Blog

SFFILM’s Youth Filmmakers Camp 2020

Students and Instructors Reflect on Remote Learning and the Importance of Film Education

Reflections on Teaching the Art & Craft of Film During a Pandemic
by Maddy Leonard with support from Davia Schendel, Rachel Gamson, and Jeanette Paak

When I found out that SFFILM was not going to have Youth Filmmakers Camp in person in July of 2020, I knew I still wanted to find a way to serve the young artists in our community in a fun and innovative way. Since teens were going to be forced to spend their summer in isolation, I proposed that we redesign camp to build an online resource and community support system for young filmmakers to gather, learn, grow, and develop stories they care about.

These are the goals I had going into camp:

Create meaningful relationships that students can draw from in the future — account for one-on-one time with teachers, so that students feel supported and have the opportunity to build a mentor/mentee relationship with their teachers.
Develop students’ independent filmmaking skills, so that they can emerge from camp as more self-sufficient filmmakers.
Train skills for online media creation that will help students be creative and innovative filmmakers and use the resources they have at their disposal to create art and film.
Finish camp having created several small but polished projects that students can add to their portfolios.
Provide the opportunity for students to learn from a diverse group of filmmakers.
Create safe spaces where students can ask questions and discover what working in the film industry feels like.
Introduce students to online and free resources that can be used to experiment with film outside of camp.

With these goals in mind, I began outlining a two-and-a-half-week-long schedule for campers that consisted of Zoom lectures, pre-recorded lessons, Zoom “check-ins, workshops, film screenings, guest presentations, and student activities. I understood that students had been forced to have classes on Zoom since the beginning of the pandemic, and they were probably suffering from Zoom fatigue, so my co-teacher Davia Schendel and I designed a daily curriculum that was diverse in terms of platform. Campers would spend a few hours a day doing solo work, and a few hours a day on Zoom in either large or small groups.

Campers were divided into two groups: beginner and advanced campers. The beginner campers started a few days earlier than the advanced ones, so that they could get oriented in the world of filmmaking by learning some basic terminology and film history. Once the advanced campers started their session, the students spent most of their time collaborating as one large group. Campers were engaged daily in Zoom lectures and supplementary activities on topics around film production, theory, and history, media literacy, and the social and cultural impacts of film. Outside of that work students were doing with their instructors, they also had the opportunity to speak with some pretty incredible guest speakers.

We had the pleasure of having Jonas Rivera, a producer from Pixar who produced Up, Inside Out, and Toy Story 4, as our first guest lecturer. Jonas shared his journey working for Pixar and the behind the scenes making of these beloved films. Jonas’s extensive art knowledge proved to be valuable during the story development process at Pixar, and campers learned much from him about how different aspect of the creative process intersect. He reassured the campers that they could always be part of the filmmaking creative process no matter the level of their technical skills by advising that “understanding art is equal to being an artist.”

Daniel Freeman was our second guest lecturer at camp. Daniel is a SFFILM FilmHouse resident who is currently working on a feature-length narrative film called Teddy Out of Tune. The campers loved chatting with Daniel about his process. He stressed how important it is for filmmaking to be accessible to everyone, and gave the campers excellent advice about how to get started on films with a minimal budget.

We were extremely lucky to have another FilmHouse resident come speak at camp. Reaa Puri, a cinematographer, director, editor, and founder of Breaktide Productions, brought her two other co-founders to camp to speak about their filmmaking careers. Breaktide is a production company that is owned and operated by women of color, and they work to democratize filmmaking while elevating underrepresented voices behind the scenes and in front of the camera. Gabby, an advanced camper, told me her favorite activity at camp was the guest speakers, because “they really offered insight into what it’s like to make films as a career.” She added, “my favorite lecture was from Breaktide Productions, because as a girl it was so inspiring to hear from an all-female team. I learned that film is a process, and about all the steps that are generally taken before and during the movie-making process.”

Anaiis Cisco, a filmmaker from Brooklyn and an Assistant Professor of Moving Image Production at Smith College, spoke with the campers about halfway through camp. At the beginning of her scheduled hour, she took the time to learn every student’s name and hear about their filmmaking interests. This activity not only helped Anaiis get to know the campers, but it also helped the campers get to know each other a little better outside of the normal camp day proceedings. Many of them described how they developed new interests during camp and were excited to dive deeper into these aspects of filmmaking.

The day after Anaiis’s lecture, Andy Jimenez of Pixar Animation Studios spoke with the campers about his collaborations on several films, such as One Man Band and The Incredibles. Incorporating his pre-production documents and animatics for both live action and animation, Andy shared an incredible wealth of materials that the campers were truly fascinated by. Sharing with campers that the road of an creative artist can be winding, Andy reassured them that everything one does in life will become part of their art practice in surprising and very useful ways.

