Shaun of the Dead Director Edgar Wright Teaching BBC Maestro Class on Filmmaking

Edgar Wright — director of films including Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, Baby Driver, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, and Last Night in Soho — is offering a BBC Maestro class on filmmaking. Following the footsteps of comic book legend Alan Moore, Wright’s BBC Maestro class launches in September. Wright has won over 19 film and TV awards, including Empire Magazine‘s Visionary Award (2018), the Audience Award at SXSW for Baby Driver (2017), and a BIFA for Shaun of the Dead (2004). According to the BBC Maestro’s press release, Wright will dissect his cinematic style, including edits and soundtrack selection, and his approach to the first day on set. The course spans over four hours, split into 27 dedicated lessons on topics including The Craft of Writing, Storyboards & Animatics, Casting & Directing Actors, Shooting Action Sequences, and Getting Your Film Seen.

“Filmmaking is a craft that’s passed through generations,” Wright says in the press release. “So, your duty as a filmmaker is to learn from the masters and take the influences that speak to you and interpret them in the way you want to make your films. In doing this filmmaking course, I hope I am able to impart some wisdom along with a few helpful tools that will aid in your first steps to becoming the filmmaker you know you can be.”

The BBC Maestro platform hosts extended, in-depth lessons filmed in 4K and taught by experts, allowing students to learn without leaving their homes. Maestro Media Ltd developed this commercial online education platform and continues to operate it. Individual courses cost $90.

“I’d assumed wrongly that all directors were born in Hollywood and that Steven Spielberg was dropped off by a stork at Universal Pictures. That’s the amazing thing about filmmaking. Everyone who works in the craft is able to define the art form on their own terms.” 

Wright’s BBC Maestro course also includes an AMA with filmmaking questions submitted by members of the public as well as a Q&A with students from the National Film & Television School.

“I can promise you that every filmmaker from the big action directors to the first-time indie darlings approach each film they make with a daunting sense of uncertainty,” Wright says. “There’s no race to the finish line with filmmaking. Hone your craft in whatever amount of time it takes you, and you’ll make your dreams a reality eventually.” 

“I think it’s important for filmmakers to always be challenging themselves and questioning the decisions they are making stylistically. In doing so, your style will be refined, and your filmmaking will become stronger.”

Edgar Wright’s Filmmaking course launches on BBC Maestro on September 8th.