The Georgia Film Academy (GFA) is a not-for-profit entertainment arts program based in Atlanta, Georgia. It is a collaboration of the

University System of Georgia The University System of Georgia (USG) is the government agency that includes 26 public institutions of higher learning in the U.S. state of Georgia. The system is governed by the Georgia Board of Regents. It sets goals and dictates general ...

and the

Technical College System of Georgia The Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG), formerly known as the Department of Technical and Adult Education (DTAE), is the State of Georgia Government Agency which supervises the U.S. state of Georgia's 22 technical colleges, while also su ...

created in 2015 by Georgia state leadership to meet education and workforce needs for high-demand careers in Georgia's film and creative industries.Georgia Film Academy Helps Fill Industry’s Workforce Gap
By Martha Dalton, WABE in Atlanta, Jul 12, 2017

Mission and history

The GFA offers professional training to prepare students for union-covered film and television and post-production production craft internships and placement in creative industries, apprenticeships, and jobs.Classes and Workshops: Georgia Film Academy
The

Georgia Department of Economic Development The Georgia Department of Economic Development (GDEcD) is a department of the State of Georgia (United States). The department plans, manages and mobilizes state resources to attract new business investment to Georgia, drive the expansion of exi ...

New film pathway prepares GHC students for careers in fast-growing industry
By Donna Harris, ''The Daily Tribune News'',

Cartersville, GA Cartersville is a city in Bartow County, Georgia, United States; it is located within the northwest edge of the Atlanta metropolitan area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 23,187. Cartersville is the county seat of Bartow Co ...

, July 19, 2020Major movie and TV studio launching locally. The goal is 10 films in three years
By Tony Adams, Ledger-Enquirer, June 16, 2018 The GFA High School Initiative offers training to high school teachers in GFA-developed courses. High School teachers receive training in current methodologies and equipment used in motion picture production, along with training in how to teach

Avid Media Composer Avid Media Composer is a film and video editing software application or non-linear editing system (NLE) developed by Avid Technology. Initially released in 1989 on Macintosh II as an offline editing system, the application has since evolved to al ...

editing and dramatic writing on the high school level. The dramatic writing course meets the

U.S. Department of Education The United States Department of Education is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government. It began operating on May 4, 1980, having been created after the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare was split into the Department ...

standards for English language arts and theater.Georgia Film Academy welcomes high school students
By Alexa Liacko,

FOX 5 Atlanta WAGA-TV (channel 5) is a television station in Atlanta, Georgia, United States, airing programming from the Fox network. Owned and operated by the network's Fox Television Stations division, the station maintains studios and transmitter facili ...

, February 19, 2019

Partner Institutions

GFA started with three campuses — Clayton State, Gwinnett Tech and Southern Crescent, and has expanded to 24 partner colleges and universities across the state of Georgia.GFA Partner Institutions
Georgia Film Academy Students sign up within their college and then take classes at one of these GFA locations:

Pinewood Atlanta Studios Trilith Studios is an American film and television production studio located south of Atlanta in Fayette County, Georgia. Originally known as Pinewood Atlanta Studios, the studio has been used to produce many films and television programs, particu ...

in Fayetteville; OFS Studios in Norcross.

Tyler Perry Studios Tyler Perry Studios (TPS) is an American film production studio in Atlanta, Georgia founded by actor, filmmaker, and playwright Tyler Perry in 2006. In 2019, Perry celebrated the grand opening of his newest Atlanta studio location; he purchased ...

trains students as well.Tyler Perry Studios partners with Georgia FIlm Academy
Tyler Perry Studios A typical class is one day a week for six hours. Successful students are placed on a paid internship. Currently, 75 percent of GFA students receive one-semester internships. GFA program graduates receive a GFA production certification card after completing the three courses required for the certificate.What’s Filming In Georgia: The Georgia Film Academy Can Help
By Parrish Walton, Georgia Public Broadcasting, October 30, 2018

Academics

GFA courses include Intro to On-set Film Production, Set Construction & Scenic Painting, Lighting & Electric, Grip & Rigging, Editing with

100, Media Composer 200 and

Pro Tools Pro Tools is a digital audio workstation (DAW) developed and released by Avid Technology (formerly Digidesign) for Microsoft Windows and macOS. It is used for music creation and production, sound for picture (sound design, audio post-productio ...

