 Pleasantville, NY – The Jacob Burns Film Center (JBFC), a cultural arts and educational institution, is proud to announce that three students who participated in the Unscripted documentary program have won Thirteen's THE WAR multimedia contest.
Students across the tri-state area were eligible to enter THE WAR contest called On the Town: Stories of New York in World War II. The winning student filmmakers are Emily Lubin from Horace Greeley High School in Chappaqua, Holly Krakowski from Pleasantville High School, and Jonathan Bedard from Valhalla High School. Their film called A Beautiful Destiny was about Angelo Nonna, a Pleasantville resident.
“We are excited for student filmmakers, Emily, Holly and Jonathan and subject, Angelo Nonna for winning this contest. The students spent the summer exploring the documentary genre and the process of creating a film and were dedicated to telling Angelo’s story through film while working together through the entire process. We are proud of their accomplishments,” said Katie Braun, Education Associate at Jacob Burns Film Center.
The film tells the story of Angelo’s time spent in World War II and how he eventually met his wife Josephine. He refers to his life journey as “destiny”- that he survived the war, that he met his wife while delivering mail to soldiers from Italy in New York, and that they fell in love and eventually married.
Thirteen's THE WAR contest asked the students to create multimedia projects that addressed the theme Where Were They Then: New Yorkers and World War II. JBFC students were able to enter this contest because their film shared similar themes with the contest. Now in its fifth year, Unscripted is one of JBFC’s education programs that guides students through the process of creating an original short documentary film. Participants work collaboratively to create short films about senior citizens living in the community. This process takes place over the spring and summer and culminates with a red-carpet premiere of the documentaries at the JBFC.
Projects were reviewed by a panel of educational experts and public television employees chosen by Thirteen/WNET who selected 10 winning projects. They were judged on content, conventions, layout/design, technical elements, degree of creativity, and appearance. To view a clip of A Beautiful Destiny, please visit the JBFC Channel on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/user/burnsfilmcenter.
In addition to the Unscripted program, JBFC currently offers a variety of education programs in film and visual literacy. Other programs include See•Hear•Feel•Film for third grade, Animation: Minds in Motion! for forth grade, Cinemania and Classroom to Screening Room for Middle School, Classroom to Screening Room for High School, World Crew for college students and various adult education classes. When JBFC opens its new Media and Education Center later this year, the educational opportunities offered will grow and expand to further the JBFC curriculum.
The Jacob Burns Film Center is a not-for-profit cultural arts organization in Pleasantville, New York dedicated to: presenting the best of independent, documentary and world cinema; promoting visual literacy and making film a vibrant part of the community. The programs are inspired by the power of film to challenge, educate and inspire; to transport us to worlds beyond our own; and to create community through shared dialogue and cultural experience. Since the opening in June 2001, over 1,000,000 people have seen over 2,000 films from more than 40 countries. From students learning critical viewing skills and discussing films with the filmmakers, to creating their own animated shorts, the Film Center uses the visual imagery of film as a catalyst for learning. To learn more about the Jacob Burns Film Center, visit www.burnsfilmcenter.org.
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