Community Arts Partner – The Creative Advantage

Participant Details

Individual Bio or Organizational Statement: Film is a powerful art form, and it is the experiences we have with film that can transform our lives. SIFF does just that: our mission is to create experiences that bring people together to discover extraordinary films from around the world. It is through the art of cinema that we foster a community that is more informed, aware, and alive. SIFF Education features programming in filmmaking and film appreciation for Youth, Educators, professional Filmmakers, and general Film Appreciation Classes.

Teaching Philosophy + Approach: Film is a multi-disciplinary art form which can be brought into any classroom. School aged students are already passionately engaged with movies and using the creative processes of filmmaking and various other disciplines (musical scoring, costume design, screenwriting, etc.) affords an experience that deepens students connection to what they are learning.

Curriculum Integration Possibilities: Teachers may engage their students with a filmmaker who will work to create media that responds to the current curricular work in the class. Content specifics can also be created with screenwriters in an English class, costume designers in a History class, composers in a Music class, and much more. We have also successfully engaged science classes with animation and visiting filmmakers from around the world have expanded the experiences of students in Spanish, French, and Mandarin language classes.

Special Skills and Areas of Expertise: SIFF also works to create Professional Development Workshops for teachers across a variety of curriculums on using filmmaking and film presentations creatively in your classroom.

Testimonials from Schools: Jason Sciarrone, Vice Principal, Jane Addams K-8 jmsciarrone@seattleschools.org Joy Patman, Spanish, West Seattle HS jkpatman@seattleschools.org David Friedle, Media, Nathan Hale HS dcfriedle@seattleschools.org