The Virginia Film Festival will once again present one of its most popular annual offerings with the return of Family Day, held Saturday, November 11on the Betsy and John Casteen Arts Grounds at the University of Virginia.

The Virginia Film Festival, scheduled for November 9-12, is a program of the University of Virginia and the Office of the Provost and Vice Provost for the Arts.

The VFF’s Family Day is an annual highlight that features family-friendly screenings, interactive arts workshops led by UVA and community-based arts professionals, and a premiere of films made by more than 500 local students as part of VFF’s Young Filmmakers Academy.

All Family Day events are free and open to the public!

This year’s screenings begin at 10:00 AM in the Culbreth Theatre with Disney’s The Aristocats. At 1:00 PM, there will be a screening of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone in celebration of the novel’s 20^th anniversary.

Between screenings, families are invited to explore the outdoor interactive arts fair with walk-up arts activities and performances by UVA’s acclaimed improv troupe The Whethermen, the a capella group Hoos in Treble, and the UVA Salsa Club. Families can also enjoy the return of the Charlottesville Symphony at the University of Virginia’s Musical Instrument Petting Zoo, which gives youngsters an opportunity to hear, see, touch, and play a variety of instruments in the Helms Theatre. There will also be music by a WTJU DJ and fun photo opportunities with MoxBox’s photo booth.

Once again this year, the Festival will present a series of additional arts workshops with UVA and community arts leaders. These are free and open to the public, but require advance registration. This year’s workshops include:

• Five Ways to Begin a Screenplay by Denise Stewart of the UVA Drama Department and Arvold Education (for ages 10-17)
• How Theater Works: Behind the Scenes Tour by Steve Warner (for all ages)
• Joey Stories by Meghan Smith, Lauren Maupin, and Fenella Belle of Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Museum (for ages 2-5)
• Kids Acting Out by Kids Acting Out at UVA (for ages 6-10)
• The Lessac Orchestra: Tuning Our Vocal Instrument by Priyanka Shetty of The Lessac Institute (for ages 7+)
• The Magical World of Ballet by Sara Clayborne of Charlottesville Ballet (for ages 3-8)
• Movin’ and Groovin’ by Ike Anderson of the Music Resource Center (for ages 8+)
• Where’s the Bag?: Making Strong Choices in Directing and Acting by Lysandra Petersson and Zach Laliberte of Light House Studio (for ages 11-13)

For a complete schedule and registration information for this year’s workshops, visit virginiafilmfestival.org/workshops/.

Supported by mentors from Light House Studio and their classroom teachers, more than 500 students from eleven local elementary and middle schools participated in Young Filmmakers Academy (YFA) this year. Teams work to write, produce, and edit their films around a common theme. This year’s YFA challenge is about creating peace: all films are about how overcoming and resolving a conflict creates a positive change. The Virginia Film Festival honors YFA filmmakers on Family Day with a red carpet experience and a public screening of their work from 9:00 AM – 2:00 PM in Campbell Hall. YFA is generously supported by the Brooks Family YMCA.

For more information on YFA and Family Day, visit virginiafilmfestival.org/familyday/.

Family Day is part of the Virginia Film Festival’s acclaimed Outreach & Education Program, which also includes Young Filmmakers Academy and annual school screenings that draw up to 1,000 local and regional students.

The VFF’s Outreach and Education Program is generously supported by the Bama Works Fund of Dave Matthews Band in the Charlottesville Area Community Foundation and The Sarah Lahr Educational Fund.

Family Day is presented by CFA Institute, and supported by Charlottesville Newsplex, the Office of the Provost and Vice Provost for the Arts, Wegmans, and Z95.1.

To see the Virginia Film Festival’s 2017 lineup of films and guests and to get ticket information, visit http://www.virginiafilmfestival.org.