Ringling College to release documentaries about Longboat nonprofits

Three short documentary films centered around Longboat Key will be release-ready around November. 

Ringling College of Art and Design students made the films in collaboration with the Rotary Club of Longboat Key. The collaboration with the college that began with three short films meant to capture local environmental stewardship and “eco heroes” has evolved into a growing program for the college’s film department. 

The first idea — three short films focused on environmental stewardship — was completed over the last school year. Each film, about three to five minutes long, focuses on its own subject: Longboat Key Turtle Watch, Save Our Seabirds and Sister Keys. 

Immediately after filming those, a new batch of students began another series of three documentaries. The idea has taken off with the students, according to Patrick Alexander, interim film department head for the college.

Former President of the Rotary Club of Longboat Key Jeff Driver led the collaboration which began after an Earth Day event that brought together groups like Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium, Save Our Seabirds and Longboat Key Turtle Watch.

The goal was to create these films as a way to increase public outreach and education efforts. This relates to one of the key pillars of Rotary, which is supporting the environment. 

From there, the idea for short environmental documentaries was born, and Driver enlisted the help of Ringling’s film department. 

Alexander has been the leader of the project from the academic side, but the bulk of the work is on the students. From setting up locations to filming and post-production, the students were the creative minds driving the films. 

“As far as them being the creatives who really design the story and the questions and figure out where the camera goes and do all the editing, that’s all them,” Alexander said. “That really empowered them.”

This fall, a group of students will work to create a marketing campaign for the films, which will likely debut in November. The debut event will most likely be private, Driver explained, but afterward, the films will be available to the organizations for distribution.

Driver said working with the students and faculty at Ringling over the course of the last year has been inspiring and also informative for him. 

Courtesy image

“The most impressive and exciting part of it, for me, was learning about the film process with the students,” Driver said. “And just to appreciate the process of filmmaking and how gifted they are, that was just inspiring.”

He also said the goal of the films has been accomplished. Though short, the films met the intention to capture an emotional and more personal side to environmental action. The films do so by telling stories through characters like Save Our Seabirds Director Brian Walton, Rusty Chinnis and Driver and his wife, Terri. 

“It kind of captures your emotional intelligence to hear someone describe what they’re doing,” Driver said. “And if you’re really passionate about environmental sustainability, to me these films just really impacted my emotional intelligence …These are eco heroes, this is special.”

Growing the program 

A year ago, the idea of short environmental documentaries was mostly theoretical, Alexander said. 

Now, the collaboration has grown beyond what was originally envisioned. Going forward, the faculty at Ringling are ramping up the program and plan to continue the collaborative effort with local organizations as a part of the students’ curriculum. 

Alexander said a new group of students spent the summer filming the next three films as part of a paid internship. Alexander’s wife, Alison, came aboard and was able to offer the students compensation through her film company Alexander Film Agency, LLC. The students also receive academic credit for the internship. 

The next three films will also focus on local environmental “eco heroes,” though not focused on Longboat Key. These films will introduce the audience to Gamble Creek Farms owned by Ed Chiles, Oyster River Ecology and Suncoast Urban ReForesters. 

In the fall, the project will go back to being a part of the college’s INDEX program, which stands for industry experience. This program allows students to gain hands-on experience in the industry while also attaining academic credit. 

This is when a new batch of students will start to focus on marketing and distribution of the six films. Since the films are geared toward the next generation of environmental stewards, Patrick Alexander said letting college students take the lead on marketing was key. 

The program has escalated in interest on Ringling’s campus, according to the Alexanders, with a lot of applicants and a competitive application process. The team usually consists of about 12 students, with four to six students fully committed at any given time. 

At first, the Alexanders said they were working on the students to figure out how the program would run. Over time, they realized how much opportunity was in the program given how many possible subjects there are in the area. 

“There’s too much out there to not want to get involved with and inform about,” Alison Alexander said. “And the students had a wonderful time, they told us, so it’s a no-brainer to continue it.”