For the first time this year, students in UVM's Film and Televisions Studies (FTS) program will have the opportunity to participate for credit in the Vermont International Film Festival, which has attracted industry talent as well as leaders from human rights and environmental movements, two areas of focus for the festival, since its inception in 1985. Film and Television Studies is sponsoring a one-credit course for students interested in learning more about how a festival works and the importance of a festival for filmmakers and the audience. Students will participate in a number of workshops during the festival, to be held Oct. 19-28, and will choose a selection of film screenings to attend.
"I am thrilled with the connections we're making this year with a long-standing community event and our department," says Deb Ellis, filmmaker, UVM associate professor of English and president of the festival's board of directors. "I'm really happy to bring these two commitments together this year."
Workshops sponsored by FTS at the festival include:
- "Packaging your Documentary for Fundraising," led by world-renowned "documentary doctor" Fernanda Rossi.
- "Making Change - How to Use Grassroots Distribution to Build Audiences, Revenue, and Social Change With Film," led by Caitlyn Boyle, founder and president of Film Sprout, a film distribution company.
- "Music and Film," with film director Colin Trevorrow (Safety Not Guaranteed) and musician/composer Ryan Miller (Guster) in conversation about the relationship between a film director and the composer/sound designer of the film’s score. Read more about the Sundance film, which several UVM students and alumni had a hand in making.
- "Whose Rights Are They Anyway?" with Sandra Forman who will conduct a roundtable Q & A and discussion with filmmakers on legal issues including collaboration agreements, acquisition of literary and life story rights, production agreements, rights clearances, and fair use.
In addition, FTS is sponsoring a visit with Cuban Filmmaker Karel Ducasse, whose award-winning 2007 film Zone of Silence examines censorship as a historical, political and social phenomenon. Ducasse will visit classes at UVM and present twice during the festival. A team of film and television students will be involved in Sleepless in Burlington, a 24-hour film competition with teams from Middlebury College, St. Michael's College and Burlington College. FTS faculty member Hyon Joo Hoo will introduce and discuss the film In Another Country with the audience.
Learn more about festival events on the Vermont International Film Festival website.