Insights on Digital Media and Higher Education

At VideoBlocks, we know a thing or two about entrepreneurship in filmmaking. Almost ten years ago we were an army of one; Joel Holland, our founder and CEO, sold his stock video footage in VHS bundles through eBay. This eventually became the inspiration behind our company as Joel looked to provide easily accessible and affordable stock footage. Today we’re more than 60 strong with an expansive digital download library. Though Joel’s vision was specific to his goal of building a stock video company, his enterprising attitude is something that he holds in common with the rest of the filmmaking community, taking part in a much larger entrepreneurial tradition in the industry.

Although we’ve often written about the value of our Digital Backpack for film programs, VideoBlocks for Education knows that digital literacy is a cross-disciplinary issue important to all educators. A screen can never replace the value of a learned instructor or an engaged classroom; however, video is the future of education—as both its content and its medium. With this in mind, we’ve put together a list of four academic departments that benefit from video education and stock media that aren’t film programs.

New technologies have made it easier than ever for anyone with an idea to create a movie and distribute it. This has left many professors and industry insiders wondering what film schools should offer their students. While some experts believe that digital filmmaking, YouTube, and Vimeo have fundamentally changed the way film should be taught and studied, others contend the opposite: classic techniques and approaches might become more important than ever. Here are five predictions from both points of view on what film schools could and should be including in curriculum for the future of film education.

Here at VideoBlocks for Education, one of our company’s core values is that “we heart data,” which is why we began to wonder after looking at the numbers from The Hollywood Reporter’s most recent film school rankings, what exactly does it mean to be on the top, and how do schools get there?

The decision is in from our guest judge, cinematographer and director of photography Arthur Albert, and VideoBlocks for Education is excited to announce the winner of our 2015 Student Film Contest. Applauding the film’s “sophisticated cinematography and real storytelling ability,” Arthur Albert extends his congratulations to Adonis Lugo and his cast and crew on their winning short, “Sally’s Playtime.”

As higher education’s embrace of digital media marches forward, it’s important we not lose sight of the research in which it is grounded. Digital literacy is not to be confused with the adoption of technology for the sake of technology or the veneer of campus aesthetics. 

From dazzling animations never before possible to traditional shorts made with the finesse of a much more experienced director, festivals around the world have seen a steady increase in the quality of work produced by film students. We saw some of these high quality works firsthand during our recent student film competition. Advances in digital media, 3D printing, and even tablets have allowed these fifteen student filmmakers to make engaging projects that show off their technical savvy and give us a glimpse into the future of filmmaking.

The bored, daydreaming student is more than a cliché. It’s a real problem educators face at all levels. As more and more students find it difficult to focus, spend adequate time on projects, and produce results, the term student engagement has gained popularity throughout education policy. The Great Schools Partnership’s Glossary of Education Reform describes engagement as, “...the degree of attention, curiosity, interest, optimism, and passion students show when they are learning or being taught.”

We’re excited to announce the six finalists in our Student Film Competition, which was open to all undergraduate and graduate level student filmmakers. We received submissions from talented and dedicated filmmakers all over the globe, and we were thrilled by the many, many creative ways they found to incorporate our VideoBlocks and AudioBlocks content into their projects while pursuing their unique creative visions. Thank you to everyone who submitted for helping to make the competition a success!

For a long time now Hollywood has branded itself as an industry of artists and risk takers—innovators of art, not science; however, audiences would be surprised by the level of data analysis behind every aspect of film. From highly publicized success stories such as Netflix’s House of Cards to the award-winning film The King’s Speech, commercial success has become more of a numbers game than ever before.