NYFA VideoOnline Division · Est. 2015
The world's most trusted film school — now 100% online. Earn an accredited certificate or degree taught by working directors, editors, and showrunners, without putting your life on hold.
A legacy you can build a career on
NYFA Video is the online arm of the New York Film Academy, founded on a New York soundstage in 1992. What began as hands-on training for a single class of aspiring filmmakers has grown into an accredited conservatory with five global studios — and now, a complete online division carrying the same syllabus, the same faculty roster, and the same production-driven pedagogy to every corner of the world.
You don't enroll in a startup. You enroll in the school The Hollywood Reporter ranked among the Top 10 in the World.
Seven doors into the industry
Every NYFA Video program is built around the actual workflow of a working set — not abstract theory. Pick the track that matches the chair you want to sit in, and train for it from day one.
The flagship. Write, shoot, direct, and edit your own short films on a production schedule.
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On-camera technique, scene study, and audition craft taught by working actors and directors.
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Lensing, lighting design, and camera movement for narrative and commercial work.
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Story shaping, pacing, and sound design across narrative, documentary, and streaming formats.
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Development, financing, scheduling, and physical production for indie features and series.
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Feature, episodic, and short-form structure from outline to polished draft and pitch.
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Modeling, rigging, lighting, and look development for film, series, and games.
Explore program →Certificate programs offered in 14 specialized concentrations. Online BFA in Filmmaking can be completed in as few as 3 years while working full-time.
A week in the life of an online cohort
Online at NYFA Video doesn't mean learning alone. Every student joins a live, faculty-led cohort of about 14. Here's what a typical week looks like.
A 90-minute live session with your faculty lead — a working director, editor, or cinematographer. Watch demonstrations, ask questions in real time, and review the prior week's footage as a group.
Shoot your assignment on your own schedule using provided shot lists, gear guides, and pre-production documents. Submit raw footage and a director's statement by Thursday night.
Every student receives written and recorded feedback from faculty on their reel, scene, or screenplay. No assignment ships without notes.
Apply feedback, cut your next pass, revise pages, or peer-review a classmate's work in a small group. Monday, the cycle resets.
180+ real production assignments per degree track — the same volume of reps a campus student completes, delivered on a schedule that holds you to it.
Taught by the people who actually do the work
NYFA Video faculty are not career educators. They are the directors, cinematographers, and editors currently staffing Netflix, A24, HBO, and Disney+ productions — teaching online between their own shoots.
Lead Instructor · Cinematography
A working cinematographer whose credits include episodic drama for major streaming platforms. Leads the Cinematography cohort and reviews every student's dailies.
Lead Instructor · Editing
A picture editor whose work has screened at Cannes and Sundance, and whose feature collaborations have been nominated by the Academy.
Lead Instructor · Producing
Develops and produces long-form episodic work for premium platforms and brings those development room mechanics directly into the online classroom.
Faculty have collectively worked on 1,200+ released feature films and series episodes. The roster includes Emmy-winning cinematographers, Sundance fellows, and Academy Award-nominated editors.
The network, on set
NYFA's 15,000+ alumni are working across the productions you watch on Friday night. A representative sample of the networks our graduates are staffing: