Engaging Any Audience: Filmmaking Story Art Techniques for Communicating Complex Work

The Hayward Environmental Speaker Series Presents:
Engaging Any Audience: Filmmaking Story Art Techniques to Effectively Communicate Science, Policy, and Professional Work

Sara ElShafie, Doctoral Candidate, Department of Integrative Biology & UC Museum of Paleontology, University of California, Berkeley

Thursday, May 4
6:00pm-7:30pm
McGowan 100

Free Workshop, but Registration Required: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/engaging-any-audience-filmmaking-story-art…

About the Workshop: This workshop offers customized communication training using story art techniques from filmmaking. We will discuss how to employ these techniques to create both storyline and visual media in presentations for general and specialized audiences. The major objectives of this workshop are to (1) offer practical tools that professionals can use to make their work accessible and engaging for any audience; (2) help professionals to clearly articulate their career motivations using story strategies; and (3) discuss challenges and opportunities of communicating professional work through story.

This workshop was developed in collaboration with artists at Pixar Animation Studios and educators at the University of California Museum of Paleontology. The speaker will use examples from Pixar films to illustrate principles of story and visual language development. She connects these with examples from her own scientific research to demonstrate how these principles can be used to effectively communicate professional work.

The workshop alternates between presentation, group discussion, and partner exercises. Throughout the workshop, participants create and share their own stories about their professional work. Participants will leave with an outline for a future presentation or “elevator pitch,” as well as a conceptual framework for future communication opportunities.

About the Speaker: Sara ElShafie is a doctoral candidate in Integrative Biology at the University of California, Berkeley. Her research, based at the UC Museum of Paleontology at Berkeley, investigates climate change impacts on animal communities over time. Sara is passionate about making research accessible and exciting for the masses. She is working with artists, scientists, and educators around country to develop programs that train professionals to engage broad audiences with their work. Sara loves film, scuba diving, traveling, and playing with her pet geckos.

Preparation Requested for Participants: In order to prepare for this workshop, please take a moment to list 3-5 stories (films, books, etc.) that inspire you. What are the similarities between these stories? How are they different? Please bring your notes for the first exercise of the workshop!

Lecture Location: The McGowan building is located at 411 Pacific Street, Monterey, CA 93940. The entrance is from Pacific Street, through a set of glass doors. Room 100 will be through the glass doors to the left, first room on the left. Click here for a campus map.

Questions: Contact Rachel Christopherson at cbe@miis.edu or 831-647-6615 x1.