Triangulating a discussion between film, the viewer and a wider frame of life: reflections on a life in film education ​

 

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Mirjana Borčić is one of the foremost figures within Slovenian film education. This article - a translation of some her writings about her experiences teaching film - contains a range of ideas on how film can be used as a tool to facilitate discussion in the classroom. Mirjana Borčić's emphasis is on making discussion pupil-centred and to encourage creative thinking.  

 

Using films to facilitate discussion is a great way for young people to develop their reflective and analytical skills and learn to give and accept feedback from their peers in a thoughtful and sensitive way. For pupils who struggle to engage with more traditional written texts, films are a rich source of material to develop literacy skills, engage with a wide range of topics and themes, and develop their knowledge of different cultures. 

 

‘One has to be aware that every viewer experiences a film in a unique way: a film projected in a cinema with one hundred people will have one hundred interpretations. If we want every individual to enrich their own experience of the film through contact with the experiences of their fellow viewers, a dialogue needs to be established. Discussing a film is not the same as explaining a film: it is a search for meaning that avoids generalisation and encourages creative thinking.’ - Mirjana Borčić