Jan 26, 2011
Education
The San Francisco Film Society will present SFFS Film Arts Forum: Igniting the Classroom, a panel discussion focusing on educational media, the filmmakers that produce it and the teachers who use it, 7:30 pm, Tuesday, March 1 at the Lab, 2948 16th Street (at Capp).
Many filmmakers seek to change the world using media as an educational tool. They have a great film, maybe even some lesson plans and an interactive website that they know students will love. Will all their hard work pay off and ultimately get their film into classrooms? Capturing the attention of students and educators is not easy. What are K-12 students watching? How are filmmakers and organizations creating content that is useful to students and teachers, and how are they delivering it? Panelists Sophie Constantinou, Daven Gee, Marcia Jarmel, Maria Jenerik and Annelise Wunderlich will share their stories of and experiences with making films that are great educational resources, as well as the strategies and tactics they use to engage students through media.
SFFS Director of Education Joanne Parsont will moderate the panel discussion. This year, the Film Society celebrates 20 years of educational programming at the San Francisco International Film Festival through the acclaimed Schools at the Festival program, which has brought hundreds of filmmakers into Bay Area classrooms and tens of thousands of students aged 6-18 into theaters to view films that cultivate their media literacy, cultural awareness, critical thinking skills and appreciation of cinema. For more information about SFFS Youth Education, visit sffs.org/youth-education.
PANELISTS
Sophie Constantinou of Citizen Film has earned international acclaim for tackling difficult subjects with artistry and sensitivity. Her directing credits include Divided Loyalties (SFIFF 2001), a personal exploration of the conflict in Cyprus and Between the Lines (SFIFF 1998), a lyrical documentary about women and self-injury. Her cinematography credits include PBS’s award-winning Maquilapolis, about the movement to change labor practices in US-Mexican border factories; HBO’s Unchained Memories, which tells the stories of former slaves, using their testimony from the WPA archives; PBS’s Presumed Guilty, a portrait of a public defender’s office; and KQED’s Emmy-winning Home Front, about evictions in San Francisco’s Mission District.
Daven Gee is director of outreach at Katahdin Productions and has a varied background as a filmmaker, educator, curator and community outreach specialist for documentary films. He has more than 12 years of experience developing educational and grassroots materials and campaigns for documentary films including On Coal River, Blessed Is the Match, Regret to Inform (SFIFF 1999) and Scout’s Honor. He has worked in the Bay Area with Film Arts Foundation and the Mill Valley Film Festival, and has taught at San Francisco State University and San Francisco City College. His documentary collaboration with students, Art on the Block, aired on PBS in 2007.
Marcia Jarmel founded PatchWorks Films, a San Francisco-based production and distribution company, with Ken Schneider in 1994. PatchWorks specializes in films that explore contemporary social issues through intimate character stories and innovative partnerships with constituencies working with the issues explored in the films. Their award-winning documentaries, including the recent film about bilingual public schools, Speaking in Tongues (SFIFF 2009), have been broadcast worldwide and screened at museums, film festivals, schools, universities and libraries.
Maria Jenerik teaches middle school social studies and language arts at Creative Arts Charter School in the Western Addition. In her teaching, she focuses on critical thinking and how history has shaped the world as we know it. Her project-based teaching style is intended to reach all students and provide multiple opportunities for information to be relevant and informative. She frequently weaves technology into her projects and allows her students to utilize multiple mediums to create and express ideas.
Annelise Wunderlich is a filmmaker and media educator living in San Francisco. She works as the National Community Engagement and Education Manager for the Independent Television Service (ITVS), where she produces curriculum for both film-based and interactive content as part of ITVS’s education program, Community Classroom. These lesson plans and activities are designed for high school and college-level students and youth-serving organizations. She has also produced documentary films on subjects including women factory workers in Tijuana, gay adoption and crystal meth addiction, which have appeared on PBS, Current TV and other national television outlets.
For complete program information, visit sffs.org/Screenings-and-Events/SFFS-Film-Arts-Forum
Following the discussion, filmmakers in the audience are invited to participate in the Laptop Shop, a professional show-and-tell during which attendees screen clips from their current or recent projects on their laptops and solicit feedback from peers. It’s a lively exchange and a unique opportunity to see what’s brewing in the Bay Area film world. Filmmakers wishing to screen their work should bring a short clip, headphones and a well-charged laptop.
Tickets $7 year-round SFFS members; $10 general; available at the door beginning at 7:00 pm or in advance at sffs.org/tickets beginning February 1.