, Special Makeup Effects, Production Accounting & Office Management, Production Design, and Motion Picture Set Lighting. In 2020, the GFA partnered with the

University of Georgia , mottoeng = "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of things.""To serve" was later added to the motto without changing the seal; the Latin motto directly translates as "To teach and to inquire into the nature of things." , establ ...

(UGA) to offer film programs with the UGA Masters of Fine Arts.UGA Partners With Georgia Film Academy On MFA Film Program
By Sophia Saliby, Georgia Public Broadcasting Education : News, January 03, 2020

History

The Georgia state legislation created tax incentives for production companies in 2002, and then boosted these credits again in 2008. A film production company that meets the requirements can receive up to 30% back in Georgia State tax credits.Film, Television and Digital Entertainment Tax Credit: Georgia Film Academy
The Georgia Department of Economic Development To create more local jobs in the film industry, Governor

Nathan Deal John Nathan Deal (born August 25, 1942) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 82nd governor of Georgia from 2011 to 2019. He was elected to the United States House of Representatives as a member of the Democratic Party in 1992 a ...

worked with the Georgia legislature in 2015 to set aside an appropriation, administered by the Board of Regents, to create and fund GFA. The Board of Regents appointed Atlanta native

Jeffrey Stepakoff Jeffrey Stepakoff is an American television writer, producer, and author. Education After graduating from Woodward Academy in College Park, Georgia in 1981, Stepakoff earned a degree in journalism from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hi ...

to be executive director the same year and GFA began offering courses in January 2016:With Jeff Stepakoff at the helm, the Georgia Film Academy begins classes next month
by Jeff Stafford, December 18, 2015, ARTS ATL Introduction to On-Set Film Production and an accompanying internship program. The two programs were initially offered on the campuses of Clayton State University, Gwinnett Tech and the Southern Crescent Technical College. Twenty GFA interns were used for the first time for the production of

Krystal (film) ''Krystal'' is a 2017 American coming-of-age comedy-drama film directed by William H. Macy and written by Will Aldis. The film stars Rosario Dawson, Nick Robinson, T.I., Grant Gustin, Felicity Huffman, Macy, Jacob Latimore, Rick Fox, William Fich ...

, starring

William H. Macy William Hall Macy Jr. (born March 13, 1950) is an American actor. His film career has been built on appearances in small, independent films, though he has also appeared in mainstream films. Some of his best known starring roles include those i ...

, in March 2016. In June 2016, Stepakoff negotiated an arrangement with

IATSE The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, Moving Picture Technicians, Artists and Allied Crafts of the United States, Its Territories and Canada, known as simply the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE or ...

to allow GFA interns to train/intern in union covered crafts where they would be able to work under experienced union members on production sets.Local 479 Partnering With Georgia Film Academy In 2016
December 8, 2015, IATSE Local 479 The GFA has issued over 1,000 certificates since its founding in 2016.Academy provides workers for Georgia’s growing film industry
By Tammy Joyner, The

Atlanta Journal-Constitution ''The Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' is the only major daily newspaper in the metropolitan area of Atlanta, Georgia. It is the flagship publication of Cox Enterprises. The ''Atlanta Journal-Constitution'' is the result of the merger between ...

, December 9, 2016

References

Sources

Savannah Tech teams up with Georgia Film Academy for on-set production assistant program
By Ann Meyer, Savannah Morning News, Jan 24, 2019

By Noreen Cochran, South Metro Neighbor, March 2, 2018
UGA announces MFA film program with Pinewood Forest
By Ryan Dennis, WXIA-TV, Atlanta, December 10, 2019
How the Georgia Film Academy plans to keep Hollywood in the South
By Max Blau, Atlanta Magazine, April 27, 2016

External links

Official home page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Georgia Film Academy Film organizations in the United States 2015 establishments in the United States Non-profit organizations based in Georgia (U.S. state) Investment promotion agencies Film schools in the United States University System of Georgia Technical College System of Georgia Joint-venture schools