University of Texas Film Institute

Getting into the old UT film dept was tough, I imagine this will be worse than NYU or USC.

(tangent: Of course, as evidenced by this, the UT system's solution to overcrowding is to pump more money and publicity into UT, rather than any of the other UT schools that are hurting for funds and prestige. Call me crazy, but having two or three elite public universities in Texas, rather than one megaversity sounds like a decent idea.)

The University of North Texas in Denton - already a decent liberal arts/fine arts curriculum, but weak in other areas, not well-respected.

Southwest Texas State University has the beginnings of a good creative writing program (ala the Iowa writer's workshops), also not well-respected.

UT-Arlington and UT-Dallas - not well-respected, but strong in science/engineering and business, respectively.

That's off the top of my head. Any of those, given enough attention (and, importantly, FUNDING), could be as elite as UT-Austin. Even Texas A&M or Texas Tech, which have national recognition for things other than academics, could be a possibility.

As it is, the system creates a situation where those who can't get into or can't afford to go to UT-Austin, get a second-class education at the other public universities, in perception at least.

As for Austin being the only "suitable" place, that's bullshit. Contrary to what some people think, the rest of the state isn't a bunch of Klan rallies and slack-jawed yokels with George Bush bumper stickers. It becomes something of a self-fulfilling prophecy - concentrate everyone who's not 'normal' into one town and abandon the rest, right?

Perception by WHO, though? The only thing the overpopulation proves is that they have a kickass publicity department. Tis all about the credo given to the name. Will someone from, say Mexico, care about UT Austin? No.

Course, having lots of cash thrown at you doesn't equal respect. After graduation, have any of the students distinguished themselves? That is one of the things that matter.

What's being missed here is that these schools are funded differently. The UT system is separate from the A&M system and both are all together different from Southwest State and UNT. The UT system has an enormous, permanent endowment due to oil rich lands the schools' own in west texas. The majority of the funding for the UT schools comes from here. The University of Texas at Austin is the flagship school for the UT system so of course it gets more funding and attracts better faculty and students than the other schools in the UT system.

I assume you mean UT's film school, not the school at large. In recent years previous UT RTF students Richard Linklater and Robert Rodriguez have made some celebrated films.

Will someone from, say Mexico, care about UT Austin? No.

Yes actually I imagine they would. UT is without a doubt one of the best univerisities in the region and attracts many international students. A lot of recent Mexican immigrants and those living in the Rio Grande Valley consider it a great honor for their children to move to Austin for school. When I was a student there I was inolved in some of the recruiting down south.

Perception by WHO, though? The only thing the overpopulation proves is that they have a kickass publicity department. Tis all about the credo given to the name. Will someone from, say Mexico, care about UT Austin? No.

Course, having lots of cash thrown at you doesn't equal respect. After graduation, have any of the students distinguished themselves? That is one of the things that matter.
Perception by people around the state and the country. By business leaders, and people who fund the arts, who give money to filmmakers, let you into grad school, give you grants, or jobs, etc..

*sheds profound tears of shame while nodding head in agreeance*

Yuppers/Agreed. Both the UNAM and UDLA down here in the Mex have great film schools. Does Mexican new wave cinema ring a bell? (Amores Perros, Y Tu Mama...et al)

Some stats about UT (clipped from the school site):

-The largest university in the nation

-The University of Texas at Austin is one of three southwestern members of the Association of American Universities, which is composed of the 63 leading research universities in the United States and Canada.

-The university leads all institutions in the South in the quality of its graduate programs, as well as in the number of doctor’s degrees awarded.

-Seven doctoral programs at The University of Texas at Austin rank in the top 10 in the nation, and 22 others rank in the top 25

- Among Texas schools, the university is ranked No. 1 in 30 of the 37 fields in which it was evaluated.

-The University of Texas at Austin has the fifth-largest academic library in North America, with more than eight million volumes. The University of Texas at Austin Library is the third-largest public academic library in the United States, following the University of Illinois and the University of California at Berkeley.

Some well-known alums (in no particular order) Lady Bird Johnson, Liz Carpenter (Lady Bird's press secretary), Janis Joplin, a former drug czar, a Peruvian president, Walter Cronkite, a Met opera singer, a PGA Master, Jayne Mansfield and Farrah Fawcett, Kinky Friedman, Michael Dell, former US House representatives, one of the founders of OPEC, innumerable respected authors and scholars whore aren't neccesarily well-known, hmmm who else. . . oh yeah me. ;)

I'll try to think of more

Emoticons galore! I kiss ya, Shammeh! Seeing as I am in Mexico for the semester though, I´ll owe it to you to send you some samples in um...4 months? Yikes! (If I can survive it first!*)

*I´ve been sick for almost a month now, and it´s been getting progressively worse...As of today, I´ve eaten nothing (but Gatorade) for 3 days.

Ok, not the ENTIRE rest of the state. I'll give you that.

It becomes something of a self-fulfilling prophecy - concentrate everyone who's not 'normal' into one town and abandon the rest, right?

It's not just a self-fulfilling prophesy, it's somewhat of an inevitable process. Birds of a feather, etc. Places become more and more like themselves. Places like Austin, especially.