why does everyone use the word 'film'?

[Wayne Masters]

You're a Film School until I phone you up to ask you if you teach a course on responsible film processing at "the lab". I'm talking Zero Effluent Output of arsenic and other carcinogenic chemicals that are a by-product of film processing. Suddenly you only teach drama for video.
You're a Film School because you qualify for government grants if you lie about your numerous Vidiotica/Gamer courses that are popular with students but not with wise older politicians.
You're a Film School because you travel the world looking for gullable film wanna be's with heavy pockets that are intrigued that your video school has the word Film in its title and is on the same coast as Hollywood.

[Rami Ismail]

Why would you rant about this?

When people say film, they are not directly refering to the medium of film. A film is just another term for a movie or motion picture, just as one can call a photograph, well, a photograph or a picture. I would prefer to say that I make films, and by doing so, I am not saying that I make movies out of film.

Saying that you make videos is so broad; it can mean you shoot narratives, T.V. shows, weddings, etc. When some one says that they make films, they are almost exclusively referring to making motion pictures, or narratives.

That's just my opinion.

[Jon Fairhurst]

Originally Posted by Rami Ismail

...When some one says that they make films, they are almost exclusively referring to making motion pictures, or narratives.

True. I think that works most of the time relative to the "I am a filmmaker" line.

...then one day somebody coined the term "documentary filmmaker". Also, one would figure that sports is related to video, rather than film, yet the NFL's media company is called "NFL Films". So much for simple definitions.

In the end it's pointless to try to describe one's art in a single word. And any attempt to make a word "exclusive" will fail - unless you own the trademark and a team of lawyers!