Timm Doolen teaching directing ... what an appalling situation! So I myself might be able to teach there in a couple of years :)
Richard Hearsey and Mark Gary were like the two balls of the school. The penis had already been severed with Keith Sensing and Jeff Bacon leaving. Anything that remains is just pubic hair.
I can't imagine graduations and T.V. production without Richard. Can't imagine not running into Mark Gary in the lobby and having a random laugh. What will Producing 101 be without "Burden Of Dreams"and "Extras"?, or Directing 301 without discussions on "Antichrist" and "Hubad"? Who will support the students? Who will make them feel at home and comfortable as an artist in the midst of sheer mediocrity and a Stalinist environment, not to mention the usual pressure of deadlines, shoot-week and term-ends?
Mark Gary inspired me as a writer/director to explore the human condition. To explore the extraordinary cracks in ordinary relationships and to discover what makes people tick. The pursuit of truth is the essence of independent filmmaking and Mark made me dig deep by asking tough questions and testing my resolve. Richard, on the other hand, taught me how to apply myself practically so that I don't burn out or become insane while balancing my creativity with professionalism as an artist working in the industry. These are invaluable lessons for a budding filmmaker, and the new batch of students will miss all this so that Bigfoot can save some extra dollars to make another Deep Gold(there is a HUGE difference between a disaster movie and a disaster at the box office, which they don't seem to understand).
Great mentors have come and gone, but IAFT will not be the same without Alex Murphy's early morning antics, Richard Hearsey's stand-up props(para-ducks, foot-lights, alphabet-grenade,shiny pink suit, etc.) and Mark Gary's snoring at screenings.The stalwarts of the institution. Moreover, they are just nice people to hangout with and have a laugh over some drinks, exactly what a nervous young international student needs when feeling suddenly out of place in an alien environment.
Our equipment, mentors and teaching standards used to be world-class. Our student films could compete with the best film-schools in the world. I am a proud alumni and I had the best year of my life in IAFT, thanks to the awesome people there. Most of them have left or were forced to leave. It is a very different and far inferior film school than the one I studied at - inferior because it has lost its balls.
Just my two cents. Peace and love.