Film Education

At the heart of the film education curriculum are the National Film Study Standards developed by The Film Foundation. The goal of the standards is to guide teachers and educational administrators in helping students in grades 6–8 develop literacy in moving images.

National standards provide criteria that educators across the country can use to plan their film study lessons, and are designed to meet the needs of students and teachers and to ensure both the quality and consistency of instruction. They also provide a scope and sequence for that instruction

With the passage of Goals 2000: Educate America Act, the national education-reform legislation that includes development of world-class standards, the arts have been recognized by Congress for the first time as a fundamental academic subject. Film is a uniquely collaborative art form. Establishing national standards for film study provides an outline of what children should know and be able to accomplish. The standards establish a foundation for progressive study of moving images throughout middle school.

Thematic Ideas

The core academic-content standards have five thematic strands:

1.0 Film Language. Students learn to read and interpret visual text by developing a film vocabulary, identifying editing techniques, and analyzing film elements within selected scenes.

2.0 Historical and Cultural Contexts. Students understand that a film is both a historical/social document and a cultural artifact. Students analyze social issues presented in film and form conclusions about the ways in which film influences and is influenced by the society in which it is produced.

3.0 Production and Creative Expression. Students understand that film is an expression of a director’s personal vision produced through a collaborative process. Students understand and distinguish the various filmmaking roles that contribute to the final work of art.

4.0 Viewers’ Response and Aesthetic Valuing. Students understand that a film is a work of art. Students describe, interpret, and analyze a film’s visual design. They respond to and make informed judgments about film, deriving personal meaning from the work. They express their viewpoints through oral and/or written presentations.

5.0 Cross-Curricular Connections. Students first tap their knowledge of other disciplines to study a film. They then apply what they have learned about film to other disciplines, making connections between film and literature/language arts, film and history/social studies, film and other arts, and film and sciences.