There's absolutely no education requirements to being a filmmaker; some of the most famous names, like Tyler Perry, never went to college - Perry specifically never graduated high school. Shooting a film is also much different in today's time than it was in the 80's; more films are shot on location than not, and in today's time, the process is much more natural and from the ground up. The majority of the films you see in theaters, or more specifically indie theaters (where the films still make extraordinary amounts of money), are simply created by talented people who can dedicate their lives to the process, and when the film is finished, it's then sold (almost like a homework project) to a film distributer who wants to make money off it it; Lionsgate is famous for simply buying films and not funding/controlling them.
Basically, most laymen get a distribution company and a producer confused. A producer is a person who literally has stock piles of cash, and invest in a film project in order to get even more money out of it; they also have some levels of control over the film (aka the "Hollywood", though producers are usually specific friendly people and not companies). However, the "Hollywood" that most people think of simply does not exist. There's no "big film company in the sky" that all films are churned out of. The filmmaking process is made up of literally millions of creative teams across the country that film films in every state, every location, and every place they want to. Filmmaking is simply no longer done in a "Hollywood studio", nor are all films controlled by the big name companies like Warner or Fox. A big-name film may make $8 Million in revenue, but even the most underground unprofessional indie horror films that you can find at the dust bin of Blockbuster Video still do make lots of money for simply "being made"; you can find the most low-budget, goofy film in the world, and chances are it made at least $20,000 for the people behind it.
Specifically if you write and shoot films that are naturally geared for an indie distribution, or belong to "cheaply done" genres like that of Blair Witch or Paranormal Activity, the process is almost just like a bunch of college students filming a project for their teacher. There are complex factors to work out (insurance for your actors, funding the cameras and equipment, getting proper location liscences), but other than that, for most films, the act of filming it itself is relatively easy. It's much easier than say, being a doctor or a lawyer, and it's just because the process isn't well advertised (many filmmakers love being secretive), most people don't consider a career in that field. It also indeed requires traveling, press conferences, interviews, promotion, ect ect and while people behind the filmmaking process do have families and friends, it's not a "stable" lifestyle in terms of having a schedule. Just like the army, a filmmaking dad may have to be away from his wife and kids for months at a time. It's not a lifestyle that you can still attend a weekly book reading meeting every Wensday or the same church every Sunday.
Well, it may not be as unstable for the actors and filmmakers who can afford private jets and such, but...lol.
