Feb 11, 2010
Artist Development
The San Francisco Film Society today announces three winners of Filmmaker Education Scholarships, an initiative of the recently created Colleges & Universities program of the Film Society’s rapidly expanding education department.
David Alvarado, a student in Stanford University’s MFA program in documentary film and video, has been awarded a full-tuition scholarship to Producing and Directing Documentary Films, taught by David L. Brown. Alvarado is developing Matter of Mind, a short documentary that takes an intimate look at three patients struggling to reestablish their sense of self, following traumatic brain injuries.
Finn Bugge, a recent graduate of the MFA in filmmaking program at the San Francisco Art Institute, has been awarded a full-tuition scholarship to Structuring the Character-Driven Documentary, taught by Karen Everett. Bugge is fine-tuning his treatment for Oslo, Medellin, a cinematic self-portrait of an outsider searching for purpose, love and a home.
M.R. Dhar, a student in San Francisco State University’s MFA program, has been awarded a full-tuition scholarship to Screenwriting Level IV: Fine-Tuning Your Screenplay Master Class, taught by Britta Sjogren. He is working on his MFA thesis project, a screenplay for a low-budget narrative feature entitled Temperance about a 16-year-old transitioning to a small rural high school.
“We were very impressed with the quality of the work submitted for the second round of Filmmaker Education scholarships,” said Joanne Parsont, the Film Society’s director of education. “It was an extremely difficult decision to select the recipients from such a talented pool of students, but it is gratifying to see so many emerging artists preparing to join the Bay Area filmmaking community, and for the Film Society to be able to support their artistic growth and development.”
More information on these classes and the SFFS filmmaker education program can be found at sffs.org/classes-and-workshops.
The Colleges & Universities program was created to support and encourage students as they prepare to transition from the academic arena to the professional world. Offering an array of creative, educational, social, financial and professional opportunities, it is a valuable bridge that connects and engages students with the Film Society and the Bay Area filmmaking community. Initiatives of the Colleges & Universities program include full-tuition scholarships to filmmaker education classes; the From College to Cannes contest; internships at the Film Society; Golden Gate Awards prescreening opportunities; SFIFF College Days; and the SFFS Speakers Bureau. For more information go to sffs.org/colleges-and-universities.