T Tauri presents free public programs

The T Tauri Film Festival and Movie Camp will present three free public programs for students, parents, and teachers to increase awareness of the current state of youth media in Arkansas and around the world on July 21, 23 and 25. The programs will take place Monday, July 21, and Wednesday, July 23, at 7 p.m. in Room 103 of Independence Hall, University of Arkansas Community College at Batesville (UACCB); and Friday, July 25, at Morningside Coffeehouse, 616 Harrison Street, also at 7 p.m. Admission to all programs is free; all programs are suitable for all ages.

Monday, July 21. 7 p.m.

IH 103, UACCB

"Animation: The Digital Flipbook and LineStorm." T Tauri Digital Flipbook instructor Pell Osborn will discuss his innovative approach to animation and will screen works created by students at the MotionArt Studios he founded in 1982. Osborn is the creator of LineStorm, an interactive program which merges traditional and computer animation to explore and clarify complex issues and ideas. Osborn has designed animation projects for UNICEF, ABC, and Save the Children.

Wednesday, July 23. 7 p.m.

IH 103, UACCB

"The T Tauri Galaxy." Veteran T Tauri faculty member Will O'Loughlen will screen several of the filmmaking tutorials he has recently created for the new T Tauri Galaxy, a multi-purpose website for young filmmakers that combines instruction, access to filmmaking resources, film reviews written by teens, screening rooms for viewing films made by teens, and blogs written by four teen advisors. The audience will be treated to an on-screen tour of the galaxy.

Friday, July 25. 7 p.m.

MorningSide CoffeeHouse, 616 Harrison

Selections from NUFF (Norway Youth Film Festival) and the Reel Youth Film Festival (Canada). NUFF and Reel Youth are T Tauri's international partners. Films from both organizations' most recent festivals and workshops will be screened

Festival executive director Judy Pest describes the trio programs "an opportunity to discover just how far youth filmmaking has progressed in the last few years, both nationally and internationally.

"T Tauri gives young people in Arkansas, and especially in our region, the same opportunities that are available across the globe to express themselves and learn to create in the digital environment. These three programs will introduce interested parents, students, and teachers to this exciting new world."

The 2008 T Tauri Film Festival and Movie camp takes place July 14-26 in Batesville, with workshops at UACCB and at the Arkansas Sheriffs' Youth Ranch. Workshops are offered in Camcorder Fundamentals, Community Documentary Filmmaking, and Script to Screen Basics. The T Tauri Film Festival and Movie Camp is a division of Ozark Foothills FilmFest, Inc., a 501 (c) (3) educational nonprofit founded in 2001 and headquartered in Locust Grove, AR. Information is available at 870-251-1189.