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DIE TRYING 016
Publish, Project or Perish
Michael Barnes
December 20, 2025
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Hey! I’m that guy trying to sell my latest screenplay, publish it as a novel or die trying.
In DIE TRYING, you will get an unvarnished look at a bitterly honest writer struggling to make it. No name-dropping or Hollywood phoniness. Just the facts ma’am on what the media landscape really is like behind the curtain.
In TODAY’S ISSUE, we draw the line between a naughty ‘90s rap hit and film school.
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 | IS FILM SCHOOL WORTH IT? |  |
If you want a career in entertainment, is film school worth it?
I asked myself this question after listening to entertainment journalist Matthew Belloni interview a prestigious film school dean on his podcast The Town.
In 2001, I graduated from the University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts with an MFA.
It’s one of the top film schools in the world. What I left out is that I graduated with crippling debt.
Enough debt to buy a house. Not the down payment but the whole damn thing (depending on where you live, of course).
People who slag film school argue you could use the tuition to make your own low-budget feature.
That’s debatable.
I would argue you should only risk money on a film, pilot or other entertainment property with Naughty by Nature’s O.P.P.
Sorry…O.P.C…Other People’s Capital.
Film school has merits.
Years ago, I was learning coding in a free online class.
I hit a roadblock where the code I wrote had an error. I couldn’t advance.
There was no instructor available as a resource.
I posted to message boards, got no response and abandoned the course.
Sometimes, structure — film school being a physical site you go to — is conducive to getting something done.
Plus, factor in the networking you do with other students, faculty and industry luminaries. Factor in the classical education you receive, too.
I am writing a spec script and have received compliments about how sound is deployed on paper. I would never have that skill as a writer unless I had mixed films and done sound at U.S.C.
My advice to young people?
If you can O.P.P. a top film school with someone else’s money, do it.
If you’re not a nepo or trust fund baby, consider an option like Ghetto Film School where you can apply and get free tuition if selected.
Avoid the shackles of debt.
Or better yet, spend time in U.S.C. libraries and read books on filmmaking for free like James Cameron did.
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