Sign up for Saturday Night at the Movies 101: TVOntario and York University to launch online film course based on popular TVO show

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TORONTO, November 9, 2001 -- TVOntario and York University’s Faculty of Fine Arts are pleased to announce a new partnership to design and offer an introductory-level film course based on Saturday Night at the Movies and its centrepiece documentary program, The Interviews.

"We’ve been teaching people to love and appreciate movies for 27 years, and it’s great to have that recognized and extended into an official university credit course," says senior producer Risa Shuman. "Our interview archive is second to none in the world, and includes many Hollywood greats who are no longer with us. They really reveal themselves in candid conversation, as they discuss the intimate workings of the movie business. We’re thrilled that students will be able to use this material to enhance their film studies, as the educational value of The Interviews is unparalleled."

Seth Feldman, chair of the Department of Film and Video at York University says, "It’s especially gratifying for us that executive producer Rudy Buttignol, senior producer Risa Shuman and The Interviews producer Murray Battle are all graduates of our program. They have created an exceptional film show, one that airs the best American movies, and puts them into context and gives them new meaning for all viewers, whether they are pursuing the course or not. Saturday Night at the Movies is an important fixture on the cultural landscape, and we’re proud to have it as part of our academic curriculum."

The Saturday Night at the Movies course begins with the January 2002 university term. This fully online credit course will provide Web-based delivery of lectures and discussion groups, which will be complemented by TVO’s television screenings of the Saturday Night at the Movies double bills and The Interviews documentary segments.

"Starting with our 2001 season, we have broadened Saturday Night at the Movies’ mandate to include more recent movies that have moved into the canon of great filmmaking as well as traditional Hollywood classics," says Rudy Buttignol. "By contrasting the old with the new, we’ll show viewers what defines the American genre or style, where it came from and where its future lies. This is one course that students will always find exciting!"

For more information about the course and how to register, visit www.tvo.org/snam or www.yorku.ca/saturdaynightatthemovies.

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For more information, please contact:

Tina Novotny Brigitte Kleer
Publicist Public Relations, Faculty of Fine Arts
TVOntario York University
416-484-2600, ext. 2189 416-736-2100, ext. 77143
tina_novotny@tvo.org bkleer@yorku.ca