Matt Silas:

I am beginning the masters program in film direction at UCLA this fall. As I have been researching and applying to graduate programs in film over the past couple of years, I've had a heck of a time finding good, first-person, raw perspectives about the various programs out there. Not surprisingly, many of the programs do a pretty good job of promoting themselves: "we are an incredible film school", "we have had more Oscar winners in the last 5 years than [enter school name here] and [enter school name here] combined", "We have the latest greatest technology", "We have more working professional filmmakers among our faculty than..." and on and on and on. But nowhere did I find answers to the questions that really mattered: what, specifically, do you learn, what, if any, is the guiding pricipal of the program, who/how are the professors, what are the possibilities after studies, is it really worth the cost, what sort of atmosphere exists/is fostered among the students and faculty, what are the program's strengths, how will I PAY for this?

Seems like a worthy endeavor.  Best of luck with the weblog, Matt, but especially with grad school.