NEWSLETTERS

A MESSAGE FROM STEPHANIE MARTINO

Hello Everyone!

Well, it is almost the end of the 2013/2014school year and it’s quite amazing how much FFI has accomplished this past year. We are so fortunate to be surrounded by such talented young filmmakers and I look forward to seeing the final cuts of the CINEMA projects soon! My staff and I have truly had a wonderful time producing such fantastic films with all of our students. It has been a terrific year for short films and I am quite proud of the creativity, focus and teamwork our participants have demonstrated this year. Congrats to all of the filmmakers for a job well done!

Please read below for all of the newest updates. And as always, please stay connected to us via our Facebook, Tumblr, Twitter, and YouTube pages and the new and improved FFI website @ www.flfilminstutute.org. There is a lot of info to share and some exciting news to report.

I personally thank you all for your continued support. We could not be as successful as we are without your help!

THANKS!!!

UPDATE ON CINEMA SCHOOLS

1st Semester Schools

Felix Varela HS, Miami Lakes Educational Center, Turner Technical Arts HS and Alonzo and Tracy Mourning HS cast/crew have all completed the CINEMA program. Their short films have been edited by the student editing teams. Currently, the FFI master editor is making final adjustments and is creating the DVD’s for each film.

2nd Semester Schools

Robert Morgan Educational Center (RMEC)
Their film, COMMERCIALS: UNPLUGGED, is a slapstick comedy about five workers of the Commercials Distribution Headquarters (CDH) who are choosing one out of three commercials to air on T.V. These aren’t just regular commercials, though. These commercials are parodies of real-life products.

Coral Reef Senior High School (CRHS)
Their film, MAD WORLD, is a dark drama about a freshman in high school who has just endured a tragic car accident involving his parents, his brother and himself. There is a lot of fluctuation between the coma and real world, but who is alive and who has perished?

The editors are currently working on a rough cut of the film / trailer / behind the scenes video and pics.

FFI / MOCA

FFI’s after school teen film program @ The Museum of Contemporary Art, North Miami (MOCA), was a success! The cast/crew filmed their production on February 14th, 2014. Their film, JARRED, is a drama about a young woman dealing with long term memory loss. This woman is dealing with the relationship with her manipulative father and memories of her mother who she has not seen in many years. The editors have two more sessions with the FFI crew before completing the project. For more information please check out www.mocanomi.org.

FILM FESTIVAL NEWS

3 CINEMA films from last year were accepted and screened at the 6th Annual Amelia Island Film Festival, 1st Student Film Competition. The films showcased were: I SELL CHOCOLATES (JFSHS), THE VAULT (SWHS) and THE PURR (CINERAMA Saturday program). The Competition took place March 1st & 2nd and was judged by 5 film industry professionals. Each film was graded on the following: Lighting, Audio, Cinematography, and Editing. And drum roll please…….THE PURR won 1st place in the student film category! Congrats to the cast and crew! For more info on this festival please visit www.ameliaislandfilmfestival.org.

Great news to share….a CINEMA project from last year @ South Dade Senior High School, ‘SILENCE’ made it into the 17th Annual Do It Your Damn Self!! National Youth Video and Film Festival. They received many films from all over the country and have selected only 10 to be included in this year’s festival. Congrats to all of the cast and crew! For more info about this festival please visit www.diyds.org.

FFI is so proud of our amazing & talented filmmakers!

CINEMA ANNUAL AWARDS & SCREENING

FFI has been given the opportunity to bring our CINEMA participants to MDC North Campus, School of Entertainment & Design Technology (SEDT) on May 21st 2014 for the 2013-2014 CINEMA Annual Awards and Screenings. This is a great way to bring all of the students together and have them meet each other and also have them watch the entire student films produced this year through FFI’s film program. In addition to the event, the students will be given a personal tour of the new state of the art music / film studio on campus.

