“From the Cinephiles” gives readers, members, and customers the opportunity to meet the staff, and Facets employees a chance to talk about their work outside the job. Just like files of important documents can be a resource for understanding, so are the Facets Cine-philes (our movie-loving staff) our greatest resource.
October is here and that means that towards the end of the month, the Chicago International Children’s Film Festival (CICFF) will be occurring at Facets as well as other theaters across the Chicago area. After months of preparation, a grueling selection process, and rigorous coordination, the festival, affectionately known as Kidsfest, is sure to attract audiences of all ages. [Top: From A Cat in Paris, playing Sun. Oct. 23, 5pm]
The films vary in language, genre, and theme, and this year come from 42 different countries around the world. Talking to Ann, the programmer of CICFF, and Kathleen, the coordinator of CICFF, it is clear how much work and time goes in to programming a fest of this caliber every year. Planning for the festival is a year-long process that starts the day after the last screening of the prior festival and involves months of selection, development, and planning.
Both Kathleen and Ann have been with Facets for several years. Kathleen came to help with coordinating in 1997. Her duties involve managing all aspects of Facets Children’s Programs, which includes not only the Festival but also Facets Kids Film Camp along with other special events and specific screenings. She also works with educators to aid them in valuable discussions about the films in the classroom.
Ann came to Facets in 2008 and works with the programming aspect of the CICFF. Estimating that around 1000 submissions are received every year, Ann and a selection committee spend most of the summer trying to nail down a list of films. Around August, the same panel meets again to decide on prizes for the films that do make the Festival. During this time, films are also assigned age ranges. “Based on our years of experience, we have a good gauge. For instance, a film might be emotionally and artistically suitable for a certain age, but the subtitles will go by too quickly. So, we have to tweak the age to be slightly older,” Ann explained. This ensures that students who attend with their classes during field trips will be fully engaged and able to comprehend the film without getting turned off.
One of the goals of the CICFF is to present films that can be used for educational purposes as well as a way of exposing students to a different sort of film that they might not be familiar with. Since the medium is familiar to many students, they are able to gain insight from a film easily. The programs during the week are geared to school groups and are broken down into six different skills and topics for students to look for while watching the film. After each screening, a discussion is held, and teachers are then sent a comprehensive educational curriculum guide that aids them in facilitating further dialogue with their students.
The films vary in language, genre, and theme, and this year come from 42 different countries around the world. Talking to Ann, the programmer of CICFF, and Kathleen, the coordinator of CICFF, it is clear how much work and time goes in to programming a fest of this caliber every year. Planning for the festival is a year-long process that starts the day after the last screening of the prior festival and involves months of selection, development, and planning.
Both Kathleen and Ann have been with Facets for several years. Kathleen came to help with coordinating in 1997. Her duties involve managing all aspects of Facets Children’s Programs, which includes not only the Festival but also Facets Kids Film Camp along with other special events and specific screenings. She also works with educators to aid them in valuable discussions about the films in the classroom.
Ann came to Facets in 2008 and works with the programming aspect of the CICFF. Estimating that around 1000 submissions are received every year, Ann and a selection committee spend most of the summer trying to nail down a list of films. Around August, the same panel meets again to decide on prizes for the films that do make the Festival. During this time, films are also assigned age ranges. “Based on our years of experience, we have a good gauge. For instance, a film might be emotionally and artistically suitable for a certain age, but the subtitles will go by too quickly. So, we have to tweak the age to be slightly older,” Ann explained. This ensures that students who attend with their classes during field trips will be fully engaged and able to comprehend the film without getting turned off.
One of the goals of the CICFF is to present films that can be used for educational purposes as well as a way of exposing students to a different sort of film that they might not be familiar with. Since the medium is familiar to many students, they are able to gain insight from a film easily. The programs during the week are geared to school groups and are broken down into six different skills and topics for students to look for while watching the film. After each screening, a discussion is held, and teachers are then sent a comprehensive educational curriculum guide that aids them in facilitating further dialogue with their students.
Kathleen and Ann have strong interests in film. Kathleen noted that she saw many of her favorite movies before the age of twelve, thanks to her mother. As a child, she was allowed to occasionally stay up late and watch films on television, and her parents would talk to her about them afterward. She is now instilling this love of film in her own daughter by showing her movies that she loves.
Although they are not allowed to discuss which films they enjoy the most, both women told me there are a few films in the festival that really stand out, especially in the animation genre. The Children’s International Film Festival starts on October 21st and runs through October 30th. See http://www.cicff.org for more information.
--Brittany Jones
0 comments:
Post a Comment