Alice Wu, director of Netflix’s The Half of It, joined us for a very special guest lecture towards the end of camp. She shared some background information about how The Half of It came to be, but focused a lot of her time connecting on a personal level with the campers. She was very honest and vulnerable about the lessons she’s learned throughout her career. She reflected on her experience with us by saying “I really loved getting a chance to chat with the young filmmakers at SFFILM. The way they think about storytelling, about their lives, is so fresh and sophisticated — so much more sophisticated than I was at their age — and I say with pleasure that these kids are almost certainly coming for our jobs! And it’ll be a good thing.”

The last filmmakers to join us as guest lecturers were Anne Flatté and Marlon Johnson. This director/producer duo spoke to the campers about their newest film River City Drumbeat, a documentary about music, love, and legacies set in the American South. They also facilitated a lengthy discussion with campers about the ethics of documentary filmmaking and sparked the curiosity of these young filmmakers.

Our last presenter was SFFILM’s very own Rosa Morales, who works as part of the SFFILM Makers team. Rosa had a wonderful conversation with campers about how to market yourself as an artist and filmmaker, and helped them understand how they can stay involved with SFFILM in the future if they are ever in need of support or funding.

Among my favorite parts of camp were the moments when the campers, other instructors, and I had radically honest conversations about how film and media play into this moment in US history. I was so impressed by the introspective comments students shared about representation in the media they consume, and how they want to make the film industry a more just industry to work in. Here are just a few examples of the insights campers shared while Davia was lecturing about diversity, representation, and allegory:

“There’s a big shift happening in representation in media — we’re not all the way there yet, but let’s not disregard our accomplishments.” — Rose

“She-ra in the new She-Ra and the Princesses of Power was the first lesbian kiss I had ever seen, and the first gay main character. As someone who was obsessed with 80s She-ra as a kid… I was again inspired by her in the new one as a lesbian main character. It really helped me come out to my family.” — Shayla

“The show Sex Education on Netflix… represented women so well and in an accurate way. They represent them with goals other than chasing boys or dating which I thought was important. I really appreciated women being seen as powerful without having to actually be tough.” — Gabby

Here are some other very insightful reflections students had when we were discussing why it’s important to learn the history of race in film:

“I thought that the evolution of black representation in film was interesting… I found that it was important to have diversity in the film industry because it inspires younger girls and people of color and gives role models to them.” — Ella

“I think that diversity in film is extremely important. As children we are very impressionable, and seeing ourselves on screen makes us realize that we can do anything. When movies are more diverse, they are relatable to a broader group of people. It is also important to portray different groups of people in diverse roles so that they aren’t just playing the same types of roles every time. I think that studying film is important, because it is a big part of our society today.” — Grace

“We need to study film to learn about our past just as we study history in schools. It is extremely important to make sure you understand the mistakes of the past so as a nation and society we do not repeat them. But like any part of history we must be careful and think about who is the one creating the film and what biases they might have. In the early years of film, there was not much diversity in the cast and crew, now as we are entering a new era of digital film we are realizing the importance of having diversity in organizations such as Hollywood to inspire different types of people across many generations.” — Lathrop

Over the course of camp, I was really impressed by the vulnerability these teens were willing to share with each other. They really connected as a group, and made plans to stay in touch after camp to support each other’s art. These campers didn’t just learn how to make films but they learned how to support other filmmakers. It was really special to be able to see the constant encouragement they had for each other’s projects, and the friendships that they formed.

Maddy Leonard (she/her) is a filmmaker, artist, and the former Education Program Coordinator at SFFILM. She is a creative educator who has spent half a decade teaching youth about film and media literacy, and mentoring youth as they produce their own films. She has a degree in Cinema and Women and Gender Studies from San Francisco State University, and has a passion for learning from and creating socially aware documentaries and experimental films.

Stay In Touch With SFFILM

SFFILM is a nonprofit organization whose mission ensures independent voices in film are welcomed, heard, and given the resources to thrive. SFFILM works hard to bring the most exciting films and filmmakers to Bay Area movie lovers. To be the first to know what’s coming, sign up for our email alerts and watch your inbox.

The Will of Giants

In conversation preeminent film historian David Thomson, the grandson of the primary inspiration for Citizen Kane’s titular Charles Foster Kane, William R. Hearst III.

On a ferocious, rain-swept Thursday evening in downtown San Francisco, the winds battered against the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts as enthusiastic film lovers sat down to drink in a bit of living history, in the form of a long-awaited conversation that would take place between preeminent film historian David Thomson, and a man who is the grandson of the primary inspiration for Citizen Kane’s titular Charles Foster Kane, William R. Hearst III. As SFFILM’s Executive Director, Noah Cowan, expressed before the two took the stage… “It took me two years to get up the nerve to ask Will if he’d be willing to do this.”

