GenerationEngage in the Silicon Valley: Engaging Youth Through Media

Producing Partners are local community organizations that co-present Community Cinema screenings across the country. We partner with various chapters of GenerationEngage throughout the country. Jaime Contreras, Community Director for GenerationEngage in the Silicon Valley fills us in on the his history with Community Cinema.

This is our third season with the Community Cinema program. It has been an incredibly valuable tool for our organization. As an organization that promotes civic engagement opportunities to the public, ITVS has provided the type of films that inspire our members to “think globally and act locally.”

What distinguishes the Community Cinema program from other efforts is that each film comes with a plethora of information and resources to share with the audience on how to get more involved. We use this guide as a starting point for our audience members to engage, but also find local programs that address the particular issues covered in the films and where they can volunteer afterward.

In the coming months, we will be working closely with community college classrooms to use the Community Cinema films as a teaching tool. Students will work in groups to organize screenings from A to Z from scheduling the venue, to securing panelists, crafting the post-film discussions, and of course inviting program providers that speak the the film topic.

These service-learning projects are aimed to build student’s community leadership capacity and to reach out to a greater number of their peers in a manner in which is both educating and entertaining.

Jaime Contreras
Community Director
GenerationEngage Silicon Valley

Tags: documentary, generation engage, san jose, silicon valley