Tickets on sale now for series of five sessions for students

TRAVERSE CITY – It’s back to school for the first time at the Traverse City Film Festival.

The inaugural “TCFF Film School” debuts with the festival’s fifth anniversary year. Hosted by visiting filmmakers and focusing on the art of filmmaking, sessions will be held daily from Wednesday through Sunday, July 29 to Aug. 2, from 1 to 4 p.m.

“We’ve expanded what used to be a single workshop for a small number of student filmmakers to a film school for a wider audience of students of all ages and others who are interested in filmmaking,” said Traverse City Film Festival Founder and Oscar-winning filmmaker Michael Moore. “This is a rare opportunity to learn one-on-one from the people who made the great films in this year’s festival.”

Topics will cover everything from how to secure a permit to film on location to the theory of documentary filmmaking. Admission is $3, with tickets now on sale for Friends of the Film Festival. Tickets will be available to the general public beginning on Saturday, July 18. Sessions are open to students 12 and older, of all experience levels.

The series includes:

Wednesday, July 29: “Screenwriting”
Jim Burnstein (“Ruffian,” “Renaissance Man,” “D3: The Mighty Ducks”), one of the few working Hollywood screenwriters living in Michigan, heads the Screenwriting Program at the University of Michigan Department of Screen Arts & Cultures. He will share his stories about working in the loneliest area of the filmmaking business.

Thursday, July 30: “Documentary 101″
Canadian Director Kevin McMahon (“Waterlife”) edited 200 hours of footage that he shot all over the Midwest to create his Traverse City Film Festival 2009 documentary about the state of the Great Lakes. He will take time during his stay in Traverse City to share his experiences with students, covering all stages of filmmaking. One third of the class time will be set aside to answer student questions and offer students time to talk about their own projects and quandaries.

Friday July 31: “Women in Film”
Together, Gloria La Morte and Paola Mendoza had a hand in almost every aspect of the making of their film “Entre nos. Not only did they collaborate to secure funding, write and direct, Gloria edited the film and Paola played the lead character. They will share their knowledge of what it’s like to get a movie made outside of the studio system, and what it’s like to be a woman working in what is still, for the most part, a male-dominated industry.

Saturday, Aug. 1: “Making Shorts”
For the first time this year, the Traverse City Film Festival has scheduled four shorts programs as part of the festival schedule. From animation to live action, from middle school and post-grad students to professional filmmakers, many of the directors and producers behind this year’s 50 short films will be in attendance to talk about their films. In this session, Anny Slater (“The Ball”), Aaron Jaffe (“Trim”), Sarah Klegman (“Home Cooked Meal”) and others will tell you about their films, how they made they, why they made them, what distribution has been like and what they plan to do from here as they also take questions from the audience.

Sunday, Aug. 2: “Very American Comedy”
Robert Byington (“Harmony and Me,” “Registered Sex Offender”) and Ben Steinbauer (“Winnebago Man”), the filmmakers behind some of the funniest films in the festival this year, will present a special class to wrap up the inaugural Film School. The Austin, TX-based filmmakers will use one of the greatest American comedies, the Coen Brothers’ “Raising Arizona,” as the theme for a lively — and PG-13-rated — class about funny business in the movies.

All of the Film School sessions will be held in a 100-seat auditorium at CenterPointe, 12935 S. West Bay Shore, which is on the waterfront about 2.5 miles northwest of the State Theatre. Parking on West side of M-22: walk through tunnel. Directions to CenterPointe can be found on their web site, www.gocenterpointe.com.

No application is needed. Interested participants can purchase tickets online by Clicking Here, by phone (231-946-3731) or at the box office, cybercafe and store on the main floor of Radio Centre on East Front Street near Park in downtown Traverse City. Sales will be limited to two tickets per person.

For more information, or to reserve a seat in one or more of the classes, contact Film School Coordinator Scott Tompkins at scott@traversecityfilmfestival.org.