It has already been an exciting year for the William & Mary Global Film Festival, and the main event is still to come.
The festival’s kickoff event in November brought Chilean director Sebastián Silva — a Sundance Directing Award winner — and actor Michael Cera, known for his role as George-Michael Bluth in the TV show “Arrested Development.”
The festival, which launched in 2008, recently announced a new partnership with Canon Virginia Inc., a global manufacturer for Canon’s office and consumer products.
As part of the collaboration, Canon is providing a $5,000 grant to support the festival’s community outreach and youth filmmaking projects, as well as donating cameras and other equipment.
A portion of the funds will go to the “Do-It-Young/Film-It-Yourself” project, which is in its second year as part of the GFF. It gives local elementary, middle and high school students the chance to attend filmmaking workshops be paired with a W&M film student mentor.
“The GFF along with the ‘Film-it-Yourself’ program provides an opportunity for young people to learn outside the classroom and develop leadership skills for tomorrow,” said Ron Briggs, Canon Virginia Inc.’s senior vice president, in a news release. “It is important that the business community take an active role in educating, training and developing future generations.”
The Canon grant will also support another education initiative of the GFF: its Student Short Film Competition. The competition seeks submissions from universities throughout the country and from W&M’s partner schools across the globe. It also accepts work from aspiring students of all training levels in the Williamsburg area.
With additional funding, GFF organizers hope to create festival screening opportunities for aspiring student filmmakers, as well as provide travel funds for students around the world to attend the festival and participate in its workshops with guest filmmakers.
The donated equipment will help fill a need in the new film and media studies program at the College.
“We are thrilled about this sponsorship because it will allow us to expand so many crucial parts of the Global Film Festival’s work,” said festival director Timothy Barnard, visiting assistant professor of film and media studies at the College, in the release.
The 2014 GFF will be Feb. 13 through 16 at the Kimball Theatre.
This year’s theme, “Journeys & Passages,” celebrates the 25th anniversary of the Wendy and Emery Reves Center for International Studies, a sponsor of the GFF. The festival features films from around the world, live performances, receptions and presentations by invited filmmakers.
The events starts 5 p.m. Feb. 13, with the world premiere of W&M-produced global documentaries. Click here to see the full schedule by day.
All events and screenings require either a ticket or a pass, which are currently on sale from 1 to 3 p.m. at the Kimball Box Office and W&M Sadler Center. They can also be purchased by calling 800-HISTORY.
For more information, visit the GFF website.
