search BFS site

WEEK of April 16, 2007
@BFS! archives

“Dreamgirl” Anika Noni Rose To Share Inside Stories of Hollywood and Broadway as Bridge Film Festival Featured Filmmaker

Anika Noni Rose, a Tony-award winning actress and one of the three lead stars in the film “Dreamgirls,” will be the featured filmmaker at the 8th annual Bridge Film Festival at BFS, Saturday, April 21. The festival begins at 12 noon with a series of four film workshops for students, continues with dinner and a performance by the Upper School Jazz Band, and concludes with a 6:30 pm screening of 10 finalist short films from teenage filmmakers from Quaker schools worldwide. Anika Noni Rose then participates in an interview and Q & A session with the audience (clips of her films will be shown) and presents “Judges’ Choice Awards” to the young filmmakers.

Anika Noni Rose has performed in nine Broadway musicals, winning a Tony-award for featured actress in “Caroline or Change” by Tony Kushner. Most recently she starred in Dreamgirls as Lorrell Robinson with Beyoncé Knowles, Jennifer Hudson, Jamie Foxx, and Eddie Murphy. She is scheduled to appear in the upcoming films One Part Sugar, Starter Wife and Razor.

Students Encouraged to Sign Up for Film Workshops

Prior to the evening screening, students who attend the Festival may sign up to attend workshops with film professionals. All workshops are two hours long, with the exception of “Digital Media Challenge,” which is four hours. Following are the workshop descriptions.

Cel Animation with Don Duga
Learn the art of cel animation from a master, Don Duga, who created “Frosty the Snowman.” Students draw an image of something they like to draw—like their pet cat or a dancer—then learn how to animate it. This series of images is imported into a computer, a sound track is added, and the group’s animated film is shown at the evening screening.

Don Duga has been at the forefront of American Animation for more than 40 years, having worked with some of the most prestigious Animation Studios in the world. He is a versatile animator, director and producer, whose work has ranged from “Sesame Street” to feature films. Don has storyboarded such classic characters as Mr. Magoo and Underdog, and, of course, Frosty the Snowman, which he created.

Claymation Workshop with Lindsay Gilberto
This claymation workshop will explore the classic art of stop-action animation. Students will learn to plan and execute a short animated film using basic materials. We will create clay puppets, design sets, and make them come to life with a variety of animation techniques. An emphasis will be placed on story telling with realistic motion and expression, while students collaborate to make their creations come to life!

Lindsay Gilberto has been teaching animation to children for the past five years. She created Penciltopia, a stop-action animation program for children which was named after a movie created by a student in her class. Lindsay received a Bachelor’s Degree in from the University of Connecticut, and a Master’s Degree in from Hunter College, with certifications in both elementary and art education.

Digital Media Challenge with Raul Cuza
Ready, set, film! Ever wanted to film on location in New York City? This is your chance with an exciting and fast-moving hands-on workshop in digital filmmaking. Teams will be formed and given the first line and last line of the script. Then a 6-member production team has 3-1/2 hours to write, direct, film, act, and edit a short film. Films will be screened at the evening screening.

A graduate of Swarthmore College and the University of Michigan, Raul Cuza is a technology integrator, systems specialist and middle school teacher and advisor at Brooklyn Friends School.

Learning PhotoShop for Beginners with Al Doyle
Learn about Adobe Photoshop! This course will allow absolute beginners to make sense of this daunting program. This course is based on the skills and techniques covered in the popular “Learning Photoshop Through Art” course taught at the Guggenheim Museum by Al Doyle for the last six years. Participants will learn to use digital photography, layers and a wide range of tools and concepts and will be able to continue their learning through the use of handouts and links to online tutorials provided.

Al Doyle is the Director of Instructional Technology at The Town School and he has been teaching with Photoshop for over 15 years. Al is able to integrate the use of Photoshop in to the teaching of art, media literacy and social studies.

back to @BFS!
@BFS! archives