FRANCE: Film school focuses on helping youth change the world
Don Bosco International Media Academy graduates first master’s level students
(MissionNewswire) The Don Bosco International Media Academy in Paris has awarded its first master’s degrees to students. Inaugurated five years ago, the academy offers training in cinematographic and audiovisual arts. Students take courses as well as participate in apprenticeships. The school welcomes all students with the aim of making studies accessible to as many people as possible. The goal is to train talented filmmakers and managers who want to dedicate their talent to the common good.
At the sold-out graduation ceremony at the Les 7 Parnassiens Cinema in Paris, students showcased their films for everyone in attendance. The students’ films each offered their own vision and covered a wide variety of stories and settings. The film “The Holy Family,” for example, followed a family of bank robbers. “Say No!” told the story of a teenage victim of war, and “Le Visage Sous Le Visage” told the story of a beggar who takes care of his sick wife.
“I entered this cinema to see films and came out enriched as a human being,” said Father Daniel Federspiel, superior of the France-Belgium South Province. “There are undoubtedly many film schools in the world, but Don Bosco International Media Academy gives its students a chance to change the world.”
Father John-Paul Swaminathan, director of the school, spoke about the determination of the students. He said, “Five years ago, the academy had five students. Today, there are 50, and they come from 14 different countries.”
Louis Millet, representing the director of Les 7 Parnassiens, congratulated the new graduates and offered words of encouragement. “Never lose sight of the importance of your path,” he told the students at graduation. “Whether you are behind a camera, an assembly table or in front of a blank page, what you bring to the table is your greatest strength. The academy gives you a huge advantage with this high-level training. But this opportunity is also a responsibility: to tell stories with respect, ethics and aesthetic sense. You are the artists of tomorrow and we can’t wait to see what you have to offer.”
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