Screening Literacy:
a survey of European Film Education
Mark Reid, BFI
Andrew Burn, Institute of
Education, University of London
When the outcome of an issue is unclear,
or cannot be resolved, it is important to
learn to love the question
Rilke, Advice to a Young Poet
Terms of reference
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EC definition of film literacy: ‘the level of understanding of a film, the
ability to be conscious and curious in the choice of films and the
competence to critically watch a film and to analyse its content,
cinematography and technical aspects.
Revised definition: ‘the level of understanding of a film, the ability to be
conscious and curious in the choice of films; the competence to
critically watch a film and to analyse its content, cinematography and
technical aspects; and the ability to manipulate its language and
technical resources in creative moving image production’.
And the purpose: ‘for young people, to provide awareness and
knowledge about our film heritage and increasing interest in these films
and in recent European films., the ultimate goal being to build a long
term audience for European films.’ from the Tender Terms of
Reference
Creative Europe Programme from 2014 will want to promote ‘ways to
include support for media and film related educational activity..
Especially for young audiences organised eg by festivals, broadcasters,
distributors, cinemas etc.’
AND for EC states to include media (film) literacy in formal curricula.
‘a report mapping the current practices in film literacy in Europe.’
Research objectives
• A ‘European-scale experts’ study which identifies and
analyses film literacy provision in Europe – in formal
and informal settings, and all age groups’:
– Film literacy and AV national policy; film industry; broadcasters
– Nat Curricula: single subject or cross-curric; learning objectives;
film institutes and other orgs?
– Informal sector: film institutes, NGOs, grassroots groups
– Role of film industry and media professionals in film literacy
projects
– Egs of good practice
• Policy recommendations to EC, for Creative Europe
Which territories?
• 27 EU nations:
Austria Belgium
Bulgaria
Cyprus
Czech Republic
Denmark
Estonia Finland
France Germany
Greece
Hungary
The Irish Republic
Italy
Latvia
Lithuania Luxembourg
Malta
The Netherlands
Poland Portugal
Romania
Slovakia
Slovenia Sweden
Spain (excl Canary Islands)
UK (excl Channel Islands)
• And 3 non-EU EEA nations
Liechtenstein
• And
Croatia, Switzerland
Norway
Iceland
Research team structure
Vitor Reia-Baptista
Ian Wall
Film Education
Advisory group of experts
Laszlo Hartai Simone Moraldi
Irene Andriopoulou
Sara Duve
Andrew Burn
Institute of Education,
London University
Mark Reid
BFI
Wendy Earle, Project Manager
Caren Willig
Benelux France Germany
Czech Republic Slovakia
Scandinavia Baltic Austria
Michelle Cannon
Spain Portugal Italy
Greece Cyprus
Malta Romania Bulg
Poland Hungary
Slovenia
Wendy Earle
UK and Ireland
National Research partners - Phase 1
Polish Film Institute
University of the Algarve
Hungarian MPAA
Hellenic Audio-Visual Inst.
EYE /NDS Film Institute
Irish Film Institute
University of Roma Tre
Vision Kino
Slovenian Film Centre CZ National Film Archive
Station Next (Denmark)
Deliverables
Final Report end of 2012, comprising:
• 5pp Exec Summary (suitable for presentation to
general public)
• description of methodology
• 1 page summary picture for each nation
• conclusions
Annexes
• Catalogues of: film festivals; teacher training
programmes; resource publications; industry initiatives
• Digest of known research into film education
outcomes
Phasing the work
• Phase 1 survey Jan - March:
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Online qu’aire sample of 12 nations via Survey Monkey;
case studies of 3 sectors in each nation
2pp summary of provision in each nation
‘survey ‘triangulated’ by third parties
Advisory group seminar 26 March to refine qu’aires and absorb
initial findings
• Phase 2 survey May - July:
• qu’aires and case studies from 20 nations
• Fewer case studies as examples of good models
• Transnational projects examined
Country surveys
Czech Republic
Rep o rt er : Pave l Be d n a rik, indep e n d e n t
fil m pr ofess iona l, Nat iona l Fi lm Arc hive
(Na r od ni fi lmov y a rc hiv) Prague
Resear ch er : Ca r e n Willig
Over view
Populat io n
10,53 2,770
Per ce n tage o f s cho ol age
0-14 ye a rs : 1 4.4%
ch ild re n :
15 -24 ye a rs : 1 2.1%
Th e re is n o nat iona l film ed u cat io n s t rateg y ye t , b ut in Ja nu a ry 2012 an e xp e rt g r ou p
was set u p by t h e M inistr y of Cult u re t o deve lop a stra t egy in 201 2. Th e on ly
prev ious d o cu m e nt b riefl y m e nt ion in g t h e imp o rt anc e of fi lm ed u cat ion a nd o f a
nat io nal f il m s t rateg y , wa s t h e Co nc e pt ion of Cin ema t ogra p hy o f t h e Cz e ch Rep u bli c
2010 -201 6 (a gree d by t h e Par liam e n t in 2010 ).
