Film Appreciation Society kicked off the 2019-2020 school year with a viewing of The Dark Knight on Thursday October 3rd, in light of the highly anticipated release of Joker. The next screening is Scream and will be held on October 24th.
Film Appreciation Society is a club for students to relax and unwind with others in a community setting. The club is run by two co-advisors: Mrs. Pankow and Mr. Raskopf. The first meeting of the year, which took place in September , consists of members listing movies that they would like to watch this year. The movie line-up for the year is then decided democratically through a vote.
Meetings normally consist of a talk beforehand about movie and a discussion after the movie if one is interested. The club encourages these kinds of interactions because it defines the environment which as mentioned before is that of a community with an interest that unifies it. Mr. Raskopf explains that, “It is a club that’s designed to try to get people to watch movies the way everybody used to watch movies — together in one room, hearing other people reacting as a community experience. It’s also an excuse to eat popcorn.”
Mr. Raskopf is not only an advisor to the club, but also a passionate movie lover. He grew up watching movies with his brother and quoting movie lines. He would later go on to study Film and Television at Boston University with a concentration in screenwriting. His passion for movies still remains strong and says that, “Even though I have kids now, I still try to get out to the movies as often as possible.”
The club’s goal for this year is to partner with more clubs for screenings. An example being the screening of Spotlight which was done in collaboration with the East Side News. The partnerships with other clubs would help spread Film Appreciation Society’s name and message throughout the school.
To sum up what Film Appreciation Society is, it is a club for anyone and everyone who wants to relax a little through watching a movie and eating popcorn. Also, members are not required or pressured to go to every single screening. One may come on by whenever it works.
