This week's websites are dedicated to Bob Fecho, aka Dr. Bob, a teacher at Simon Gratz High School, a Philadelphia Writing Project TC, and a friend. After over 20 years as a teacher in the district, Bob is moving onto a new job at the University of Georgia.

I first got to really know Bob via a Writing Project on-line conference where conversations about teaching and learning would often wander into discussions about films we had seen. We thought these conversations were so good that we started to publish them on the PhilWP homepage (and some of them are still there :-). Although we don't publish reviews anymore, we do keep up film discussions on the PhilWP listserve. So, as a proper tribute to a great teacher and film enthusiast, as well as food for thought for other teachers and learners around the country, Leslie and I put this site together.

Films can provide us an interesting lens into the lives we live everyday, uncovering our habits, our assumptions, our history through story and pictures. Searching "Yahoo" for particular film sites that were educationally oriented, I found a random bunch of weird/interesting sites, including such things as Librarians in the Movies: An Annotated Filmography -- "an ongoing attempt to expand our collective memory, to find a more comprehensive and defensible basis for our acceptance or rejection of the 'typical movie librarian" -- and The Math in the Movies Page -- "a guide to major motion pictures with scenes of real mathematics". Some classes post their film theories on-line, including this site, PostColonial Cinema, used to share discussions and writings about issues of representation in postcolonial films from all over the world. SOFIA (Study of Film as Internet Application) is a site dedicated to on-line discussions of film and film theory.

But enough of the theory stuff, let's get to the pictures ... Take a look through the websites that Leslie found below: curriculum connections toTitanic, Film Festivals, and more miscellaneous sites of interest.

Pop that corn, pull up a chair, and enjoy!

TITANIC! How can we use this popular film as a learning tool? A variety of Internet resources provide wonderful ideas:

• History and English Teachers Link Here! National Geographic Links to Titanic Information. Link to InfoCentral and to the story of Ruth Becker, a real life Titanic survivor!
• Great Site for Titanic History! Link to this Titanic Chronology site to view a time-line of the Titanic story!
• Connecting Math and Physics to Titanic! Titanic Scale Model Page: Learn how to build a scale model and much more!
• Want to design an interactive and engaging activity? Check out the Titanic Virtual Mock Trial Site!
• For the real story of the sinking told in over 2000 biographies of passengers and others involved with the Titanic without the movie hype consult the Encyclopedia Titanica!
• Here is the site for kids and movie enthusiasts! The Official Titanic Site!

Film Festivals! Although it takes "titanic" vision to creatively connect alternative film and media to the classroom, it is possible! Listed here are a number of film festivals where you can learn about alternative, multicultural, special interest, and, of course, mainstream films. Use these sites and design an activity that just won't sink!

• Especially for Bob, Athen's Film Festival (Georgia, that is!)
• Fant-Asia: Montreal's Asian Action/Fantasy Film Festival
• Hispanic Film Festival (Miami)
• Women of Color of Film and Video Festival (California)
• Seattle Polish Film Festival: Features works and appearances by contemporary Polish directors and stars.
• Pittsburgh International Lesbian and Gay Film Festival
• Cannes Film Festival
• Sundance Film Festival
• Chicago Alt.film Fest often called a "mini-Sundance"
• Chicago International Film Festival: Check out this link to the oldest competitive film festival in North America.
• Reel Time Film Festival: The first Internet film festival encouraging the work of independent and experimental filmmakers.
• Environmental Film Festival: Offering documentary, animated, feature, experimental, archival and children's films and a wide variety of films concerning nature and man.
• World Population Film and Video Festival: Competitive film/video festival for students about population and environmental issues.
• Human Rights Watch International Film Festival

Miscellaneous Film Sites! Here are a number of sites which you may find interesting or useful in the classroom or in your personal life. Check them out!

• Outlaw Films: A film revival site maintained by University of Chicago students!
• Internet Movie Database: Research any movie here and get the latest movie and TV news!
• Filmscreener!: This site screens new independent releases. Use the site to learn about new independent film!
• "Film Lovers are Sick People" says Film 100 as they review the top 100 film influences in the cinemas today.
• Film Scouts
• Film.com