I feel like I've lost all motivation/want to pursue my dream

[Brighty]

I feel like I've lost like almost all my motivation to continue at my college, I'm a sophomore and I've always wanted to be a director/writer. Recently my work has caught the idea of Sony and they're flying me down to meet with them in LA in November to pitch my screenplay to them and my past work has won awards statewide. I'm majoring in business at Saint Louis University and I picked it because I kind of had to, but I don't see myself doing this as a career. I know I'll be miserable if I end up being average working a job I hate always wondering what would happen if I went after my dream.

I just don't think I can finish to get my degree here, Saint Louis University doesn't even have a strong writing/film program and I know I'm just wasting my time here...

I really want to move out to LA but I dont know what to do, really. I just don't have the motivation to go to class anymore knowing that the classes I'm taking dont even reflect on what I want to do with my life and I'm wasting my time on them.

I really don't know what the next step is for me, should I go to film school or try and make it on my own? I've already gotten a lot of success on my own and I know the cliche about no one taking film school seriously. Is there anyone up this early that can relate to my situation or have any ideas as to what I should do? Is it that horrible that I take some time off college (I'll come back to finish my degree eventually) and will I screw myself? I just want to follow my dream, as cliche as that sounds. Plus its 40k a year, we're getting financial aid but i'm having to probably pay back 30k in loans and I'm worried that I'll miss some kind of opportunity while I'm spending the next 3 years in school. I don't know, its just hard to stay motivated and I get this strong sense that I should be somewhere else in my life.

What do you guys think, have any of you been met with a similar situation or a calling? What did you guys do? I'm having the time of my life in college but I feel like I'm being unproductive with my future and that I could go out and grab it but doing what everyone expects me to (i.e. get a degree as soon as I can) is preventing me from that. Sorry if this **** seems like whining, I'm just venting and getting this all off my chest here.

 

[Speculator E]

College can be a waste of time if you choose the wrong major for you. A business degree is usually worthless for most people. You learn business by doing.

There's nothing wrong following your dream. But you have to think it through. Make sure it's a realistic goal. Going for your dream can be risky. There's no guarantee you'll be succeed and it can be a gamble sometimes. You may win or you may lose. Always be aware of the risk and have a backup plan in case it doesn't work out.

As a rule of thumb: just give it a try and see if it works out. Don't risk everything on it. Like in poker, don't risk everything in one pot or you'll get burn sooner or later. If it start working out, then you can start focusing.

Always research your career goal thoroughly. The main cause of people failing in life is due to making bad choices. Sometimes from lack of knowledge. You need to look at the pros and cons to every option. Most people will only gives you the pros without telling you the cons.

There are college graduates that can't find a job in their field. But most people won't tell you that. If you dig, you'll find news articles about unemployed college graduates and student loan nightmares. You have to be like a detective to find the truth. Good Luck.

 

[synergy1]

sounds like you got something going for you if sony is flying you down. Go with that. When you are starting out, you'll probably need a job just to get by, but there is nothing wrong with that while you keep working. Maybe something down the line will get picked up.

You posted a while ago about college, and it sounds like you are going for the sake of going. If it is costing you tons of cash, I say stop or put it on hold. Besides in todays economy, a soft degree doesn't seem worth the investment up front.

 

[AAAgent]

I know this isn't in line with your topic but i want to write a screenplay as well. I've been trying to write a book. I have a few chapters down and my friends really like it.

But the thing is everyone tells me it reads more like a screenplay than a book.

How did you go about this screenplay writing and where did you go for competitions.

I'm actually in business and i've entered competitions before but i'm not at all familiar with the film industry.

any suggestions?

 

[Brighty]

Thank you for the replies so far guys, I knew that if there was one place I could go to for honest, no bull**** advice about these kind of things, its the community here. I'd definitely like to continue to hear other peoples' thoughts/past experiences with this, as this is a decision I'm going to be thinking carefully over for the next week or so and every bit helps.

@AAAgent, I can only kind of retrace my steps that I've taken so far, I don't have a firm grasp on the "getting there" part yet (as I'm still doing it).

I would start off by looking to see if there's a 48 Hour Film competition in your state - there should be and usually they're over the summer. It's a pretty hard process and you need a dedicated team to do it but its an insanely rewarding experience and definitely looks good on any portfolio.

Also make contacts. Do favors for people. If you're trying to "make it", you'll no doubt run into other people with similar ambitions. I was known as the film guy to a lot of my friends and everyone always assumed that I was great at all things film, turns out that several years later my buddy is managing this up-and-coming rap artist and I'm the first guy he comes to to ask to help film his music videos. The guy who put me in touch with the rapper was a grade school friend of mine and after sitting down and meeting the artist, I told them that I'd supply the equipment and that I'd film it for free. We ended up forming a good relationship here that I feel like will last a long time - if you look at many famous celebrities' origins you'll find that a lot of them have done the same "I'll scratch your back you scratch mine" thing (look up the Frat Pack on Wikipedia and now you know why you always see Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn in the same movies). Obviously be smart about this one and use your better judgment, don't go extremely out of your way for someone who isn't likely to return the favor.

But most importantly start making stuff - get a friend or two that you trust that has like-minded interests and put together a short film or a pilot episode for a TV series idea you have and just film it. Write out the script, get a handheld camera, and film it as best as you can. This is exactly what the guys from Its Always Sunny in Philadelphia did - they were literally 3 friends that said "hey, the **** we do is funny, we're funny people, lets make a show" and they put together a script and filmed the pilot for the show on a handheld camera. They passed it around to different execs/friends in the business and lo and behold, they got picked up and now they're making money doing what they love. When you finish something and you're ready to market it - hell, get an agent if you can - make sure you register it with the Writer's Guild of America before you do anything.

I could write pages more, but I feel like those are the three tips that have helped me come this far.

 

[AAAgent]

so even though i'm only writing the actual script for which the screenplay is based on, i have to go through all of this?

 

[Brighty]

so even though i'm only writing the actual script for which the screenplay is based on, i have to go through all of this?

of course not, all you need to do is register your script with the writers guild of america and then find an agent/start pushing it. These are just some of the things I've done that I've found are helpful. The 48 hour film competition would be a good experience for you though I think.

 

[Teflon_Mcgee]

Hers's my thought:

When I was younger I wanted to be a mechanic cause I like cars and working on stuff. My dad wisely told me that I can either work on cars for other people or I can work on my own cars in my own garage in my own time if I can make a lot of money.

The same is true for you. I once listened to a very successful business man who worked in Hollywood. He said if you really want to make a movie, stay away from Hollywood, make money (millions$$?) in business , and then come in and call all the shots you want to get your movie.


Me and a friend of mine actually dream of doing a movie. As we speak we are developing a product for use in cinematography. Though it's just a coincidence our product is for cinematography, the goal is to raise several million dollars and then pursue our next business which is directly related to making movies.

The difference between your plan and ours is that we have a extremely good chance of success (if not this project then the next one or the next one....) in raising several million through our business/product ideas. From there on we have as much creative freedom as we want to make any movie we want with no pressure. The sad part is, you may be talented but you can be assured you are just one of a million people pursuing your dream.


Now that's not to say you won't make it. Just think hard about dropping out of school to do it. You're young and another two years will not kill you. I'll be the first to admit that college is not required for success. But you have virtually nothing to lose by finishing and quite a lot to lose by not finishing.

 

[BigJimbo]

Give us some factual proof or you are another 13 year old boy making up stories. No way Sony is flying you to LA. Nice story though. Proof. Give us actual proof.