Phil Lord and Chris Miller Partner with L.A. Nonprofit Film2Future to Mentor Young Storytellers
Chris Miller and Phil Lord have partnered with nonprofit Film2Future for its 2021 summer program.
“As filmmakers we strongly believe in supporting and cultivating future generations of storytellers,” Lord and Miller said in a statement. “The next great idea can come from anywhere or anyone and having creative conversations with people no matter age, background or experience is our favorite thing to do. Maybe we’ll come up with the next great franchise or maybe we’ll riff on something insane that makes us all laugh for 5 minutes. Both are equally valuable and by empowering younger generations with direct access to the entertainment industry, Film2Future is helping to ensure that moving forward, the industry and its content reflect the beauty and diverse perspectives of the real world. We could not be more honored to help.”
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The professional-level filmmaking program for underrepresented Los Angeles youth serves as a pathway into the entertainment industry for high school students. Founded by Haven Entertainment partner Rachel Miller, Film2Future operates with the belief that the future of Hollywood depends on diversity and inclusiveness. Since its first class of students in 2016, 125 Film2Future alum have completed the program and gone on to secure dozens of paid internships and production assistant jobs.
Given their expertise in the world of animation (“Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse,” “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs,” “The Lego Movie”), Lord, Miller and the Lord Miller team will work closely with Film2Future’s animation program. It begins June 19 with 29 high school student storytellers who will also be treated to a special screening of Lord Miller’s most recent feature, “The Mitchells vs. The Machines.”
“Phil and Chris are incredible artists who champion diverse storytellers,” Miller said. “At Film2Future, we’ve created a pipeline into the industry for underserved youth with creative dreams who do not see a pathway to our industry. The guidance from talented creators like Phil and Chris is so inspiring for our young filmmakers, and we are proud to partner with Lord Miller on this year’s program.”
During the four-week summer program, student filmmakers will create their own animated short films while learning from over 100 industry professionals, including Lord and Miller. The hands-on storytelling and filmmaking training curriculum includes storyboarding, voice over, post-production, financial literacy and resume building. Film2Future also covers miscellaneous costs and provides free healthy meals, transportation, filmmaking equipment and computer access. Students who are 18 are also placed into their first paid internship or PA job to facilitate their way out of the program and into the industry.
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