REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN… EXPLORE THE 2025 PROGRAM BELOW!
DocLands Education offers FREE live and virtual field trips for students around the Bay Area and across the country to attend the 8th annual DocLands Documentary Film Festival. Join us for DocLands Education from April 28 –May 5th for another season of great new films and special guests!
We are excited to share the festival with you and your students. The program includes:
- In-theater and online documentary film screenings for Grades 6 -12
- Live Q&As with filmmakers and film subjects
- Curriculum resources for teachers and students, including lesson plans, discussion guides, and activity toolkits
- In-person and virtual Filmmakers Go to School visits to classrooms
* We are able to offer a limited number of buses on a first come, first served basis. Please specify your transportation needs when you register for your screenings.
IN-THEATER SCREENINGS: MAY 1-2 & 5
All in-person screenings will take place at the Smith Rafael Film Center in downtown San Rafael. We encourage schools within walking distance of the theater, or with access to private or public transportation to attend in person. We are able to offer a limited number of buses to other local schools on a first come, first served basis. Please specify your transportation needs when you register for your screenings.
ONLINE SCREENINGS: April 28-May 2
All online screenings will be available for streaming to schools anywhere in the U.S. on the CAFILM Education Online platform from 12:01am on April 28 through 11:59pm on May 2. All of the supplemental curriculum resources will all be available indefinitely on the CAFILM Education Online platform and on the CAFILM Education website.
FILMMAKERS GO TO SCHOOL
For school groups that are unable to travel to the theater, we also offer this additional interactive program in which filmmakers can visit your school. Throughout the Festival (and often several days beyond), CAFILM Education staff members take filmmaker guests out to school campuses to meet with students in their classrooms or auditoriums for live, in-depth discussions about their films and the art and craft of filmmaking. If you are interested in a filmmaker visit, please complete this visit request form.
“Watching this documentary helped open up more doors to help me understand the way different people live. In conclusion, I believe that this was an impressive and astounding film.”
—Student, Tam High School, Mill Valley
“The most important thing that I learned from the film is realizing how many people share the same issues/history that we do and thus its essential that we as a community help each other”
—Student, Leland High School, San Jose
“It truly touched me to get to experience such a hard topic from someone who’s gone through the hardest parts of it first hand. I believe that having someone talk to students to educate them was so important. I know it touched so many people, especially myself. It opened my eyes to a whole world that I didn’t realize needed more help. It motivated me to learn more on the topic and try in any way to help out.”
—Student, Tam High School, Mill Valley
DOCLANDS EDUCATION IS MADE POSSIBLE THROUGH GENEROUS SUPPORT FROM
NANCY P. AND RICHARD K. ROBBINS FAMILY FOUNDATION