Fo rma l edu cat ion
The nat io nal gov ern m e nt dec ides t h e co u n t ry ’s cur r icul um . The c ur ricul um is based
o n ‘ Fram e w or k Educat io nal Pr ogra m me s ’ – sugg e sti o ns to t he sc h o ols sup p or te d
an d fin a nc e d by th e loca l au th or ities . Scho ols t h e n creat e ‘Scho ol Educa t io na l
Pr o gr am mes ’, wh ic h a re d iffe re n t in ev e ry s ch o ol. Fi lm e ducat io n is p a rt o f me d ia
educat io n f ro m a ges 5-19. It s u pp o rt s ot h e r s u bje cts a n d s ocia l a n d civi l ed u cat io n .
Th e re a re s o m e n a ti o na l guide line s on medi a ed u cat ion t ha t in clu d e fil m ed u cat io n .
Fil m is n ot st u die d or e xam in e d as a sep a rat e su b jec t , bu t hist o ry o f fi lm is p a rt o f
th e c ur riculu m in his to ry o f lit e rat u re in t h e fina l exa m s a t h igh s cho ol. N o r ec or ds
of a chiev e m e nt s in fil m ed u cat io n a re coll e ct e d . In fo rma l af t er - /o u t -o f sc h o ol
p r ogra m mes a re offer e d b y na t io na l, reg io nal a n d lo ca l cu ltura l a nd v olu nt a ry
or ganisat io ns a n d by s om e s cho ols .
An es t imat e d 40% of s ch oo l ch il d re n r e ceiv e s om e fo rm of fi lm educ a ti on .
In for ma l edu cat ion
Th e re is n o nat iona l in fras t ru ctur e to sup p or t in for ma l ed u cat ion. Inf or mal fi lm
educat io n is pr ovide d b y ind e pe n d e nt o rg a nisat io ns – fu nde d ye a r o n y ea r b y t h e
gov er nm e n t , t h e MED IA p ro gr am me , a nd t h e Eur ope a n So cial Fu n d – w ho o rg a nis e
fil m s cre e n ing s a n d ed u cat io n mat e rial s . On a r e gio nal le v el , t h e re a re fi lm
soci e ties , stud e n t fi lm cl u bs , a n d s o m e fi lm cl u bs f o r chil d ren a n d y ou ng pe o pl e .
Fil m ed u cat ion is p r ovi d ed a s p a rt o f medi a ed u ca ti o n , to sup p or t o t h e r field s o f
int e res t , t o pr om ot e cr itica l view in g a nd fi lm m ak in g. Th e re is n o re co rd of h ow
mu ch fu nd in g in for ma l fi lm ed u cati on get s a nd n o a t te m p t t o measu r e
ach ievem e n t.
Aud io vi s ua l sec to r
The fi lm indus t ry fu nds s uc h a ctivitie s a s s cr e e n ings for s cho ols , festiva l ed u cat io n
p r ogra m mes , a n d s o m e dis t rib u t o rs fu n d ed u cat io nal ca m ps fo r y ou n g fi lm mak e rs .
Th e re a re als o t ick et dis cou nt p r ogra m m es , fi lm course s , a n d sp e cia l s cre e n ings
wit h in t ro du cti o n s b y invite d spe a ke rs .
Br oa d caster s hel p deve lop fi lm lit e rac y by a iring a rchiv e , Eur ope an a n d W or ld
Ci n em a fi lms , a nd t h e s ec on d p u blic s e rv ice ch an ne l s h ow s fi lm classic s in t h e
co n t ex t of ‘film cl u bs ’. These p r ogra m m es a re o n ly aim e d a t old e r y ou th a n d adu lts ,
th e re is n ot h ing f or chi ld ren , a par t fro m a c oup le o f fra n chis e TV cha n nel s fo r
ch ild re n , b u t o nly o n pay cab le T V a n d w ee k e n d p ro gr am mes f or chi ldr en , bu t t hes e
are n ot ed u cat iona l pla tf or ms .
