Classroom Critic

The mission of Sarasota Film Festival’s education department is to inspire, educate and entertain students by promoting creativity, collaboration and community involvement.

Classroom Critic is a program for middle school students, in which they learn to appreciate the art of film and analyze it critically. As part of the program, students screen youthFEST shorts and are taught how to write a film review based on SFF curriculum. Below, we feature two of the students’ reviews.

SFF provides its education programs free to students, and during the festival, April 4 through April 13, youthFEST films are free for kids ages 12 and under. Tickets are available at the SFF Box Office inside Regal Cinemas Hollywood 20. For more information, visit sarasotafilmfestival.com.

‘Woody’

Gopi Patel | 7th grade, Pineview School
I thoroughly enjoyed the short film “Woody” by Stuart Bowen because of two aspects: the lack of dialogue and the chosen pieces of music. I also loved that the film showed that people will make big sacrifices in order to achieve their goals in life. Woody showed unending determination, even when his classmates seemed to snicker at his career choice: being an accomplished and known pianist. It was a beautiful film on following your dreams with determination. The lack of dialogue emphasized the orchestral music playing in the background, which, in my opinion, was important in contributing to the flow of the film. During the movie, when there were emotions such as frustration and confusion present, the music helped the audience understand what was going on, without words. The camera work was a little bit intrusive, or overdone, during the time when Woody is daydreaming. However, overall, the cinematography helped the film move along nicely. I loved how the film was realistic, showing that you cannot achieve things without sacrificing things, or going through pain. The use of mannequins was very creative, as it showed that whether or not you are human, you still have goals to achieve and you will encounter obstacles in your path. The plot was very meaningful and well told. I would definitely recommend this to other audiences, especially to younger viewers, as it has a very deep message and theme.

Leah Radovich | 7th grade, Pineview School
“Woody” by Stuart Bowen is an interesting piece that I enjoyed. It revolves around having dreams and not being able to achieve them because of a physical disadvantage — such as wanting to play basketball but you are too short.

Many aspects of “Woody” can be related to things we see and experience in everyday life. Even though the main character cannot physically achieve his dream, his whole life revolves around doing what he loves even if that means just imagining it. I also enjoyed that all the characters looked exactly the same. Having all of them the same made their society seem like you could only accomplish certain tasks, and all others were absurd and unthinkable. In addition, making the characters look the same made the film seem like everyone is exactly the same and exactly equal, when in hindsight we are completely and utterly different in almost every aspect.

The director did a great job of fitting the lighting and music around the plot. I felt there was an unnecessary explosion toward the beginning. Otherwise, the cinematography was flawless. Although the overall theme was hopeful but depressing, there was a scene where my peers and I got into a heated discussion about whether or not the character was trying to solve his problems or give up entirely. I did enjoy listening to others opinions, and I also liked how the director let it go to the viewer’s imagination. The short film “Woody” by Stuart Bowen was an intelligent and well thought out movie and I enjoyed it a lot overall.