Session 31: Bringing communities together: The LJMU MA Short Film Festival as an educational, professional, and community-building experience

Abstract

Launched in 2021, the LJMU MA Short Film Festival, in an annual international student film festival organised as part of the MA Film in the context of the academic curriculum. While formally taught and graded, the LJMU MA SFF is also a public-facing event, accessible both ‘in person’ to local communities and online to a global audience. In putting the film festival together, the students engage with different roles: programmers, editors, public relations professionals, social media content creators, Q&A hosts, presenters and more. As an educational experience, this not only gives them insights into various professional skills, but it also highlights the importance of teamwork, and the related responsibilities and rewards. The public-facing nature of the festival, and the fact that it carries the brand name of the University underline the necessity for high quality standards to be maintained in the programme and its delivery to the audience.

Film festivals aim to reach audiences, open-up debate and create positive social impact in the context of a heightened atmosphere of celebration that encourages community-building and the sense of belonging. Reflecting such communal spirit, this presentation will bring together past and current MA students who will share with their tutors/paper convenors and the conference audience their experiences in co-organising the festival and helping reach a wider public, both locally and internationally. It will highlight the importance of bringing experiential and public-facing practices in the classroom as educational tools that enhance community within and beyond it. It will provide insights into how to use the festival as a platform for courageous and innovative thinking, as well as how to use creativity and technology to embrace diversity and inclusion.

Bringing communities together: The LJMU MA Short Film Festival as an educational, professional, and community-building experience PowerPoint.  Only LJMU staff and students have access to this resource.