Martin Scorsese to show the way for aspiring filmmakers through e-course

02 Oct 2017

Filmmaking icon Martin Scorsese is making his first foray into e-learning by teaching in an internet-based course on movie making.

The Oscar-winning director, whose critically and commercially successful directing career spans nearly 50 years, will debut the specialised instruction class in 2018 through online-education startup MasterClass, elearning feeds reported.

For a mere US$90, subscribers would have unlimited access to more than 20 video lessons with the director, whose notable works include Wolves of Wall Street, Goodfellas, and The Departed. On Friday, MasterClass is expected to open up pre-enrollment at masterclass.com/ms.

Throughout the course, subscribers would be able to see Scorsese deconstruct his films and view how he approaches filmmaking. Lessons also include takes on storytelling, editing and working with actors.

The course also includes a downloadable workbook with lesson recaps and supplemental material. Scorsese would also be providing select feedback to questions posed by students who upload video questions.

In a press release, MasterClass CEO David Rogier said: “Scorsese is one of the most influential filmmakers of all-time… This is a once in a generation opportunity.”

Introducing our newest class, Martin Scorsese Teaches Filmmaking. Learn more at https://t.co/9Vjhf5wj7M pic.twitter.com/EXhr5YAoVZ

— MasterClass (@MasterClass) September 22, 2017

Scorsese joins the likes of Werner Herzog who taught a “principles of filmmaking class,” Aaron Sorkin who gave a class on screenwriting, and Hans Zimmer who directed film scoring. According to the Verge late last month, Kevin Spacey, Dustin Hoffman, and Steve Martin have also taught acting classes.

“If you’re thinking of movie-making as a career, this isn’t the class for you. But if you need to make movies, you feel like you can’t rest until you’ve told this particular story that you’ve been burning to tell, then I could be speaking to you,” Scorsese was quoted as saying.

The trailer for the course extracts clips from Scorsese’s most acclaimed work, including Taxi Driver, Casino, and Hugo.

“I was excited by this project because it gave me a chance to pass down my own inspirations and experiences and practices and evolution, not as a blueprint for how to make movies, but as a guidepost, an offering to young people attempting to find their own way,” Scorsese said.

Based on the preview of the course, Scorsese appears to be covering many aspects of filmmaking, including production design, writing, and editing.