Lights! Camera! Co-operation! The Fís way to make movies

The Irish word for “vision” is fís. It’s also the acronym for Film in Schools, an annual project in some 100 Irish primary schools that encourages children to explore the medium of film and develop essential skills in moving image literacy, communication, teamwork, visual arts and numeracy.

Fís is run by the Professional Development Service for Teachers (PDST), in conjunction with the Dún Laoghaire Institute of Art, Design and Technology. The initiative allows for a collaborative learning process in the classroom.

The creative use of technology to deliver the curriculum is also very much in line with some of the recommendations included in the Department of Education’s Digital Strategy for Schools.

Fís began about 14 years ago in the Dún Laoghaire Institute, says Seán Gallagher, deputy director of PDST. “The visionary for it was Aileen McKeogh, head of the film school there, who has sadly passed away. She believed that a lot of learning could be done by children through film-making. Not just the technical aspects of camera holding, but planning the film.

“So it involves story development, character development and scene development. Storyboards must be put in place before any shooting takes place. The amount of literacy that’s developed in that way is huge.”

Element of success

Schools submit their finished film as well as all of the elements showing the collaborative and creative process. “It means that all the children are working together, Gallagher says. “Everyone has a job and there’s an element of success for every kid.”

Schools are invited to take part every January. PDST has a number of resources guiding teachers through the process as well as providing workshops on film making and animation, both in term-time and summer courses.

Usually about 24 or 25 schools reach the finals and are invited to a major celebration event in DCU’s Helix, were their efforts are recognised on a national stage. “This year we had 100 entries,” says Gallagher. “We’re expecting 900 children at the celebration event in November.”

One film comes from the autistic unit in Carrigaline Educate Together in Cork. “Those students produce animation every other year, he says, “but for the first time they are comfortable being in the film themselves, and that’s a major development for those children.”

Last year’s winners were by senior infants from Holy Redeemer in Dundalk, Co Louth, proof that any age group can succeed.

The Helix showcase is put on by Dún Laoghaire Institute masters students. “You have students who are studying to be the broadcasters of the future and this is their project work.” Gallagher says. “You have third-year students immersed in a meaningful project that means so much to the primary level students taking part”.

An off shoot of the film project is the Fís Book Club, which also aims to raise literacy among primary school students.

“You use video to capture your book review and here you’re encouraging kids to read. Once they read the book, they form their opinion and share it through the medium of film. Their reviews are short and snappy, and we give guidelines as to what would make a good review. They are then uploaded and can be accessed by their peers.”

See fisfilmproject.ie on the film initiative and fisbookclub.ie for book reviews. For information on teachers workshops, see pdst.ie.