A talented Creative Industries student at James Watt College has won a highly-coveted place at the New York Film Academy (NYFA), and will be jetting off to the Big Apple in September to begin his two year course.
David Donaldson (22), a student on the HND Creative Industries: Television (Digital Filmmaking) course at James Watt College, will spend two years on the NYFA’s prestigious Contemporary Filmmaking course. The Academy has awarded him a scholarship to cover some of his tuition fees, but the enterprising student is still searching for additional funding that will help make his dream a reality.
David commented: "I found out I had been accepted into the New York Film Academy on New Year’s Eve and I still don’t think it has sunk in.
"My grandparents gave me their camcorder when I was eight years old as they didn’t use it much and thought I might have fun with it. I don’t think anyone expected that this would be the end result! Being able to tell them that I had been accepted to film school in New York was fantastic.
"I found out about the NYFA around 10 years ago and had always dreamed of going, but never thought I would be accepted onto the course. I was on their website at Christmas time last year and decided to bite the bullet and apply. I couldn’t believe it when they phoned to offer me a place."
David’s love of filmmaking led him to enrol on the NC Media Studies course at James Watt College’s Kilwinning campus and then progress onto the HND Creative Industries course at the Finnart Street campus. Thanks to his lecturers’ contacts in the industry, David gained paid work experience throughout his course with a number of television companies, including the BBC and STV. As well as finding paid work placements, David also filmed the spoof ‘CSI Glasgow’, featuring students and staff from James Watt College, which has proven to be a huge hit on YouTube.
Due to begin his studies in New York later this year, David is currently working at a betting shop to raise funds for the course while he applies for his American visa, and is investigating the different funding that might be available from the government and charities.
David said: "This is an absolute dream come true. The NYFA is such an exclusive and prestigious film school, it’s a huge honour to be accepted onto the course. I can’t wait to get started, but in the meantime I have to focus on finishing my HND course!"
For additional information on the New York Film Academy, visit www.nyfa.com.