Film Teacher Resources

In our increasingly visual society, it is often difficult for some readers to create a mental picture of a picture created only with words. An image-rich text like F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby can therefore, present a real...

After viewing and analyzing documentaries and working in groups to storyboard and prepare, your class should now be ready for the production stage of the documentary process. The eighth lesson in the series, this plan provides...

How do you read a frame? How do you read a shot? Here's a resource that shows viewers how to read films. As part of the study, class members examine the camera angles, lighting, movement, and cinematic point of view in Mr. Smith Goes to...

In this, the third in a series of four resources that use Robert Wise's 1951 version of The Day The Earth Stood Still as the core text, young film makers examine the language of film including shot composition, camera angle, lighting,...

Gear up for Halloween by studying the horror genre with your class and analyzing films and texts to uncover the genre's traditional conventions.

The role of women in the early film industry, both on screen and behind the scenes, is the focus of a resource that asks class members to analyze movie posters and DVD covers from the 1910s and 1920s. Using examples drawn from the...

Students study of the effects of the Cold War on the home front. They analyze the film High Noon according to an abbreviated version of the standards that films were judged by in the early 1950s and determine whether or not High Noon is...

Revisit the documentaries viewed in the previous lesson in this series in order to take a look at the persuasive techniques employed by the documentary creators. Small groups watch the films a second time, taking notes on two provided...

Invite your pupils to express their understanding of a novel through a collaborative video project. Groups choose a novel from those you have studied in class, select four scenes, storyboard the scenes, film the scenes, edit the film,...

Readers of Solomon Northup's brutally frank slave narrative Twelve Years a Slave examine passages that support the argument that slavery "undermined and corrupted" the institution of marriage. Background information is...

Students examine how a scene in a movie or in literature is constructed. In this film and literature instructional activity students answer questions based on film clips then create storyboards depicting a scene from their life.

How are films made? As part of their study of film, middle schoolers investigate the pre-production, production, and post-production process and consider the role of the director, the screenwriter, production designer, cinematographer,...

Rhetoric is the key to character. Scholars work through four activities using documentary films to complete rhetoric analysis. Learners participate in writing a note to a friend and then analyze their own writing. They also view clips...

Film analysis takes critical thinking, connections, and context. Upper graders look at the film installation, Crystal Palace in terms of the film makers choices, presentation, and perspective of truth. After an analytical discussion...

Upper graders explore musical film and the Bohemian lifestyle common in Europe during the turn of the century through the musical Moulin Rouge. After listening to (or viewing) songs from the movie, they discuss the Bohemian era and how...

Film imitates life; that's what they say. Using performance theory to tie the lesson together, learners attempt to understand memory and daily rituals as seen in art, film, and life. They read two chapters from the book, watch the...

The 2014 film Selma is the focus of a film criticism video.  The narrator examines how director Ava DuVernay brought to the screen the story of the voting rights marches from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama and how she uses...

Lois Weber's ground breaking Where Are My Children is the focus of a film criticism video that explores not only Weber's treatment of the subject of abortion but also the techniques she developed to enhance the impact of her tale.

A heart attack, threats of suicide, drug-fueled parties, typhoons, over 250 hours of film footage, two years of editing, Academy, Palme d'Or, and Golden Globe awards. It's time to discuss Apocalypse Now! The narrator of this...

Hollywood is the place to go if you want to make movies—right? Not necessarily. A fascinating video about the history of 20th century Asian cinema discusses the reflections of Japanese culture in the works of directors Yasujiro Ozu,...

Watching is not the same as seeing. Transform viewers from passive watchers to active students of film with this 34-page packet, filled with lessons and activities that use Mr. Smith Goes to Washington to examine the technology, the...

Awesome, that is all I have to say! This set of lessons provides learners with an understanding of ancient Egyptian laws, lifestyle, religion, and culture. It engages them in a critical analysis activity regarding the film, "The Prince...

Students explore the Latin American film industry. In this Latin American film lesson, students compare Latin American films to American films as they watch segments of "Que Viva Mexico!" Students research the painters on the film and...