Is Film School a scam/misconception? (mostly)
I'm a senior in HS who's been passionate about film making for a while, and I made my first film PURELY BY networking with other people who were in the industry near me outside of any educational institution. I got basically $10,000 worth of gear that I was able to borrow for free from my film friend at a previous high-school just because I reconnected with him. I also had to really network like hell to find actors in my local area, which I did too!
The creative process was really enjoyable to do, and my contribution was in screenwriting, editing, funding (only for the actors) and lastly the directing itself.
Now I'm thinking of maybe pursuing film school in California, but in all honestly looking at how the industry is and especially the overall unreliability at securing a good paying job, is it really completely and absolutely the best choice to network with other fellow filmmakers/producers? I mean aren't these connections really based on their own success rather than yours, and whether they're a producer or filmmaker in the long-run?
I don't really understand the common notion that you need to go to film school in order to even have a chance in the industry, when majority of film majors don't even pursue film after college because they realize it's not for them. But there's various film directors that never even touched film school and yet due to their networking ability, they got into the industry.
So if everything above I said is true then why shouldn't I just major in something else and secure a high-paying job (which in the long-term will fund my filmmaking) and then just connect with other filmmakers/producers even if I'm not directly receiving film specific education at the same time?
Is the connections/experience in a high-tier film school SOOO much different than meeting other film directors/producers at festivals, local groups, and communities? From my perspective it just seems so over-hyped and that if you really network aggressively, (and you are active in the community) film school just seems like a complete waste of time when you can do something that pays well and then also do film.
So in summary, should I just major in something else other than film and then still pursue it? Or go major into film which may or may not work out.
Let me know your advice. Thanks!