Introducing Social Justice Filmmakers - a new online community

San Francisco Film School is proud to announce the launch of our new online community - Social Justice Filmmakers. This is a community designed to empower anyone, with any means, to make an impactful documentary film.

As filmmakers with decades of combined experience in documentary filmmaking, we understand how powerful a tool filmmaking can be to shine light on important social issues, and to make a difference in our communities. And now that we all have smartphones in our pockets, as well as instant access to audiences through social media, filmmaking is a very accessible way of getting your message out and your voice heard.

We also know that making a film can be extremely daunting. You may have a fantastic idea, but it can still be so hard to know how to get started, especially if you don’t already have a network of other filmmakers to lean on.

Over the past two+ years, the school has put a lot of time and energy into building and improving the way we teach online. We’ve seen the power of online learning and the way it can reach and connect people all over the world. How it can make learning accessible to anyone with a computer.

As a next step in our journey with online teaching, we wanted to harness this power by creating a completely online platform, with the idea of community at its heart. We wanted to develop a workshop that people could take completely at their own pace, while also feeling supported by a network of filmmaking peers and experts. 

Social Justice Filmmakers was created for filmmakers of every level of experience. It provides a space to network, find collaborators, workshop ideas and get feedback. We all need this kind of creative community - people who will celebrate your successes, commiserate when you face setbacks, and keep you accountable when you feel like giving up!

For new filmmakers, one of the most invaluable parts of the community membership is the access it offers to the Social Justice Filmmaking Workshop - a 10 module online course that teaches filmmaking skills and provides a step-by-step guide to making a documentary film. 

This is where we were really able to put our decades of experience as documentary filmmakers to good use! We created a series of engaging training videos and detailed workbooks to guide members through all the steps of creating a film - from development of their story idea, to prepping for the shoot, shooting and editing their footage and, finally, developing a plan to engage their audience and promote their film through Social Media.

We know that filmmakers of every level can have a lot of questions. From “How do I expose my shot properly?” to “How can I get my interview subject to open up?”, you never know when you’re going to need expert help! We felt that it was important to have dedicated community moderators - who are professional filmmakers themselves - on hand for exactly these kinds of questions. They’re available everyday through the community platform for the urgent questions, and also hold regular Q+A sessions for issues that require more in-depth answers. 

We also understand the importance of building a network and finding inspiration in others to growing as a filmmaker. That’s why we decided to include community access to monthly talks and panels with industry experts - social justice filmmakers, organizations and funders who can speak about how they got into filmmaking, how to raise funds for projects, etc. and who can offer invaluable insight into the ever-changing world of social justice filmmaking.

We are extremely proud of this new filmmaking community!  We truly believe that filmmaking offers a powerful and proactive way of engaging with the problems of today and making a difference. We hope that this community empowers and supports anyone who shares these beliefs and wants to use filmmaking as a tool to fight for social justice!

If you’d like to learn more about the Social Justice Filmmakers community, check out the website - www.socialjusticefilmmaking.com.