Cz e ch p u blic s e rv ice televis io n (Ch an ne l 2 ) co m m issio n ed a film lit e rac y s e ries , but
aft e r t h e ap p oin t m e nt o f a n ew di r ec tor an d int er nal st a ff ch a nge s , t h e pr oje ct
stopp e d .
Cu ltu ral bodi e s
Th e re a re severa l cult u ral a ge n cie s w hos e re m it incl u des fi lm . Th e nat io nal o nes fun d ed b y t he gov ern me n t a n d t h e Minis t ry o f Cu ltur e - a re t he C z e ch Fil m Ce nt e r
an d t he Cz ec h Fil m Co m m issi o n , but t h ey s u bsid ise a n d pr om ot e t h e Cze ch film
indus t ry , but n ot fi lm ed u cat ion. The ir sup p or t f o r in for mal fi lm e ducat io n
p r ovid e rs is limite d t o a dve r tisi n g t he ir ac t ivities in bull e tin s a nd w e bsites . Th e
reg io nal fil m ag en cies p r ogra mm e s cre en ing s fo r sc ho ols a n d yo u n g p e op le , o ffer
o nli n e re s ou r ce s fo r y ou ng pe o pl e , a n d r un ot h e r activitie s fo r lo cal com m u nitie s .
The ir gra nts com e f ro m th e Ministr y of Cult u re , t h e MEDIA pr ogra m m e , t h e
Visegra d fu n d (p a rtly ), a n d Eu r op ea n So cia l Fu nd s (Educ a ti on fo r Com p etitiv e ness
Pr o gr am me).
Fil m h er itage is p res e rve d b y a nat io nal fi lm ar ch ive (gove rn m e n t fu nde d ), b y
com m e rciall y fu nd e d s p ecialis t film a rc hives , a n d b y ot he r gov er nm e nt - fu n de d
museum s or a rc hiv e coll e ct io ns .
The Cz ec h Rep u bli c is u niq u e in t he n um be r of fi lm festivals t he y offe r (be cause o f
th e la ck o f a s t rateg y o f th e nat io nal b ody t o sup p or t o f t h e festival s a cc or d ing to
pr io rities ). Abo u t 11 festivals , all f u nde d in dif fe re n t ways , ar e a ime d at chil d re n ,
you n g p e o ple , loca l com mu n ities , a n d specia l int e res t g r oup s . Fil m ed u cat io n
p r ovisi on is n ot a requ ire m e n t for fun di n g.
Th e re a re s o m e att e mpt s t o measu r e a n d re co rd lea r n e rs ’ a chiev e m e nts o n a
nat io nal leve l, b u t t hes e a re n ot base d o n a ny s t ra tegy a n d h av e a ve ry limite d
imp a ct.
Prof e ssi on al d e velo p men t
Th e re is t rai n in g o n o ffe r f or in -serv ice te a ch er s a n d acad e m ics , but tha t co nsist s
o nly o f a fe w s ho rt cou rses o r pr oje cts re ac h ing a limit e d n u mb er o f tea ch e rs . T h e re
are Minis t ry o f cult u re p r oje ct gra n ts fo r t h ese (no bu rs a ry s ch e mes ). Th e p ro ject s
co nt inu e as a ccre dite d pr ogra m mes f or dist a n ce e ducat io n o nly a t t h e fi lm studies
depa r tm e n t in O lo mo u c (Pala cky Univers ity) . The re a re s h o rt cou rses tha t offe r
dipl o mas.
Opportunities and Challenges
Affordances/Opportunities
Benefits & Strengths in
good practice
Potential Social Constraints
Cross-disciplinary nature of
form and content, especially
media education
Versatility of the medium. Can
be used across the curriculum
and in contexts outside the
school.
Straddles subject boundaries &
government ministries. Issues
over where it fits into the
curriculum
Opportu nities for multimodal
underst anding, collaborative
work and s kills training
21 st centur y skills: a
communicative tool or language
with which to actively repres ent
meaning
Opportu nities for integrated
critical, creative, cultural
curriculum. Connecting film
grammar with digital authoring
tools
Pockets of local and regional
good practice.
Lack of skills / teacher tr aining
/ technical resources / print vs.
moving image issue
Opportu nities to engage with
and exploit new digital &
audiovisual cultures
Opportu nities for enabling
access to film literacy for
everyone.
