Discover exciting learning opportunities with TIFF!
Foster imaginations and spark creativity for students and staff this school year with exciting educational experiences at TIFF Bell Lightbox, Toronto’s premiere film-arts organization and venue. Exploring the world through moving images, our learning programmes and educational resources offer creative new ways to enrich your curriculum. The appeal of film and filmmaking can inform classroom projects in:
• Media Literacy
• Character Education
• The Arts
• Equity Studies and Cultural Perspectives
• Science and Environmental Issues
• English Language and Literacy
Transform the way students see the world through film! From exhibitions and presentations to hands-on workshops, TIFF Learning provides students and teachers with innovative ways to engage with the moving image that extend beyond a class trip to the movies.
TIFF Bell Lightbox is the only facility of its kind in Canada. Our unique programmes are designed for cross-course flexibility and are closely tied to the Ontario curriculum. We look forward to exploring the possibilities of film with you this year!
Learn about film in the popular Film in a Day workshop, or use film-related activities to address subjects like science, language and character education. TIFF Learning's new partnership with National Geographic Live! brings students and subject experts together to explore photojournalism and underwater exploration against a filmic backdrop. School programming for the exhibitions Designing 007: Fifty Years of Bond Style and X-Men Master: Gordon Smith explore the creation of the popular film franchises and their interaction with culture, technology and media.
Financial Assistance
The Pocket Fund is a subsidy initiative created to ensure that children, youth and families from all circumstances have the opportunity to enjoy the educational and cultural experiences offered through TIFF. For application information or to learn more about our financial assistance programme, please email click here
Exhibitions and Programmes
For the 2012/13 academic year, TIFF offers exhibition tours at TIFF Bell Lightbox as well as half- and full-day workshop programmes. This season’s unique exhibitions allow students to explore firsthand the artistic and historical elements of film art.
Making Reservations
To book your school group, please contact our Box Office phone:
416-599-TIFF (8433)
1-888-599-8433
learning@tiff.net
For more information, please refer to our Booking Policies.
X-Men Master: Gordon Smith
Toronto special-effects wizard Gordon Smith is an innovator in his field. His career as a master makeup artist and creator of prosthetic effects spans 30 years of work with leading directors such as Oliver Stone (Platoon, JFK) and David Cronenberg (Dead Ringers). Smith is perhaps best known for his groundbreaking contributions to X-Men and X2, which are presented in this exhibition through a collection of drawings, original castings, props and prosthetic body parts. Exploring science, visual arts and popular culture, students will get a behind-the-scenes look at how this locally based artist brought these legendary superheroes to vivid life on the screen.
Villains and Superheroes: Prosthetics and Special-Effects Makeup
Workshop + Exhibition Tour
Full Day
Wednesdays and Thursdays
October 3, 2012 – January 31, 2013
Tuesdays to Thursdays
February 5 – March 28, 2013
Grades 7–12
$12 per student
For groups of 12–32 students
Tour the exhibition and participate in a hands-on workshop in which classes experience the science behind special-effects makeup and prosthetics. Students will experiment with various makeup techniques and learn how the art of prosthetics can extend to applications in science and medicine.
Curriculum Connections: Science, Media Literacy, English, the Arts
Villains and Superheroes: The Portrayal of Good vs. Evil
Interactive Presentation + Exhibition Tour
Half Day
Wednesdays and Thursdays
October 3, 2012 – January 31, 2013
Tuesdays to Thursdays
February 5 – March 28, 2012
Grades 7–12
$8 per student
For groups of 12–32 students
This half-day, in-cinema presentation will include a tour of the exhibition and a discussion on character education and media literacy, comparing the characteristics assigned to superheroes and villains in film and popular culture. Following a discussion on archetype, the interactive presentation will draw parallels between fictional characters and how the concepts of good and evil are portrayed in the media.
Curriculum Connections: English, Social Science, the Arts, Media Literacy
Designing 007: Fifty Years of James Bond Style
In touring the exhibition, classes will learn about the world's most iconic movie brand and its influence on art, music, lifestyle, automotive design, travel, technology and fashion over the course of five decades. Students will follow the progression of the James Bond character from the page to the screen, and see how this action hero shaped — and was shaped by — trends in advertising, technological innovation and media culture.
James Bond: Maker Mystery
Workshop + Exhibition Tour
Full Day
Wednesdays and Thursdays
October 31, 2012 – January 17, 2013
Grades 7–12
$12 per student
For groups of 12–32 students
Classes will explore the gadgets and technology used in the Bond franchise through this full-day, hands-on workshop. Using robotics and new media technologies, students will form small groups and create devices to solve a Bond-inspired challenge. Participants will critically analyze their work to determine which solution would successfully save Bond!
Curriculum Connections: English, Media Literacy, Science and Technology
James Bond: A World of Excess
Interactive Presentation + Exhibition Tour
Half Day
Wednesdays and Thursdays
October 31, 2012 – January 17, 2013
Grades 7–12
$8 per student
For groups of 12–32 students
After touring the exhibition, classes will participate in a facilitated discussion and presentation examining the potential social effects of the James Bond franchise. Issues of filmmaker responsibility, copyright, diversity, environmental impact and the role of women will be addressed using a variety of media-based examples.
Curriculum Connections: English, Media Literacy, the Arts, Social Science, Character Education
New Release School Screening Programme
Every Second Wednesday at 10:30am
October, 2012 – June, 2013
Grades 9–12
$8 per student
New this year, TIFF Bell Lightbox offers screenings of select grade-appropriate New Release films specifically for school groups. Sign up for Learning eAlerts by emailing learning@tiff.net and receive the screening schedule.
Film in a Day Workshop
Full day
Tuesdays
October 2, 2012 – January 29, 2013
Tuesdays to Thursdays
February 5, 2013 – June 27, 2013
$16 per student
For groups of 12-24 students
Make your very own movie!
Bring your class to TIFF Bell Lightbox and experience the art of filmmaking firsthand. In small groups, students write, pitch and shoot a short film using a series of unique sets, costumes and props. After an educational and fun-filled day of film creation, classes can organize their own in-school screenings with copies of their newly created films. Teachers will receive one copy of each film made by the class within two weeks of participating in the workshop.
Curriculum Connections: Media Literacy, the Arts, Languages/English, Character Education, Technology
National Geographic Live!
TIFF Learning's new partnership with National Geographic Live! brings students and subject experts together to discover photojournalism and underwater exploration against a filmic backdrop.
See the full list of National Geographic Live! programmes