Wild & Scenic Film Festival Assembly Program
Inspiring Young People in the Sierra and Beyond
An hour long assembly for the whole school presented by the Sierra Nevada Alliance consisting of approximately 40 minutes of short films and 20 minutes of curriculum, with additional pre- and post curriculum provided to teachers. Themes of the films include outdoor recreation, environmental activism, and a focus on how outdoor experiences connect people to each other and to the natural world.
When: The assemblies are generally scheduled in the spring (March-May), to coincide with the WIld and Scenic Film Festival on tour in South Lake Tahoe in April.
Who/Where: The Alliance brings the assemblies to elementary and middle schools in the Tahoe Basin, with plans to soon expand into the greater Sierra Nevada.
Why: To bring the perspectives and messages of the Wild and Scenic Film Festival to students in the Sierra Nevada and encourage Sierra stewardship.
2020 Wild & Scenic Film Festival Trailer
Program Goal
Inspiring Stewardship of the Sierra Among Students
The goals for our WIld and Scenic Film Festival Assembly Program focus on increasing our impact in collaborative environmental education efforts being undertaken around the Tahoe Basin and the Sierra Nevada. We recognize the importance of the values and lessons of the Wild & Scenic Film Festival, which include love for nature, recognition of the intersection of social justice and the environmental movement, awareness of grassroots environmental causes, and inspiration to environmental action. Through the Wild and Scenic Film Festival Assembly Program, we share these lessons and encourage Sierra stewardship in the students and young people of our community.
Background
Merging SYRCL’s Long-Standing Film Festival Tradition with Classroom Learning to Inspire and Educate the Next Generation
The South Yuba River Citizens’ League (SYRCL) has been putting on the Wild and Scenic Film Festival every year in Nevada City, CA and Grass Valley, CA for almost 20 years. The organization holds a 5 day flagship festival every year in January as a fundraiser to protect the Yuba River watershed and as an urgent call to action for our planet. SYRCL also takes the Festival on tour to more than 250 events each year.
For the past 14? 15? years, the Sierra Nevada Alliance has been hosting the Wild and Scenic Film Festival on tour in South Lake Tahoe in conjunction with Earth Day celebrations. The Alliance embraces the opportunity to connect our local community with our values of stewardship and conservation.
The Alliance has now launched a new program to bring the film festival to local students through an assembly program that brings the films to elementary and middle schools in the spring of 2020. The Alliance is working with SYRCL to develop curriculum for the assembly program that meets Next Generation Science Standards and engages students with the themes and content of relevant and appropriate films. The Sierra Nevada Alliance will also be providing pre- and post-curriculum that teachers can implement, along with the films and curriculum that will be presented during the assembly.
Vision for the Future
Bringing the Film Fest to More Schools and Young People in the Sierra and Beyond
Looking ahead, the Alliance is eager to expand the assembly program in the years ahead. We hope to be able to bring the assembly to more schools in communities across the Sierra and beyond. We see bringing the films and their messages to these students as a meaningful way to share new perspectives and experiences, inspire values, and affirm the impacts of our actions on our ecosystems and communities.
