GOLDEN GATE XPRESS -- SF State’s School of Cinema is listed as one of the best film schools in the country for the fourth year in a row.
The Hollywood Reporter published its annual ranking of top film schools and placed the School of Cinema as 22nd in the country out of the 29 listed.
“To be recognized by The Hollywood Reporter yet again means a lot to our students and alumni and the University,” said Daniel Bernardi, documentary filmmaker and Cinema school professor at SF State.
Continuous recognition over the years has influenced some students’ decisions in attending SF State.
“I think I had read about (the school’s recognition) earlier and it said it was around number five in cinematography and that’s what I was trying to go to when I got out of high school,” said Sam Dockan, junior film major.
Similarly, sophomore Matt Zone chose to attend school in San Francisco rather than staying in the movie industry city of Los Angeles.
“I picked SF State because I was aware they were a highly ranked film school,” he said. “I had a lot of faith from word-of-mouth and some of its prominent alumni that it would be a really good film school.”
Being far removed from the movie epicenter of Los Angeles is something the department prides itself on and is an aspect that attracts incoming students, according to Bernardi.
“We are independent and artistic rather than industrial or Hollywood,” said Bernardi. “I don’t think it’s the University actually … we are located in a city rich in stories populated by communities committed to individual expression and cultural diversity.”