2014 FFI SUMMER FILM CAMP

The Florida Film Institute (FFI) is excited to announce a summer partnership for the fourth year with the Coral Gables Cinemateque (CGC). CINEMA, a film education summer camp will be held at the CGC’s Coral Gables Art Cinema, located at 260 Aragon Avenue in Coral Gables, from June 16 to July 24, 2014. Up to 25 high school students are invited to attend the workshops that meet on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday from 10:00am to 1:00pm. There will be three field trips which will take place during the camp sessions (on selected Thursdays).

The total camp fee is available at a reduced rate of $595.00 for 6 weeks. FFI is able to offer this discounted fee to each participant because of the generosity of The Children’s Trust, The State of Florida and others. If not for their help the regular fee would be $1,660 per student. This year we are able to offer 3 full scholarships to students in need of financial assistance from the Miami Dade County Cultural Affairs Council, Summer Arts & Science Camps for Kids (SAS-C) grant. The scholarships are available for Dade County residents only. For more details on the scholarships and registration visit us online at www.flfilminstitute.org.

FFI NEW SUMMER INTERN

I found out about the FFI CINEMA program while I was volunteering over at the Miami Children’s Museum back in the 2006­2007 year. I was a co­writer and production assistant for the student film, ‘The Guardian Angel.’ The film ended up winning awards for Best Actress and Best Actor at the 2007 Miami Children’s Film Festival.

I’m currently attending the School of Entertainment and Design Technology over at Miami Dade College majoring in Radio and Television Broadcasting and in these upcoming months I will be interning with The Florida Film Institute, assisting with student film shoots, the summer film camp program and other projects.

FFI opened a door of great opportunity for me. At the time I had a great interest in getting into filmmaking and these guys provided the tools, the education and the support. That film program was definitely one of the best experiences in my life. I recommend FFI with my eyes closed, to any middle school / high school student who has an interest and a passion for filmmaking!

ALUMNI NEWS

My name is Alexandra Bock and I am currently a Junior at Florida State University. It is my 2nd year as a BFA student at the College of Motion Picture Arts and I absolutely love it! I have been a part of almost 20 student short films as a director, director of photography, production designer, boom operator/sound mixer, grip, gaffer, producer, editor, writer, and the list just goes on! I love what I do and I wouldn’t trade it for anything else. Thanks to FFI, I think my education at the FSU Film school was made possible because of the experiences I had prior to college. I got a taste of what it was like to be on a film set at FFI and that helped me to realize how much filmmaking was the right career path for me. At this point, I am only a year away from graduating college and am planning on launching a photo documentary project after my graduation that will last approximately 4 months. Once this is completed, I would like to start my career as a DP, or cinematographer and hopefully move to Los Angeles! As a past participant of the FFI program, I would love to help aspiring film students by answering any questions they may have about film school or the industry or any other questions or concerns.

Please check out my most recent work on YouTube titled “Fracked” it is a documentary concerning the conflict of hydraulic fracturing in the United States.

FFI SPONSORS
Thank you for your continued support!

I want to send a special thanks to the wonderful organizations that provide us with the funding we need to operate, they are the real heart of our Institute. With their help we are able to create an increased educational awareness in hundreds of students a year, many of whom would never get the kind of life altering experience that our programs bring to them.

The Children’s Trust
Miami Dade College
Miami-Dade County
Florida Division of Cultural Affairs
Coral Gables Art Cinema
Miami-Dade County Public Schools

DONATIONS TO OUR ORGANIZATION

FFI is always seeking financial and in-kind support. In the event that you would like to donate dollars (or maybe just some sense!) please click HERE or contact the FFI office directly and speak with Stephanie.

Sponsored in part by the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs and the Florida Council on Arts and Culture, and with the support of the Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs and the Cultural Affairs Council, the Miami-Dade County Mayor and Board of County Commissioners, The Children’s Trust, is a dedicated source of revenue established by voter referendum to improve the lives of children and families in Miami-Dade County, Miami Dade College North Campus, School of Entertainment & Design Technology (SEDT), Garnet Productions, Coral Gables Art Cinema, VideoLab Solutions, and Miami-Dade County Public Schools.