Philadelphia's branch of the Art Institute is located in the arts section of downtown. The university offers students associate, bachelor and graduate degree programs in digital film-making and video production. Students in the Digital Film-making and Video Production program, learn the basics for how to formulate, build and make polished digital audio, videos and motion graphics. Courses provide students with access to industry level software and equipment. By the end of the program, graduate students often seek entry-level jobs as video editors, video producers or digital videographers, according to the The Art Institute of Philadelphia's website.
The University of Arts in Philadelphia, located in the city center on the Avenue of the Arts, offers an undergraduate Film School program with specialized degrees in Film/Animation, Film/Video and Writing for Film and Television. Applicants who want to get into the Film School can submit either a portfolio of original film artwork---a short movie, video, documentary or experimental film), a traditional portfolio of at least ten creative drawings, paintings, designs, illustrations, sculptures or photographs, or a 5 to 7 page piece of fictional prose writing that shows the student's passion for film and film-making. Accepted student learn all essential film making tools: cinematography, editing, sound production, scriptwriting and image manipulation, such as film coloring. Tuition prices, as of 2011, start from $1,144 for accredited programs.
Filmtech is an independently owned film school providing a year-long film-making course broken into three 15-week sessions. Instructors teach with hands-on training, allowing students to help shoot, edit and produce films. The programs offered include directing, producing, cinematography and screenwriting. Throughout the weeks long or year-long program, students write scripts and produce video and film projects for review. Filmtech also offers weekend courses that span 8 weeks. One-on one individual classes on nights and weekends in areas like documentary film-making, film editing, and videography. The advanced 15 week program tuition is $6,900. The 15 week independent program tuition is $3,900, as of April 2011.
The Philadelphia Film Connection is a film school alternative. Instead of offering university or independent courses for students, the Philadelphia Film School by the Philadelphia Film Connection admits students into film companies to learn film-making hands-on. Students work as apprentices to filmmakers, learning how to direct, produce, edit, film and write screenplays. Film Connection assigns students to certain film companies in Philadelphia. In the mentor apprentice program, students study one-on-one with a mentor, a film professional in a particular area of interest, such as directing or screenwriting. The classrooms are film sets and location shoots through Philadelphia. The six-month course costs, as of April 2011, $7,750. The price includes a mentor, all books and equipment.