The intensity of the bleed-through between the real-life William Randolph Hearst, and the on-screen depiction of newspaper tycoon-cum-failed Presidential candidate, Charles Foster Kane, continues to fascinate film fans and historians alike nearly eighty years since the film first arrived amid a hailstorm of controversy. Hearst sought to bury the movie, and many took his side against the awesomely talented, headstrong Orson Welles, whose equal roles as reckless provocateur and dazzling cinematic storyteller engendered uphill professional struggles that would ultimately leave him a seemingly distraught, morbidly obese old man whose fate didn’t seem so far removed from that of his portrayal of Kane nearly two generations prior.

Those hoping the Hearst clan are still harboring any kind of grudge against the film would have been disappointed to hear Will say how much he was a fan of the film upon first seeing it in college, and how he continues to find the film’s characters a fascinating marriage of composites of key figures from his grandfather’s heyday. The only thing he personally finds inaccurate is the portrayal of Xanadu, the film’s version of the Hearst family’s San Simeon estate. “Xanadu was really dark and depressing, and the San Simeon I think of is white walls and so much sunlight!”

Of course, the sheer technical innovation of the film’s narrative structure, married with Greg Tolland’s stunning black and white photography, in-camera visual effects, and Welles’s magnetic, multi-generational performance, come together to create an emotionally enthralling experience with Kane’s sheer abundance of craft so evident nearly four generations later. The theme of powerful men using the media to gain prominence to satisfy an unending need for more continue to resonate in America (perhaps uncomfortably so in 2017) and the film still serves as an uncannily relevant mirror into the dark underbelly of a nation built upon the feverish appetites of men like Charles Foster Kane.

Cheers,
James J. Jefferies

Stay In Touch With SFFILM

On Poetry and Films

SFFILM recently visited high school classes with the poet Donté Clark, the subject of the award-winning film “Romeo is Bleeding”

Donte Clark, subject of Romeo is Bleeding, working with students at an SFFILM Education school visit.

On March 14, the Education Team from SFFILM visited Balboa High School with Donté Clark, the poet from Richmond who was the subject of the SFFILM-backed award-winning 2015 documentary Romeo is Bleeding. After a successful visit last year, the teacher reached out to us again earlier this year for a repeat visit with her new cohort of English students to coincide with their poetry unit.

We gathered in the school theatre with a big contingent of students from three different classes. A few of them immediately approached Donté to talk about their experience watching his story on screen, their craft, their lives. All the students had watched the documentary in class in the weeks before the visit and complemented their viewing with a special study guide. They had discussed the film and thought about questions they might want to ask, with the more nervous ones submitting their written questions to their teacher for her to pose in an informal Q&A with Donté. Before that, however, he gave a performance of one of his pieces drawn from his contemporary Richmond-based adaptation of Romeo & Juliet that appears in Romeo is Bleeding. The theatre was totally silent, except for the odd gasp, as Donté threw off his beanie and walked the stage, arms gesturing and lyrics pouring rhythmically out of his mouth.

Poetry from the SFFILM Education school visit and workshop.

There was then a Q&A. The first one was a request, through the teacher, for Donté to read a poem the student had been working on. After that, the questions ranged from spirituality to race to the simplistic beauty of “does poetry make you happy?,” along with specific questions about the film and the play. His responses drew on the values of education and lifelong learning to the personal decisions that he had made in his life to end up in his position, as a creator and cultural figure with numerous projects on the go. “What do you think was the strongest or most powerful line in the play?,” one of the students asked. “‘I know you was expecting us to choose death, but tonight you choose life.’ I think that piece was the strongest line in the play, and why I chose to write it. Violence only begets more violence, and in Richmond we have already lost too many people. In Verona, it was only Mercutio and Tybalt who died, and then Romeo and Juliet took their own lives. But from where I’m from four people get killed in one shooting, that’s a weekend. So showing another body is not so powerful, so it was important for me to rewrite that: they expected death, but instead we chose life. Everyone stood up and went crazy.”

The kids, engaged and inspired, recognized that this person was sharing closely with them, and one was even inspired to talk about loss that he had experienced through violence in his own neighborhood before the questions continued and the hour flew by. His talent for connecting with young students is brilliant and it is fabulous to see him work each and every time we are lucky enough to have him join us, and these aren’t easy Q&As by any means. Finally, one student came to the front to share his poem with the audience before the bell rang — and then a few students lined up to talk to Donté, to share with him their stories and their ideas, and glean a little bit more from his experiences. “I loved being able to connect with him,” one student said, and another added: “it helped me think about writing and poetry in a different way. I thought it was kind of boring before seeing the film and hearing him.”

