Family Day Festivities
One of the Virginia Film Festival’s most popular Community Outreach and Education programs was on the move this year. The Festival’s Family Day festivities came to the Betsy and John Casteen Arts Grounds, and in the process created a dynamic range of interactive programs that allowed local youngsters to learn from and interact with a variety of arts-related programs and departments. Highlights included a stage combat workshop led by interim Drama Chair Colleen Kelly and a joint animation workshop by the Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection and the School of Architecture. The Festival’s popular Young Filmmakers Academy saw hundreds of children submit and screen their films that day, to a delighted crowd of friends, family, and fans. “We were thrilled to be able to move our Family Day to Grounds,” said Jody Kielbasa, Director of the Virginia Film Festival and Vice Provost for the Arts at U.Va. “It is a great way to provide local kids with fun and educational arts experiences while shining a spotlight on the incredible work being done throughout our growing arts landscape here.”