Dov S-S Simens, founder of the Hollywood Film Institute.

I never went to an expensive film school. I graduated from Muhlenberg College (Allentown, PA, 1965, BA-Economics) and spent 3 years in the army (1st Lieutenant, Special Forces, '66 - '69). After Viet Nam, I owned a successful bookstore in Carmel, California.

In 1980, I sold the store, took the cash and went to Hollywood with an idea and a dream. I chased the deal, called agents, met studio heads, pitched development execs, hustled bankable stars and foreign buyers. I optioned books, true life stories and wrote scripts. Finally, I put my money where my mouth is, wrote bank checks and made a 90-minute 35mm feature film that won festival awards.

Dov , directing a 35 shot / day schedule during the shooting of "Flex".

I learned to make movies from beginning to end... not from film school theory but from street reality. Over the next five years I held jobs as a Production Manager and Line Producer, and perfected my filmmaking skills by writing those bank checks time and time again as I made movie after movie for other companies. In 1986, I presented a class at UCLA on "How to Get High Quality with Low-Budgets". The fee was $325, there were 256 students for a $86,125 gross, and I was paid $125 per day. Duh! USC then asked me to give a course on their campus. It was successful and I was paid $2,500. Then two years later NYU offered me $5,000 plus flight and per diem for the course - I was now a professional film instructor.

In 1989, a student said, "Your act is together, why not take it on the road". Thus, was born the Hollywood Film Institute and my acclaimed 2-Day Film School™. The course is great. I present it 25 times per year and have an instantaneous success rate of 3%. That is 3 out of 100 students who attend my weekend course make a feature film within 6 months.

To put 3% in perspective, not a single graduate of the expensive 4 year film schools have produced or directed a feature film within 6 months of graduation... then my 3% success rate is outrageously high.

During the past 15 years, I have taught how to produce, write or direct with amazing success (graduates to date have grossed over $2 Billion) and have perfected my craft. I am proud of my teaching ability. I do not present myself as a great producer or the great director. For I am not! And great producers or directors, the Spielbergs & the Coppollas, you will discover are not great
teachers.

Dov with 9 Hollywood graduates who produced a feature within 6 months... and all women!

But what I am, is exactly what you want, "a great film instructor", who is proud to give you the most amount of filmmaking information, for the least amount of money, in the shortest period of time."

I have created this site for you, "someone who does not want to spend $50,000 - $100,000 and take 2 - 4 years of theory, but wants the facts."

Why wait! Get into action! Take one of my film school programs ("2-Day", "Video", "Audio" or "Streaming"), and you will be able to launch your career...