Thousands Of Bay Area Students To Get Exclusive Access At 50th San Francisco International Film Festival

Schools at the Festival Program Brings Young People to the Theater and Filmmakers to the Classroom

April 3, 2007

San Francisco, CA — In its ongoing effort to aid media literacy area wide and engage a new generation of viewers with the best in international and independent cinema, the Schools at the Festival program of the 50th San Francisco International Film Festival (April 26–May 10) will involve thousands of Bay Area students in Festival screenings and coordinate student interactions with filmmakers from around the world. SAF is a key element of the San Francisco Film Society’s Education Program, which continues to expand. Since October of 2006 more than 2,000 students and teachers have attended Film Society Education Program events, a promising start to its second year of year-round activity.

Schools at the Festival introduces students to the art of filmmaking and celebrates both the differences and the shared values of the many cultural groups that make up the Bay Area. The program aims to broaden insights into other cultures, enhance foreign language aptitude, develop skills for critical analysis of film and inspire a lifelong appreciation of cinema. Since its inception in 1991, SAF has served more than 30,000 students from 500 separate educational institutions.

Screenings at Sundance Cinemas Kabuki for elementary, middle, high school and homeschool groups will be supplemented by special visits to classrooms by filmmakers. Filmmakers who have visited classrooms in the past include Jay Rosenblatt, Amanda Micheli, Les Blank, Lourdes Portillo, Michel Ocelot and Ousmane Sembène. To broaden the impact of the cinematic experience for students, SAF will also offer study guides for select films. Developed by local educators and program staff, the study guides allow teachers to integrate film content into their curriculum, prepare students before screenings and direct discussion afterward.

Seventeen feature films, documentaries and shorts programs from SFIFF have been carefully selected to satisfy a broad range of curricula and grade levels. These screenings are open to all Bay Area high school, middle school, elementary school and homeschool classes and are scheduled as weekday matinees. Targeted subject areas include foreign languages such as Chinese, French, German and Spanish as well as issue-based programming for subjects such as African studies, environmental studies, history, journalism, politics and social studies, with several programs well suited for ESL and hearing-impaired students.

The shorts program Up, Up and Away, a diverse collection of eight Golden Gate Award–nominated short films which includes a wonderful combination of animation, fiction and documentary works from around the world, is particularly appropriate for elementary school groups.

Programs for middle and high school students represent a well-balanced mix of truth and fiction, running the gamut from inspiring and enlightening narratives to in-depth cultural, historical and political explorations. Some highlights: Daniel B. Gold and Judith Helfand’s tantalizing “toxic comedy” documentary Everything’s Cool tracks a cadre of global warming messengers parrying across the widening chasm between scientific understanding and political action; Sounds of Sand, Marion Hansel’s East African drama, follows a family which journeys across the desert in search of water, encountering civil unrest and an inhospitable landscape that testifies to the endurance of human hope under impossible circumstances; Lynn Hershmann Leeson’s Strange Culture is an unconventional documentary about Steve Kurtz, a conceptual artist falsely accused of bio-terrorism; The Third Monday in October, Vanessa Roth’s crowd-pleasing documentary, looks into the political intrigue of middle school elections across America; and Fredi M. Murer’s German drama Vitus is the story of a boy genius/piano prodigy who just wants to be a normal kid and his eccentric grandpa who encourages him to find his own way with his exceptional gifts.

Closing out the Schools program is the annual presentation of youth-made media at 1:00 pm on Thursday, May 10. The Reel Youth Revolution is a collection of 11 of the best new works by filmmakers aged 18 and under. This revolution starts now, as new ideas make the journey from youthful hands clutching their first cameras to a climactic onscreen conclusion. The next generation is ready for a change and has the vision and heart to transform society, culture and the world they live in.

In keeping with the San Francisco Film Society’s ongoing commitment to educational outreach, teachers and students enjoy a significant discount on Festival admission. All those participating in the program are eligible to purchase a $2.50 ticket for Schools screenings. Tickets are available exclusively to Bay Area educators and students, and may only be purchased by contacting Education Program manager Keith Zwölfer at 415.561.5040 or kzwolfer@sffs.org.

One of the first and largest programs of its kind, SAF was founded in 1991 by the late Robert S. Donn (1931–2003), a retired San Francisco teacher with a tremendous passion for film. The success and impact of this educational program is due to Donn’s great vision, dedication and unflagging enthusiasm.

Schools at the Festival is made possible by the generous support of Wells Fargo, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the William Randolph Hearst Foundation and the Tin Man Fund.