Even though it was two years ago that Romeo is Bleeding was in the Festival (and won the Audience Award for Documentary that year), it has had a lasting impact not only on Donté but also to the many who have seen him on screen, let alone the thousands of students that he has spoken to in classrooms and at events. The film was directed by Jason Zeldes (the editor of 20 Feet From Stardom) and depicts a fatal turf war between neighborhoods that haunts the city of Richmond, CA., telling the story of how Donté Clark transcends the violence in his hometown by writing poetry about his experiences and working with a community arts organization. Using his voice to inspire those around him, he and the like-minded youth of the city mount an urban adaptation of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet with the hope of starting a real dialogue about violence in the city. “I’m always excited to be able to share my stories,” Donté said afterwards, “and to provide any guidance or perspective about the life and journey of an artist.”

Ciao,
Tom Winterbottom

Stay In Touch With SFFILM

‘A Bad Idea Gone Wrong’ Premiere at SXSW

Jason Headley talks the about the laughs and nerves behind a a successful first outing

A Bad Idea Gone Wrong.

It’s possible I was just too dumb to be nervous.

That’s what people kept asking me before my first feature film, “A Bad Idea Gone Wrong,” premiered at SXSW: “Are you nervous?” And I honestly didn’t understand the question. The movie was finished. I’d watched it enough times, building it piece by piece, to have no perspective on it whatsoever. But I still had a low, lingering feeling that I’d made the movie I set out to make. So my work was done. All I had to do was sit in a theater and watch it with a bunch of strangers.

“I’m excited.” That’s what I would tell people. And I meant it.

Then the rain started.

Our world premiere was on a Saturday afternoon and it was raining pretty good. One thing I hadn’t considered was the possibility that I might not watch the movie with a bunch of strangers after all, but with a smattering of wet, grumpy people in a mostly empty theater.

I started to get nervous. There was a lot going on as the doors opened. We were quarantined in a green room underneath the theater for a while, either due to a health scare or because we were being too noisy. (It’s because we were being too noisy.) When we got let out of detention, we had to take various configurations of photos on the red carpet and I honestly had no idea how many people had gone into the theater. Finally free to take a look, I saw nothing but sweet relief: The theater was full. Three hundred people, some of them wet, none of them grumpy.

I was back to being excited.

People were laughing from the very start. The movie is a comedy, so that’s a good thing. Great laughs and gasps in all the right places. It was a true rush listening this bunch of strangers go on the ride. To the point where, near the end, my awareness of all the effort it took to get here — all the failure and rejection and opportunities made and teamwork required — began to cause a disturbance in and around my eyeballs. I was about to cry. Luckily, I come from a place where we stifle our emotions with great rigor and proficiency. I wasn’t about to cry my way through my Q&A. So I pulled it together and just felt some good, old-fashioned joy about the whole thing. A rare indulgence.

Three days later, we all went to the awards ceremony. I was neither nervous nor excited. I felt the same as when I took my brother’s girlfriend to prom: Certain I had no chance. Our film was in Narrative Competition, but it’s a comedy and comedy doesn’t win awards. Even at the Golden Globes, where Comedy has its own category, “The Martian” won. The. Martian. So I was just sitting there, minding my own business, when judge Scott Mantz started talking about our movie. He was talking about a Special Jury Recognition for Best Ensemble. And suddenly we were onstage and I got to sing the praises of my cast — Matt Jones, Eleanore Pienta, and Will Rogers — into a microphone in front of a thousand people.

Jason Headley

It was a superb experience all around. We finished the night at a diner at 3 a.m., too tired to eat but too wired to sleep. Just like that, my first feature was out in the world, all on its own. And I’m ready to get started on the next one.
– Jason Headley

Stay In Touch With SFFILM

Proposed Elimination of Federal Arts Funding

A statement on the proposed budget by the President of the United States that has called for the elimination of the National Endowment For The Arts.

While SFFILM will not be materially affected by any reduction or elimination of the NEA, It will have a profound effect on our many sibling organizations upon whom we rely as programming and marketing partners in the Bay Area, especially those who provide arts learning for young people and access to art and artists in underserved communities. The elimination of cultural funding dramatically undermines the bonds that make our communities strong and must be opposed.

It is also important to note that these proposed cuts are clearly motivated by political animus. That is a terrifying idea. When people in power seek to silence the creative voices that contextualize our sociopolitical life that is an attack on democracy itself.

Furthermore, the stated arguments for the elimination of the NEA are highly troubling. To deny the full potential of a child’s imagination or to suggest that people living in certain communities have less need of cultural sustenance as a direct trade-off against spending on tanks and bombs can only be characterized as morally repugnant.

We join with our peers to oppose this terrible proposal and call for the full funding of the National Endowment For The Arts to be maintained in the coming federal budget.

Noah Cowan
Executive Director
SFFILM — The 60th San Francisco International Film Festival