Film direction & screenwriting (FTII, SRFTI)
long apprenticeship
- Remote
- Varies
- Qualification
- Typically Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) or Master of Fine Arts.
- Read
- 1 min
What the work involves
Day to day
Writing and directing - developing the script, shaping performance and running the creative decisions across a production. Formal training teaches craft and, as importantly, builds the collaborators you will work with for years.
Who this suits
Fit
People with something specific to say and the persistence to spend a decade getting to say it. Streaming platforms have widened what gets made in India well beyond the mainstream, and regional cinema is producing some of the country's most interesting work.
The honest reality
Read this one
The apprenticeship is long - assisting for years on modest pay before a first project, and many capable people never get one. Access is heavily shaped by industry connections and by whether you can afford unpaid years in an expensive city. Writers in particular are badly paid and frequently uncredited in India. School admission is fiercely competitive, and the qualification opens a door rather than guaranteeing anything behind it.
How you get there
Step by step
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2 years Step 1Finish school
Class 12 in any stream
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3 years Step 2Qualify
Complete a B.A. in the relevant subject.
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Step 3Enter the field
Typical first position: Film direction & screenwriting (FTII, SRFTI).
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Step 4Build and specialise Optional
Build a body of work, teach, or move into a specialist or research role.
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You are hereFilm direction & screenwriting (FTII, SRFTI)
Everything above leads here. The steps marked optional can be skipped or taken later — they change how fast you arrive, not whether you can.
Courses that lead here
How to qualify
Roles within this career
What the job is called