iMichigan Productions

Film is arguably the most powerful media art, combining sound picture and story to allow its creators to express their greater thoughts regarding anything and everything and present them to the world. The FYFF Film Appreciation Academy seeks to inspire an upcoming generation of film lovers in Flint, offering an opportunity to explore and appreciate the magic and the power of the movies through discussions and tasks designed to help prepare them for academic success. Although we categorize "the movies" as entertainment, at the FYFF Film Appreciation Academy we also recognize they are a vital educational tool that can lead a young person to examine life's eternal questions, such as:

What is heroism?

Are we bound by fate?

What do we "owe" our fellow man?

To what lengths are we willing to go to achieve a goal?

At the FYFF Film Appreciation Academy, young people will engage with a range of thoughts and ideas about the challenges, responsibilities and meaning of life, as well as learn about different film genres and techniques and how they help tell the story. Students will learn to break films down into their component parts like writing, directing, acting, editing, lighting, sound, cinematography, music, and location, and assess how they create emotional impact.

In three 8-week workshops, the Film Appreciation Academy gives young film lovers an excellent opportunity to sharpen their critical eye and to highlight issues that are important to them. They will probe and discuss each film's impact personally, learning techniques for understanding and dissecting films and how to use them as lessons for life in a supportive and inspiring setting that cultivates their critical thinking, writing and communication skills.

Additionally we will also expose our students to jobs "behind the camera" as there are all kinds of hidden career opportunities for hairdressers, make-up artist, electricians, carpenters, truck drivers, cooks, location scouts, prop masters, set decorators, etc., as well as the more widely recognized opportunities for photographers, editors, audio engineers, composers and fashion designers.

Finally, this project is also the gateway to those young people who are interested in making films and who may want to participate in the Flint Youth Film Festival.