frequently asked questions

It is the continued goal of the film school that each and every CFS graduate can walk onto a professional film set and not only succeed but excel.

Please explore the following pages to learn more about us!

• Home Page
• Programs
• Student Work
• Tours
• Equipment and Facilities (coming soon)

The Colorado Film School offers Associates of Applied Science Degrees and Certificates in the following program areas:

• Writing/Directing
• Acting/Directing
• Writing/Producing
• Screenwriting
• Cinematography
• Post-Production

Visit the Programs page to learn more.

We offer tours of the Colorado Film School building on a regular basis.  To view the tour schedule and sign up, please visit the Tours page.

Unfortunately, due to FERPA policies and to protect the confidential and/or proprietary material in the classroom, observations are not permitted.

There are approximately 300-350 students enrolled at CFS, on average.

We have a cap of 160 new students each Fall and up to 75 each Spring.  This is based around our commitment toward small class sizes, as well as the size of our facilities.

Most CFS classes are capped at 16 students.  Some film appreciation and business courses may go up to 30 or more students.

We offer very few courses at night and none of our courses are offered on the weekends.  Classes run Monday through Thursday between 9am and 10pm.  Working students need to be prepared to make time available during normal business hours in order to complete their degree requirements.

Yes, many of our students have previous work or social commitments and attend less than full time.  Please be aware that few courses are available at night and none of our courses are offered on the weekends.  Even if you attend part time, you should be prepared to make time available during weekdays to complete your degree requirements.

We recommend you pursue a Certificate or Associate’s of Applied Science degree.  Our AAS programs are closely modeled after an MFA, and certificates are a good option for those who already have a degree and are looking to get into the industry quickly.  For more information about the certificates and degrees we offer, please visit the Programs page.

Please follow our step by step guide on the How to Apply page.  If you run into specific questions that aren’t covered by the guide or by the other frequently asked questions below, please call (303) 340-7321 or email admissions@coloradofilmschool.co.

No, the application for the Community College of Aurora, and the Colorado Film School supplemental application are both free and online.  Visit our How to Apply page to get started.

We have a cap of 160 new students each Fall and up to 75 each Spring.  This is based around our commitment toward small class sizes, as well as the size of our facilities.

We do not offer film classes a-la-carte.  Anyone planning to take Film/Video Media courses will be required to complete the CFS Supplemental Application and go through the admissions process.  CFS students are required to be declared in one of our degree or certificate programs.

Yes, current CCA students must apply for admission and be accepted into a CFS program of study before they are permitted to declare a film degree and register in any film courses.

Fall of your senior year, after completing the ACT/SAT. See admissions deadlines for more information on deadlines for specific semesters.

In order to determine which credits will transfer from your prior college coursework, you will need to complete both the Community College of Aurora application as well as the Colorado Film School application, including submitting prior transcripts, to have your credits evaluated for transfer by our credentials evaluator.  Visit our How to Apply page for a step by step walkthrough on how to complete your applications and submit your transcripts.  There is no application fee so we recommend applying in order to have your transcripts evaluated for potential transfer credits.

• Request IB transcripts online here. Send all official scores to CFS Admissions by mail. Unofficial copies may be uploaded to your CFS Supplement, but official copies must be submitted to be considered for college credit.
• To request College Board AP results, please contact the College Board online here, or call (888) 225-5427.
• Please note: if you participated in Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate programs in high school and have taken the national exams, you may be eligible to have your scores reviewed for transfer credit.
• For more information, please contact a CCA academic advisor by email at Advising@ccaurora.edu, or call (303) 360-4929. Send all official scores to CFS Admissions by mail. Unofficial copies may be uploaded to your CFS Supplement, but official copies must be submitted to be considered for college credit.

Students who are already declared as a film major and have attended Film/Video Media courses within the last three semesters (including Summer) will not have to re-apply.

Those who have not yet declared a major in film or have not attended in the last three semesters (including Summer) must apply for admission into the Colorado Film School regardless of having taken film courses in the past.  They will not be able to register in any Film/Video Media courses until they have been admitted into a current CFS program through the admissions process.

Students who have not attended in the last three semesters (including Summer) will also be required to complete a new Community College of Aurora application in addition to the CFS Supplemental Application.

• Priority deadline: February 15 (notification by April 1)
• Late deadline: July 1 (rolling notifications)

Spring application opens August 1st the Fall prior to semester start.

• Priority deadline: October 15 (notification by November 1)
• Late deadline: November 30 (rolling notifications)

Submit by the Priority deadline to receive full consideration and a guaranteed date of notification. Another benefit of applying early means you are able to meet with an advisor and plan your schedule in time for the opening of registration. Classes fill quickly. Once admitted, seats are first come, first served.

Applications submitted after the priority deadline are considered late submissions which will be reviewed on a rolling basis in the order that they were completed as time and space permits. Students should be prepared to re-apply for a later semester if no acceptance is given by one month prior to the beginning of the semester.

Please note that deadlines for international applicants may differ.  Please visit our International Applications page for more details.

