MadamDirector
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Everything posted by MadamDirector
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@Eccyclema @Hamidoo @E. Karenina Thank you all for the good vibes! Reporting back after my Yale interview: Yuri was super laid back, friendly, and easy to talk to. Asked about my reasons for applying (of course), a really inspiring show I'd written about seeing in my application, and a lot about the show I'm currently working on. Also got a chance to choose and talk about a highlight from my past shows. Overall a really positive experience. Best wishes for all of you with interviews coming up soon!
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@E. Karenina you are so right! It definitely beats a plane ticket from the southeast to Seattle, but still...
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Anyone else get an email from UW for the initial Skype interview? This is the first time in quite a while I've had to find and prepare a monologue... yikes.
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I'm going through this whole process for the first time myself, but I found a lot of great info by searching these forums from years past-- I was looking for different schools, but was able to find a lot of folks who'd shared actual questions they were asked. (Even if you don't find a lot of UCLA-specific posts, I'm betting some questions are probably common across the board.) Break a leg!
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@per4mance thanks for your insight! Currently looking for anything to maks me feel a wee bit calmer about this upcoming interview, and that helped. Break a leg at your CalArts and CMU interviews!
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I finally got my email Friday afternoon... I was starting to get nervous too, even though I felt like I was being paranoid as well. I'll be in New Haven on Jan 15--where and when are you interviewing, if you don't mind sharing?
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Trying to kick of the new year by getting my last two applications (BU and UMass) finished and submitted. Hope everyone is having a happy New Year, and that 2018 brings all of us the good news we're hoping for!
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Congratulations!
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IMHO, a good way to approach this might be to ask follow-up questions about information that is available about the program online (or in print, or anywhere else you're getting your info). Asking for more detail or specifics about things you've already learned about the program seems to me like a good way to show that you've taken the initiative to do your research, while also getting more details about the things that pique your interest.
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Got a call from Yale for an interview today--this is earlier than I was expecting to possibly hear from anyone, so it came as a doubly big surprise. Has anyone else gotten a call? (If so, congrats!) p.s. It did definitely sound like they would still be making calls for a couple days, too.
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Oh yeah. I've gotten Yale and Northwestern in, should have UT Austin done by the end of tonight... just have to upload all my supplemental materials. That just leaves Washington, BU, and UMass Amherst hanging over my head still. And don't feel lame for pulling an app if you don't feel you have the time and energy to make it a good showing. I knocked Columbia off my list because I didn't have enough filmed material to make the video they wanted, and I figured I would rather focus my energies on other apps rather than kill myself trying to cobble together a video that wouldn't represent my work as strongly as I'd want it to. Meanwhile, seriously considering making the seven-hour round trip to confront my third recommender, who has yet to submit a single letter, and has gone totally incommunicado. At the end of my rope with this one.
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@UnhappyMFA Sorry to hear you're in such a difficult spot. You mention, though, that you feel as though the directing program is there to support the playwrights until the second year, when it sounds like some more opportunities will open up for you to do more of the work that interests you. If you're committed to at least finishing the current year of study, it sounds like things might get significantly better for you from there on out, anyway. But I also feel your pain... three years does seem like a very long time to be frustrated, if you do in fact think the frustration will continue beyond this first year. I agree with @ctbck that it really boils down to whether you'd rather stay in a program that's not your ideal, or go back to the application process, knowing there's always a chance (as there is for all of us, of course) of not getting accepted to another school. Again, sorry to hear about your frustrations. Best wishes that things get better for you, one way or another!
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@carabrokes96 I'm in my first year of applying to grad school, so I'm certainly no expert here, but I do feel your pain about the challenge of these damn letters! I find writing about myself to be very challenging, especially when I'm trying to express my passion for directing without sounding like a total cliche. The best advice I've been given is to focus on two major questions: Why you? and Why now? In other words, what do you bring to the table to no one else can? And why do you think grad school is the right move for you at this point in your life/career? If you can answer those questions for yourself, even really informally, then you have the starting point to edit that into a great letter. And as far as your dad's connection to one of the schools, try to look at that as an asset rather than something scary... does having that added knowledge about the school give you more specific reasons for why you think it's a good fit for you? Most of all, just write something to start with. It can be total garbage--you can edit it later! Just start really pinning down why you want to do this, at this time, at these schools, and go from there. Good luck!
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@_kita and @Sigaba thanks so much for your input! The meeting I mentioned caught me totally off guard, which put me into a bit of a panic. (I'd expected a similar conversation to happen soonish, but it ended up coming up in a weird moment.) I feel much better now about just keeping my mouth shut until I at least know for sure whether I'll actually be going anywhere! (And being rewarded for my work at my current job in the meantime)
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@SnowAngel3535 I am so in the same boat. I've not told anyone at my job that I'm even applying to grad schools, partly because my chosen degree has pretty low acceptance rates, so its entirely possible that I won't even get in first time around. But recently I found myself in a totally unexpected conversation about increasing my responsibilities (and paycheck) in a big way. This is something I'd absolutely want to happen in the event that I am still here in a year, but I also feel tons of guilt about agreeing to be part of these big changes, knowing that my hope is to be gone within 12 months. Anyone have ethical advice? I'm feeling like a pretty rotten person at the moment.
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Hi again! Curious about the prevailing opinions about sources for letters of rec. I've got one from my undergrad theatre department head, and another from a playwright whose work I've directed in a workshop setting with the writer collaborating. (She's coincidentally a university professor as well.) Most programs require three, however, and I'm stuck on who to ask for the third: Another undergrad professor (I'm now four years out of school but have kept in touch with several former profs) or a second professional reference? I'd definitely go professional but because I've been running my own small company as artistic director for the last several years, any collaborators who could really speak to my work are freelance artists not affiliated with any specific theatre company or school. (The downside of starting a company is not having any direct "superior" to use as a reference!) I'd love to know what the hive mind thinks!
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Hi gang! Getting all my stuff in order to apply to Yale, BU, Columbia, and Northwestern for sure. Also considering UT Austin and Brown... my biggest challenge is trying to find that sweet spot where I'm not limiting my options too much, but also not going to kill myself with application fees. This is my first time applying for any MFA program, so I'm all ears for any tips from those who've been down this road before. Best of luck to everyone!