Film Production Program Instructor Heads to China for Filmmakers’ Immersion
On March 28, an instructor of the Film Production Diploma program at Toronto Film School is headed east for a filmmakers’ cultural immersion and what will surely be an experience of a lifetime.
Last year Christopher Lane, who teaches in the Film Production program at Toronto Film School, was a judge with the Golden Panda North America International Short Film Festival and the Canadian representative on the judging panel. Now the festival has asked Lane to participate in a North American Filmmakers’ Cultural Immersion trip to China.
“It was an honour just to be asked to be involved with the festival, so to be included in this cultural immersion is the thrill of a lifetime,” Lane said.
Last year was the third year for, what Lane said, is a distinguished festival. It was first held in 2013 as a way for short film enthusiasts around the world to connect with each other and share their passion. Cctv.com and Orient Star Media Inc organize the festival. It features a selection of short films from all over the world.
“It’s quite a diverse and distinct storytelling from one place to the next,” Lane said. “So as a judge you have to be versed in film deeply in order to be able to watch and judge all these.”
There were even four films by Toronto Film School graduates that were accepted, out of nearly 800 submissions, into the festival in 2015.
Award categories in the Golden Panda festival include Best Picture, Best Humanities, Best Animated Short Film, Best Director, Best Screenplay and Most popular short film online.
The winner of each of these categories will be on the trip along with Lane. Their itinerary includes taking in Tiananmen Square, The Great Wall of China, The Temple of Heaven and a stop at the Beijing Film Academy.
The experience, Lane said, will also benefit his students at Toronto Film School as it will inevitably be brought into the classroom when he returns from the trip.
“Seeing other techniques of storytelling and soaking all of this up is such a great experience,” Lane said.
Stay tuned for more on Lane’s trip and follow the hash tags #GoldenPanda #TeamTFS and #TFS2016 to see updates and photos on social media.
To find out more about the Toronto Film School and its programs, click here.