If you miss the priority deadline, we continue to review late submission applications on a rolling bases as time and space permits until the late submission deadline.

If you miss the late submission deadline, please meet with an academic advisor to discuss General Education coursework for the current term and consider applying for the following semester when the application for the following term becomes available.

Note: We do note guarantee a specific notification date for late applications.  Therefore, late applicants need to be prepared to re-apply for a later semester if they do not receive notice of acceptance by one week prior to the start of classes.  If you are in this situation, please contact CFS Admissions to discuss your status and options: (303) 340-7321 or email admissions@coloradofilmschool.co

Yes, you may take the English and Math intake assessments here.

• ACT
  • English: 18+
  • Reading: 17+
  • Math: 17+
• SAT
  • Evidence-Based Reading & Writing: 470+
  • Math: 400+
• Accuplacer
  • Elementary Algebra: 40+
  • Reading Comprehension: 80+
  • Sentence Skills: 95+
• Accuplacer Next Generation
  • English/Reading: 246+
  • Math QAS: 240+
• CCPT
  • Essay: 5+
  • Reading Exam: 96+
  • Math: 62+
• AP Exam scores
  • CollegeBoard Exam scores may be used to meet college-ready standards only if you have completed Advanced Placement courses and passed a CollegeBoard exam with a “3” or higher in:
    • English Language and Composition (for the English requirement)
    • College Level Math (for the Math requirement)
  • For lost or misplaced IB diploma, visit the contact page of the International Baccalaureate website.
• Other tests may be considered such as:
  • CCPT
  • TASC
  • GED
  • HiSET
  • Certain developmental education coursework
• International Students may receive Conditional Consideration if they have:
  • TOEFL Scores: 16+ per category
  • IELTS Score: 6 or higher

• International students have additional requirements – see here for details.
• Prior to applying for the Colorado Film School, they must work with the International Student Advisor at Community College of Aurora (CCA) to complete necessary paperwork, testing, and fee requirements and be admitted into CCA. If additional testing is required, International Students are expected to arrive in the United States 2-4 weeks prior to term start to complete Accuplacer testing, Advising, and course registration. Furthermore, International Students must acquire an I-20 and apply for F-1 VISA before admission will be considered to CFS. Deadlines must be adhered. Visit here for a step-by-step guide. Transfers from within the U.S. may test and register earlier and must transfer their I-20 once grades are posted at their transfer school.
• All international students are subject to the same admissions application deadlines above but are encouraged to submit between March 1-June 1 for Fall and between August 1-October 15 for Spring to stay compliant with International Student I-20 guidelines. Prior to applying for the Colorado Film School, they must work with the International Student Advisor at Community College of Aurora (CCA) to complete necessary paperwork, testing, and fee requirements and be admitted into CCA. If additional testing is required, International Students are expected to arrive in the United States 2-4 weeks prior to term start to complete Accuplacer testing, Advising, and course registration. Furthermore, International Students must acquire an I-20 and apply for F-1 VISA before admission will be considered to CFS.
• Please also visit our International Admissions page for more details and a step by step guide on how to apply.

CCA Application status

• • To check the status of your CCA Admissions Application, contact the CCA Admissions, Registration & Records Office by phone at (303) 360-4797 or email Admissions@ccaurora.edu.

CFS Application status

• • • Please check the email you used to apply regularly for updates and in case of missing application materials
    • You may contact CFS Admissions at 303-340-7321 or admissions@coloradofilmschool.co to verify receipt of all required materials

• Apply for Financial Aid
• Research housing options
• Check out the FAQ section labeled Housing/Supplies

CCA will send an acceptance letter by mail within two weeks of completion of the CCA Admissions Application.  This does not automatically admit you into the Colorado Film School.  You must complete all the steps as outlined on our How to Apply page.

CFS will notify applicants separately via the email you used to apply.  Please check the deadlines regarding notification dates for priority and late applications.  Applications received by the priority deadline have a guaranteed notification date.  Late applications are notified as time and space allows and have no guaranteed notification date.

If you have received an acceptance notification from the Colorado Film School, please review your acceptance email for information on what needs to be completed next.  This information is also available on our Next Steps page.

Yes.  Applicants who do not meet admissions criteria may still enroll in Community College of Aurora classes.  As applicable, a student who was not accepted into the Film School program may be provided with a recommended progression of CCA General Education courses, as determined by their academic standing.  After passing the recommended courses with a “C” or higher, the student may re-apply for CFS to be re-evaluated for admission.

No.  Applicants need to apply within one year of the start of their desired admission term.  If during the process of applying to CFS you find that you are unable to commit to the term selected, contact CFS Admissions at (303) 340-7321 or admissions@coloradofilmschool.co.  You may be required to submit a new application.

We have a very low bottom line with similar quality of equipment and instruction compared to other highly reputable institutions such as USC, UCLA, Columbia, NYU, and Chapman to name a few.  More information on tuition rates is shown on the Tuition page.