Opportu nities to embed and
disseminate cultu ral film
appreciation at a Euro pean lev el
& individual nation’s
audiovisual heritage
Opportu nities for film industry
& audiovisual sector to integrate
with education and cultu ral
sectors & increase aud ience
awareness.
Improved intercultural
underst anding.
Economic advantages for the
creative industries. Film literacy
initiatives create a critical
cinema-going public making
informed choices from a wide
variety of genres and cultu res.
Over-emphasis on technology at
expens e of culture and history
No overall national vision or
framework makes this type of
provision patchy, unsystematic.
Pupils don’t know what they
don’t know, settling for
mainstream cinema. Subtitles as
an inconvenience. Not enoug h
subtitling/dubbing into
minority languages.
Commercialisation distorts
educational & cultural agendas.
Perceived lack of commercial
gain in short film and/or quality
children’s programming.
Challenges
Confused model of integration.
Fragmentation & shifting
funding sources & who owns it?
Lack of focus on film as
optional/distinct subject.
Problems ref. definition of
literacy, curriculum conten t &
assessment criteria for
collaborative work
Marginalised in technology or
literacy curriculum, or in
decontextua lised youth projects.
Teacher tr aining overemphasises technical skills
Uneven distribution, insularity,
fiefdoms, poor communication
between stakeho lders.
Reassessment of cultural
curriculum conten t.
Repositioning of European film
as an accessible, worthy object
of study on many levels. Work
on the s ubtitle stigma.
Achieve some kind of balance
between educational and
commercial agendas.
Imagine an ideal model of film education
Why does it matter?
What would its aims and objectives be?
Who would it be for, how wide would it reach? Who
would participate in, and fund and control it? Who
would decide its content?
What would it consist of - content, focus?
How would it be created, sustained, evaluated? How
long would it last?
What might be..
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Definition of film literacy – all the forms and formats
Agreed list of competencies in film literacy: guidelines
(maybe following German version)
Teacher training : towards competencies
Clarify link between film literacy/education and
media literacy/education
Film literacy as ninth key competence (connection
with media literacy)
Outline of progression: journey / spiral of learning:
research to map processes and pathways
Support Film archives in providing research and
education
Canon of European film heritage: lists of
recommended films?
Exchange/shared portal / platform for film education
resources /best practice
National film agencies: obligation to fund film literacy
/ education
Build connections between film industry and
education: copyright for educational usage
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Research: what counts as impact or quality
Research: Who has access to what in film
education
Research into how to teach / pedagogies:
formal/informal ... recommended reading ...
multiple translations
Digital archives: Apprend le tele –
accessibility of broadcasters’ archive
Review policies re digital copies: keeping
films in circulation for cinema screenings
Set up expert group to take things forward:
film education advisory network
Development of a database of film literacy
achievements
Work with Europa cinemas to promote film
literacy
Film Literacy: what Business are
we in?
What if … in the spirit of TV’s The Apprentice, film education was a
product?:
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with many Unique Selling Propositions, massive growth
potential and clear evidence of longevity
but whose brand, despite its relevance, suffers in some
quarters from ‘perception deficit’
whose backers lack sustained Research & Development
commitment, even taking into account excellent in-house
product design skills
whose target markets are highly receptive, but whose market
penetration continues to disappoint – despite the potential for
cross-selling & international expansion
whose excellent market research isn’t always acted on and is,
in some cases, disregarded
• whose PR strategy, Quality Control & Sales Rep training need
bigger budgets
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whose management is debating the pros and cons of being
absorbed by another associated brand with bigger European
clout – does this represent a good opportunity to raise the
profile? or would the product’s distinct qualities get subsumed?
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whose creative use of new media technologies both in its end
point delivery and consumption, make it current and adaptable
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whose competition is virtually nil but whose profit margins are
really tricky to measure, in fact so elusive and diffuse that to
some, it doesn’t even look viable; however, such is the
manufacturers’ and end users’ belief in its vital benefits that it is
kept current and successful on the margins.
http://fashioningandflow.wordpress.com/2012/0
4/14/the-business-of-film
education/#comment-104
Translatability..
What if the essence of film literacy were in its potential
to be translated into different:
platforms (Youtube; cinemas; galleries; TV; mobile
phones)
Social purposes (industry skills; citizenship; creativity;
wider literacy)
Artforms (music; drama; art and design;)
Subjects (history; language learning; geography;
science; )
Europe is a culture of translation; why not film literacy?
Two questions…
• What advice do you have for us, for
Phase 2?
• What help can we give you in taking
forward film education in your national
contexts?