On Thursday evening, Rick and I attended the Seattle Central Film and Video Showcase at the Seattle Art Museum downtown. I was thoroughly impressed by the quality of work the graduating students of the 2-year Film & Video program produced! Showcase is a public viewing of the graduating students’ film projects. There were about 20 featured short films. The works ranged from narrative shorts to documentaries to public service announcements. Pieces were filmed on a variety of formats including 16mm, Super 8mm film, HD video, and standard definition video.
Some of my favorite pieces included:
Getting Over by Jesse Lomax. This film took a look behind the scenes of graffiti in Seattle.
The Giving Tree by Nandia Baterdene. Using the format of claymation (like animation with clay figures), this short film was based on the beautiful story of Shel Silverstein’s “The Giving Tree.”
4 the Kids by Jeanine Garcia. This is a short documentary about a daycare teacher who imports a dance from LA known as “clowning”, shares it with his students, and aspires to change the future through hip hop. The kids are adorable!
no line to cross by Amanda Murphy. This documentary is about a guy named Adrian who tells us what it means to him to cross-dress.
Jackhammer by Stacy Barnes. Rick’s student, Stacy Barnes, recites her powerful poem “Jackhammer” in a flawlessly mesmerizing rhythm.
I was amazed by the talent of all 20 filmmakers! Rick already knew how talented they were because he taught them during their first year in the program. When we got there, Rick was so excited to see his students, the filmmakers, the interpreters of our culture, the story tellers of our day! The Film and Video program is two years long and Rick taught this group of graduates during their first year. Since he has been on Sabbatical, he had not seen them in over a year. It was so touching to see the students’ excitement in seeing him! Some expressed how positively he influenced them in their studies and endeavors. The graduating class honored Rick by asking him to stand up and they applauded him. They acknowledged him and the other instructors in such a wonderful way.
After the film showings, there was talk of the terribly tragic and shocking news that the Film & Video Program will eventually be completely cut out of Seattle Central Community College. The college budget cuts have been drastic. I can’t even imagine what it is like for full time instructors Sal Tonacchio and Sandy Cioffi, who give their hearts and souls to the program, to deal with such news! Sal has basically built that program from the ground up. Thanks to Sal’s dedication and hard work, as well as the work of other instructors and the efforts of the students, the program-and the filmmakers who graduate from the program-are extraordinary!
I was just about in tears listening to the graduates speak so highly of the Film and Video Program! One person talked about how they didn’t just learn to be filmmakers, but they also learned how to work in the vast field of filmmaking, how to work with community, and in community with their peers. Another graduate expressed how sad he was for other aspiring filmmakers who will never get a chance to go through such a remarkable program.
I felt so honored to have just been able to sit in and watch this dedicated group of filmmakers tell their stories on film. What great contributions they make to today’s culture! And what a powerful medium film is for educating, enlightening others, for getting the story and the words out to the masses, for entertainment, for creating art, and manifesting beautiful human expression!
One is left wondering how integral programs like this can be cut out and eliminated. There have been several rallies against the budget cuts at Seattle Central Community College. It is just so incredibly sad that this particular program has to be cut. What can we do? I think it is not too late to write to the president of Seattle Central Community College, Paul Kilpatrick, to express our concerns. That was the suggested route of action at the Film and Video Showcase on Thursday.
I spoke to Sal Tonacchio today and he informed me that the Film and Video Program has at least another year to get the current students through their second year, and that they may have two years if new students already in
the process of registering are permitted to start in the Fall. The Stranger may have an article coming out (!!) and today’s (Saturday) Seattle Times has a piece on the situation.
I say contact the president of Seattle Central Community College and voice your concerns!! It is exactly what I am doing! The President of SCCC, Dr. Paul Killpatrick, will be receiving a copy of my blog in his mailbox on Monday morning.
I believe it is imperative to keep the Film and Video Program at Seattle Central Community College alive, humming, and strumming!
Here is Dr. Paul Killpatrick’s contact information:
Dr. Paul Killpatrick, President
Seattle Central Community College
1701 Broadway Room 4180
Seattle, WA 98122
E-mail: PKillpatrick@sccd.ctc.edu
Phone: 206.934.4144
Fax: 206.344.4390
Here’s an article from The Stranger about the decision to cut out the Film and Video program at Seattle Central Community College: http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/seattle-central-community-college-guts-a-treasure/Content?oid=8740398
Right on, Fran! I’ve been teaching in that program for 15 years. The college will seem barren without it. I have grown in many ways as a teacher and film guy thanks to that program. Knowing that I get to teach in that program has helped to sustain me as a teacher during challenging times.
Thanks for all the good words and for promoting survival of the program!
Always, Rick