamorphosis: How the Internet Will Devour, Transform or Destroy Your Favorite Medium" that the future will be dominated by cheap and crummy YouTube videos which, he says, will be seen by you and the "38 other people who are kinked just like you."

Is Mr. Doctorow right? Is film-going soon to be a fading memory? Will the public become more inclined to watching a fuzzy home movie on their mobile phones? Is the kid with the flip-cam now the King of the marketplace? The facts will tell us. The film "Where the Wild Things Are" grossed over 30 million dollars this weekend. This figure shows us that approximately three million people went to see the movie in just three days - in addition, box office from the weekend is 40% up as compared to last year. That is bigger than any number of hits on any video on the internet. "Paranormal Activity", a low-budget feature made for more or less $20,000 but shot in a fairly traditional manner with a fictional plot and characters, has gathered over 30 million dollars and is averaging over twenty-five thousand dollars per theater - those are enormous numbers.

Annual box office has not dropped since the worldwide web became such a vital part of our lives. The downtick in profits is actually better than the downturn in the economy - it hovers around 1 to 2% annually. People still like to go out and have an experience in a movie theater with other people, lose themselves in something outside of real life.

As Ron Howard tells the current DGA Quarterly: "You try to tell a story that's meaningful, and share it with people." This shared story is what links the people with their fellow moviegoers - and this is what they are looking for. Therefore, while film may be dead, the filmmaking process and film school as well as the movie-going experience is still so strong and vital.