There are many ways to get an affordable college education in at the Colorado Film School and Community College of Aurora. There are federal and state grants and loans, privately funded scholarships, work-study opportunities, veterans’ benefits, and other forms of financial aid.  Visit our Financial Aid page for details on some of these opportunities.

• (303) 360-4709
• financialaid@ccaurora.edu
• CCA Financial Aid Office, CentreTech Campus, 16000 E. Centretech Pkwy, Aurora, CO 80011
• Lowry Student Services, West Quad Bldg 903, 710 Alton Way, Denver, CO 80230

Information on CCA scholarships is available here.

Yes.  Information on scholarships that CFS offers can be seen here.

Yes.  All third party scholarships must be submitted through the CCA Fiscal Affairs office.  Contact (303) 360-4827 or cashiers.cca@ccaurora.edu for more details.

Please refer to this page at the Colorado Department of Higher Education for any general questions about residency status online here. If you have met the requirements listed there, then speak with the CCA Admissions, Registration and Records Office about updating your residency status at (303) 360-4797 or admissions@ccaurora.edu.

If you are a resident of a Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE) state, you are eligible to request a reduced Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE) tuition rate.  Please check the WICHE website for further information, as well as to check if your state qualifies.

We do not have any on campus housing as a commuter campus.  There are options for affordable housing through Assembly Student Living.  We also encourage students to join our CFS Roomies Facebook group to arrange housing shares with other CFS students.  Additional details and housing options can be found on our Housing page.

We do not require that students purchase any equipment before coming to the school. If you are interested in buying equipment we recommend waiting until you begin classes so you can talk with students and teachers about the latest technologies. Although it is not required to buy any equipment, students are encouraged to have an external USB3 or Thunderbolt equipped hard drive. Backing up work on these external drives is always recommended in the case of any unforeseen issues. CFS recommends high quality hard drives such as those by G-Tech or Lacie, with either at least 7200 rpm spinning drive or SSD with USB3 or Thunderbolt connections.

Additionally if you would like to purchase a computer prior to your arrival at school, we recommend either the Apple MacBook Pro Laptop with an Apple Flash Storage hard drive and at least 16GB RAM running FCPX or the Apple iMac with i7 processor also with an Apple Flash Storage or Fusion hard drive and at least 16GB RAM, and running FCPX. However, you will have more than adequate access to computer stations and software at the school.

We DO NOT recommend that students purchase their own equipment such as cameras and lights. CFS makes substantial investments to have the latest equipment and due to how quickly technology changes it is possible that any equipment you bought when you started the program would be obsolete in just a few years.

The Colorado Film School keeps a large selection of up-to-date filming equipment on hand, which students have access to for class-related projects as part of their student fee.

Our equipment is industry standard, which means that the equipment you use here at CFS is the same equipment you will find on Hollywood sets.

Visit our Equipment and Facilities page (coming soon, please schedule a tour to learn more in the meantime) to learn more about some of the equipment we have on hand.

Some of the films our students and alumni have worked on include:

• Hateful Eight
• Time Lapse
• Dear Eleanor
• Gone Girl
• The Avengers
• The Amazing Spider-Man
• The Muppets (2011)
• The Walking Dead
• American Idol
• Resident Evil: Retribution
• Think Like a Man
• Underworld: Awakening
• Criminal Minds
• Total Recall
• Gone
• Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter
• Katy Perry: Part of Me
• Captain America: The First Avenger
• Gulliver’s Travels
• Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters (2013)
• The Wackness

CFS students regularly participate both as interns and paid cast and crew for productions in and around Denver.

Visit our Jobs page to see a listing of current offerings available to our students.

Yes.  We have work-study positions available at our front desk and equipment age, both of which allow opportunities to learn more about the film school and gain extra experience on some of our high end equipment.

Additionally, we regularly receive postings for internships and paid gigs which we put on our Jobs and Opportunities pages.

We do not offer any of our classes a-la-carte.  The fastest way into the job market through our program is to obtain a Certificate in one of our six programs, which includes 48 credits of coursework.  The certificate is generally recommended only if you already have a Bachelor’s or other degree.

Please email administrator@coloradofilmschool.co for assistance.

Open Auditions are held at the beginning of every semester to create a pool of talent that students may use to help cast their projects.  Open Auditions consists of a 1-2 minute monologue which will be added to our actor database along with your resume and headshot for student access only.  This allows students to reach out to actors who may be a fit for their projects.  Neither party is obligated to work with the other.  Rather, auditioning creates opportunities for both students and actors.  Auditioning with us each semester ensures that your profile remains active in our database.

Additionally, actors may audition for specific student films whose directors are holding casting calls to fill specific roles. These “satellite” auditions are hosted on the same day. You will receive details on where to go for those once you have completed your primary monologue.

Visit our Open Auditions page for more information.

We host Open Auditions once per semester, typically around the third week of classes.

Visit our Open Auditions page for more information.

Open Auditions are held at the Colorado Film School:

9075 E Lowry Blvd

Denver, CO 80230

You may sign up through the link on our Open Auditions page starting 3 weeks prior to the event.

Please email administrator@coloradofilmschool.co to request a copy of your monologue.