The Higher Education Review

One thing that comes to the mind when thinking about Los Angeles is Hollywood. With that world-renowned Hollywood sign, to being the cradle of Hollywood cinemas for a long time, Los Angeles and its film industry are widely recognized as the best in the world. With a lot of production houses operating in the location, it is safe to say that the L.A. film industry is here to stay. Starting their journey from the world-famous 6363 Sunset Boulevard as a recording studio, which was used by legendary music artists such as Elvis Presley, The Rolling Stones, The Grateful Dead, Henry Mancini and many others, the foundation of The Los Angeles Film School is built on the rich history of Hollywood entertainment. In the spring of 1999, a group of Hollywood professionals with a love for all film things established the Los Angeles Film School (LAFS) with a vision to become a school where current industry professionals could share their knowledge with a new generation of filmmakers.

The Spirit of Hollywood
Starting from a simple idea of educating the next generation of creative professionals for their future in the entertainment industry, LAFS was able to penetrate the fibers of culture through their unique teaching pedagogies. "Our classrooms, led by experienced and passionate instructors, combine technical knowledge and artistic exploration. It was in 2009, we introduced an associate degree in Computer Animation, broadening our educational offerings significantly. In 2010, the L.A. Recording School officially became a division of the L.A. Film School-bringing with it an intensive audio program, which complemented our existing degrees well. In 2012, we premiered our first bachelor's

degree program with Entertainment Business. Later In 2013, a Music Production program was added to the roster and in 2017, LARS saw the introduction of its very first bachelor's degree with Audio Production", shares Lulu Miao, International Relations Manager, LAFS.

Pushing the boundaries of conventional art education, LAFS has built robust online degrees in Graphic Design and Digital Filmmaking, just to name a few. For aspiring film enthusiasts, LAFS has only one thing to say- 'There is no better place to learn about the Entertainment Arts than in Hollywood'. The institute welcomes students from all over the world to their historic campus in the Entertainment Capital of the World. Whether you're interested in filmmaking, or computer animation, mastering the art of audio recording or music production or the business of the entertainment industry, LAFS is here to make the transition into your desired degree program as straight forward and stress-free as possible. There is a significant Indian presence in their students and talking about the Indian students in the institute, Lulu says, "Indian students in LAFS usually choose the Computer animation and the filmmaking degree programs. Most of the students are proficient in their computer technology skills but have a strong passion for the creative interactive skills that need to be developed and nurtured through story-telling or digital arts." Understanding the need for affordable higher education, LAFS has also got two separate scholarships for international students: The Creative Achievement Scholarship and the Global Commitment Scholarship.

"For aspiring film enthusiasts, LAFS has only one thing to say - 'There is no better place to learn about the Entertainment Arts than in Hollywood'"

Persistently Consistent
With their team of award-winning faculty, LAFS has set the ground running and the institute has found the winning combination in their committed educators who

are well-versed in current entertainment media development and production. LAFS has put a lot of attention on its international students and the film institute has various programs for their international students to make them feel at home including orientation programs and campus tours. Apart from this, there is also a dedicated student service and student international office operating on the campus. LAFS believes that Career development is a lifelong process-starting with your first day of class. The Career Development department works in conjunction with students' education curricula to prepare them with interpersonal and professional skills to support their vocational goals and help to bridge the gap between academia and the workplace. After students graduate, they are eligible to apply for OPT - Optional Practical Training. If approved for OPT, students can stay and work in the US for up to one year or three years for the computer animation STEM program after graduation.

As an old saying, the proof is in the pudding and the students of LAFS have made their marks on their chosen fields including Oscar nominations, GRAMMY and Emmy wins and the students of the institute continue to shape the world around us through the art of storytelling. Chances are many of us have watched the movie 'Dolittle' starring 'Robert Downey Jr' and the assistant editor of the film James Carretta is an alumnus of LAFS and he has also worked on the box office hit 'Deadpool 2'. This legacy left behind by their alumni inspires LAFS' future generations of students to pave their path to success in the entertainment industry.

Lulu Miao, International Relations Manager
Lulu Miao has served in extensive higher education leadership roles for the past 14 years in the private, non-profit sector with a record of success in campus-wide recruitment initiatives and developing new strategic plans through building engagement opportunities locally and internationally.