Have you ever had like this massive creative
ambition? Oh, absolutely. Right? Like maybe you
wanted to make a movie or record an album or
write a book, but then you look at what it takes
and you just immediately abandon it. Because
the financial barrier to entry just feels, I
mean, it feels... impossibly high. Exactly. It's
so discouraging. But for today's deep dive, we're
looking at a really fascinating Wikipedia article
that proves that barrier might just be a total
myth. You really do. We're looking at a book
called Thirty Dollar Film School by Michael W.
Dean. And our mission today is to explore how
this one super budget friendly manual basically
attempted to bypass all those expensive traditional
gatekeepers. Yeah, it's such a cool concept.
It really is. It proves that this sort of start
to finish DIY ethic can be just as effective
as a super formal, expensive education. So if
you're listening, get ready. Because we are diving
into how information and really art itself gets
democratized. I love that framing. Because when
you look at the facts of this book, it's not
just some isolated gimmick, right? $30 film school
is actually part of this entire $30 school series.
Oh, right. There are others. Yeah. There's $30
music school and $30 writing school. Dean basically
built this whole ecosystem for independent creation
across all these different art forms. Which is
wild. And the crazy thing is what actually came
in the package. Because it wasn't just like a
textbook with some theory in it. Right, no. It
was very hands -on. Yeah, you got interviews
with actual professionals in the field, plus
a CD or DVD of extras. It's almost like... All
the way I think about it is like one of those
creative meal kit delivery services. Oh, that's
a great analogy. Right. Like instead of just
giving you a vague recipe for making art and
telling you to go to the grocery store, it delivers
the exact ingredients to your door. You get the
interviews, the software, the extras. So you
can cook up a project from start to finish without
even leaving your house. You really can. And
that start to finish DIY ethic is so incredibly
significant. How so? Think about why people give
up on those big projects you mentioned earlier.
It's usually a psychological gap, right? You
feel like an amateur, and the industry feels
so professional and walled off. Oh, totally.
You feel like you don't belong. Exactly. But
by including those professional interviews right
alongside the physical media, like the actual
software on that CD Dean bridges that gap, he's
basically saying, look, the pros use tools, and
here are the tools. Just handed right to you.
Right. It takes away the mystique. It tells the
reader that you're only separated from the professionals
by effort, not by access. That is such an empowering
message. OK, so this philosophy sounds great
in theory, but did it actually work? It did.
And to see how well it worked, we really have
to look at the second edition of the book, which
came out in March 2006. OK, 2006. I remember
that era. Yeah. So this second edition, the DVD
it came with, didn't just have software and tutorials
anymore. Crucially, it included 14 short films
that were actually created by quote -unquote
graduates of the first edition. Wait, really?
So actual people who read the first book made
these films? Exactly. Moved from just being this
theoretical DIY ethos to having measurable real
-world impact. The proof is right there on the
desk. Oh, wow. That is brilliant marketing, honestly.
It is. But it gets even crazier. Because of that
measurable success. This $30 DIY book started
being utilized in formal college and university
media courses on filmmaking. Wait, wait, wait.
Hold on. Are you saying actual universities were
using this? Yes. The source specifically cites
the humanistina namadikorkikulu. Human what now?
Yeah, I know. It's a mouthful. It's a university
of applied sciences in Finland. They actually
assign it as curriculum. OK, but isn't that,
I mean, think about that for a second. The whole
point of this book is to bypass the incredibly
expensive traditional university route, right?
Right. With a $30 DIY alternative. So isn't it
highly ironic that formal universities are now
assigning it as their official curriculum? Doesn't
that sort of defeat the anti -institutional purpose
of the book? I mean, I could totally see why
you'd think that. It sounds like a paradox. But
really, it's the ultimate validation of Dean's
method. How do you figure? Well... Think about
those 14 graduate films on the 2006 DVD. That
is verifiable proof of concept. When that Finnish
university adopted the book, they were basically
admitting that high level educational institutions
recognize something very specific. Which is what?
That practical applied instruction is just way
more effective than purely theoretical academia
when you're actually trying to make something.
Oh, I see. Because so many film schools just
teach you, like, Film theory. Exactly. You can
write a great essay on Hitchcock, but you don't
know how to turn on a camera. Right. You don't
know how to actually export a video file. Exactly.
So by using Dean's book, the university is saying,
look, this guy figured out how to get people
to actually finish a project. Let's just use
his method. Wow. OK, so it works for adults,
and it clearly works for university students.
But I want to talk about the part of the article
that absolutely blew my mind. Oh, I know exactly
what you're going to bring up. It's the ultimate
proof of concept. The story of Emma Kenny. Yes.
This is where it gets so good. So if you're listening
and you still think you need to go to film school,
Emma Kenny was nine years old. Nine. And she
strictly followed the instructions in thirty
dollar film school to create her own film. A
film called The New Girl in Town. Right. And
it wasn't just some cute home video that her
parents put on the fridge. This crowning achievement,
this nine -year -old's film, was actually shown
at the New Jersey International Film Festival.
Which is just incredible. It's insane. I mean,
it's like handing a nine -year -old a Lego instruction
manual and then sitting back and watching them
build, like, an architecturally sound, city -approved
suspension bridge. That is the perfect way to
describe it. How is that even possible? Well,
it's all about the age factor. It's actually
a massive advantage in some ways. Really? An
advantage? Yeah. Think about it. If a nine -year
-old can synthesize this information and achieve
a professional milestone like getting into an
international film festival, it completely dismantles
the excuse that you need years of complex theory
to create viable art. Oh, because she doesn't
have any of that theory. She just has the instructions.
Exactly. She doesn't have the baggage. An adult
overthinks it. An adult says, oh, I don't have
the right lighting. I don't have a cinematic
eye. Right. Adults get imposter syndrome. Yes.
But a nine -year -old just reads the book, sees
step one, and does it. It proves that clear instruction,
when you combine it with just pure execution,
is the ultimate equalizer. Pure execution. I
love that. Yeah. It shows that you don't need
prestige. You just need to follow the steps and
do the work. Wow. You know, this whole deep dive
really makes you rethink everything. It really
does. So if you're listening to this and you're
looking to maybe pivot careers or learn a new
skill, or you just want to understand how modern
media is actually made, remember this. The barrier
to entry is largely a myth. It really is. Yeah.
The walls aren't as high as they look. Exactly.
The tools are absolutely accessible. If you just
adopt that DIY mindset, you just have to start.
But, you know, it does leave us with a pretty
wild question to think about. What's that? Well,
if a simple $30 book and a DVD of tutorials can
successfully replicate the output of a traditional
film school. To the point where actual universities
are using it as curriculum. Right. And to the
point where a nine -year -old can use it to get
into an international film festival. Yeah. At
what point does the traditional, quote unquote,
school institution become entirely obsolete?
Oh, wow. Like, are we heading toward a future
where the DIY ethic is literally the only true
prerequisite for creation? That is a fascinating
thought to leave on. Definitely something to
chew on the next time you think about going back
to school.