Michael DeGruy – Ted Mills

Approximately 2,000 school kids descended upon the Arlington Theatre for "Mike's Field Trip to the Movies" during the SBIFF.NIK BLASKOVICH/NEWS-PRESS — Approximately 2,000 school kids descended upon the Arlington Theatre for “Mike’s Field Trip to the Movies” during the SBIFF.

NIK BLASKOVICH/NEWS-PRESS

The view from the Arlington stage was impressive on Thursday morning. From the front row to the balcony, 2,000 kids from schools all over the county laughed, applauded, and cheered along to Disney’s animated hit “Frozen.” But this wasn’t a regular screening of the Hans Christian Andersen-based animated film, but one of two screenings of SBIFF’s “Mike’s Field Trip to the Movies.”

One of SBIFF’s outreach programs, Field Trip buses in a total of 4,000 students, many of them in Title 1 schools for children below the poverty level, to see a movie at the Arlington and meet the filmmakers.

It’s been nearly a year to the day when nature filmmaker and friend of the SBIFF, Mike DeGruy, went down in a helicopter accident while filming off Australia. It happened during the 2012 Fest and the shock waves of his death cast a pall over the rest of the week more than any storm could do. In all the years of covering the Fest, the only vaguely equivalent tragedy was the 1999 passing of Stanley Kubrick, but this was completely different. This was close to home; this was one of the festival’s own, a man who not only had started the Reel Nature film sidebar, but also Field Trip to the Movies, bringing school kids out to see films, creating who knows how many film buffs.

And so this year the SBIFF will honor their fallen friend with a retrospective of Mr. DeGruy’s films, spanning over thirty years.

Tag: Michael DeGruy

SBIFF: Wide eyes and big movies: SBIFF’s Field Trip brings in children to experience films on the big screen

In Memory of Mike – SBIFF Honors Filmmaker Michael DeGruy with retrospective and more