VCFA debuts
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We held the premiere in Stowe, Vermont at the Cinema 3Plex and yes, we did have a genuine red carpet in true Hollywood style! We held two screenings—a matinee for families and an evening event, which included a panel moderated by M.T. Anderson and featuring Katherine and her sons, THE GREAT GILLY HOPKINS screenwriter and producer David L. Paterson, and producer John Paterson. All proceeds from the screenings benefited Tatum’s Totes, a Vermont organization partnering with Green Mountain United Way to support foster children in transition. The film, about a girl who gets shuffled from foster family to foster family, opened nationally on October 7 and also premiered on On-Demand. It stars Kathy Bates, Glenn Close, Octavia Spencer, Julia Stiles, and newcomer Sophie Nélisse as Gilly Hopkins.
John, David, and Katherine Paterson take part in a Q&A with M.T. Anderson after the film premiere.
continues to grow The new—and quickly growing—VCFA Young Writers Network is off to an energetic start this school year, with youth-writing workshops underway in Boston, New York City, northern New Hampshire, and Vermont. The program was founded last year by a group of alumni from the MFA in Writing for Children &Young Adults program and has been received with great enthusiasm within VCFA and the broader children’s writing community. VCFA officially launched the network in July and it garnered national attention in Publishers Weekly. VCFA authors offer workshops for underserved and underrepresented children in communities where clusters of alumni live, in partnership with local nonprofits. Last year, alumni offered a dozen workshops in Boston and Brooklyn. This year, programming is expanding through new partnerships with Behind the Book (NYC), the Arts Alliance of Northern New Hampshire, and the Children’s Literacy Foundation (VT) as well as a continued partnership with 826 Boston and Wondermore (Boston).
What’s on the horizon for VCFA Young Writers? In addition to a full roster of author-led workshops, the program is co-hosting a publishing careers event with the Children’s Book Council Diversity Committee and Hyde Square Task Force in Boston, where diverse teens will get a chance to learn about all of the roles that go into making books—from author to editor to designer to marketer. The program director (KATIE BAYERL, WYCA ’10) and a team of regional liaisons are also exploring grant opportunities and nonprofit partnerships that can bring engaging writing opportunities to more high-need communities. To learn more or get updates on programming, please join the mailing list at: www.vcfa.edu/youngwriters.
young writers network
The Great Gilly Hopkins
In October, VCFA hosted a red carpet premiere for the film THE GREAT GILLY HOPKINS, based on the beloved 1979 National Book Award-winning novel by board member and longtime friend of VCFA, Katherine Paterson.
Young Writers Network
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film
VCFA
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The Great Gilly Hopkins