AMERICAN FILM INSTITUTE CONSERVATORY
Educating Tomorrow's Storytellers
At the world-renowned AFI Conservatory, a dedicated group of working professionals from the film and television communities serve as mentors in a hands-on, production-based environment nurturing the talents of tomorrow’s storytellers.
Established in 1969, the two-year Master of Fine Arts program provides training in six filmmaking disciplines: Cinematography, Directing, Editing, Producing, Production Design and Screenwriting.
With an emphasis on narrative visual storytelling, personal expression, and professional production standards, Fellows collaborate to make more films than any other graduate level program. Admission to AFI Conservatory is highly selective, with a maximum of only 140 graduates per year.
Notable Alumni
Darren Aronofsky
Director – Requiem for a Dream, Black Swan
Terrence Malick
Director – Days of Heaven, The Thin Red Line, The Tree of Life
Wally Pfister
Cinematographer – Memento, The Dark Knight, Inception
Robert Richardson
Cinematographer – Platoon, Django Unchained
Christopher Gay
Editor – Mad Men, CSI:NY
Howard Smith
Editor – The Abyss, Glengarry Glen Ross
Franco Giacomo-Carbone
Production Designer – The Expendables, Hostel
Todd Cherniawsky
Production Designer – Avatar (Art Director), Alice In Wonderland (Art Director)
Sharon Seymour
Production Designer – The Town, The Ides of March
Affonso Gonçalves
Editor – Winter’s Bone, Night Catches Us
Frank Reynolds
Editor – In The Bedroom, In Search Of A Midnight Kiss