AFF Education

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Our Education Offerings

FILMMAKING WORKSHOPS

Guide participants ages 8-18+ through all phases of film production, from pitch to premiere, both in front of and behind the camera.

The basic filmmaking workshop takes 12 hours to complete and results in a short class film. Editing modules can also be added to the basic workshop to extend it to 16 hours or longer.

We also offer a special shortened workshop (2 hours) where we focus on a basic intro to the terminology and the process of filmmaking and do NOT create a final film.

For schools with existing film programs, we offer workshops around specific areas led by Industry Professionals, including Lighting (G&E), Production Sound, Hair & Makeup Design, Costume/Wardrobe Design, Directing Actors, Acting, Screenwriting, Pitching Projects, and Entertainment Marketing.

Available to bring to Schools, After School Programs, and Community Centers

AFFMedia Lab

Free workshops and Internships for NYC Residents Ages 16-30

We provide workforce development experiences throughout the year around filmmaking, post production, podcasting, social media creation, entertainment marketing, and festival coordination.

Participants meet with Industry Professionals and gain skills and work experience in these various industries and can also earn credits/payments from their schools if applicable.

 
For Seniors and Students to work together

Intergenerational Workshops

We provide intergenerational filmmaking workshops where young filmmakers interview local seniors or their own family members while also learning about the process of filmmaking.

The goal is to capture seniors’ stories - especially those around Queens - and promote inter-generational community interactions. The resulting work is highlighted in our annual festival as Queens Stories

AFFEd Instructors & Staff

  • Nina Fiore EdM

    Founding Director

    BA, EdM Harvard University

    FMR Viacom, MTV, Noggin, Sesame Workshop, PBS, CBS

  • Jessica Ng

    Lead Instructor/DP

    Hofstra ‘24, Sinatra ‘20

  • Raymond Heinichen

    Lead Instructor/Screenwriter

    Brooklyn College ‘25

    Art&Design HS ‘21

  • Nikhil Oza

    Asst Instructor/Editor

    Brooklyn College ‘24

    ACTVF HS ‘20

  • Salvador Angelo Gonzalez

    Asst Instructor/ DP

    SUNY Purchase ‘26

    ACTVF HS ‘22

  • Natalie Mahoney

    Asst Instructor

    MFA CCNY ‘26

    BFA DeSales ‘24

  • Maurice Lightfoot

    Asst Instructor

    Astoria Film Festival 2025 Award Winner

  • Baz Duarte

    Asst Instructor/Camera Ops

    SVA ‘30

    Art & Design HS ‘26

  • Haroula Katsanevakis

    Asst Instructor

    Hunter ‘30

    Art & Design HS ‘26

  • Valeria Alvarez

    Asst Instructor

    Art & Design HS ‘26

  • Jordan Barbier

    Asst Instructor

    Brooklyn College ‘30

    ACTVF HS ‘26

  • Jonas Wooh

    Editor

    Wesleyan ‘30

    The New York City Lab School for Collaborative Studies ‘26

  • Clark Bunao

    Editor

    Lincoln Tech

Astoria Film Festival Education (AFFEd) has a proven record of delivering innovative, inclusive, and high-impact in-school, after-school media education programming for elementary, middle school, high school students, and young adults across New York City.

Through partnerships with public schools, community centers, and local nonprofits, AFFEd provides youth with project-based learning opportunities to explore storytelling, filmmaking, podcasting, and media literacy understanding, while developing essential skills such as collaboration, problem-solving, communication, and confidence, as well as technical skills in operating filmmaking equipment including cameras, sound recording devices, and lights.

We serve over 700 participants each year, across Queens, Manhattan, and Brooklyn, through school-day residencies, after-school programs, weekend workshops, summer intensives, senior workshops, youth internships, and media labs. Our goal is to ensure that NYC youth—especially those from underrepresented communities—have equitable access to creative technology and media education.

As part of our overall mission, we hire our former students, interns, lab fellows, and youth festival filmmakers to work with us as instructors in our programs, thus providing them with a living wage as they begin to pursue their own media careers. At present, all of our staff were former Astoria Film Festival students, interns, and/or youth festival participants.

We are happy to announce that CANON CAMERA USA has become an official sponsor of the Astoria Film Festival Education with a donation of several new video cameras to use in our workshops. Thank you CANON!

Testimonials

  • The Astoria Film Festival has these incredible educational programs for young people and many of them go on to work at AFF and/or be further involved with filmmaking. I appreciate all of their hard work in giving these kids the opportunity to learn new skills, get behind and in front of the camera, and see what they can create! It’s just magical

    Elizabeth O’Connor, Parent

  • Seeing my daughter on Festival Day, in that big Director chair, speaking with such ease about the challenges of filmmaking, at age 8, had me close to tears. I’m so glad she’s exploring all sorts of opportunities to see what might interest her in the future and I’m so grateful that AFF brings these opportunities to our young people in such a nurturing, and without boundaries, way.

    Jo-Ann Grande Pjevac, Parent

  • Astoria Film Festival has fun and informative camps for children at all levels of film experience. They are great with kids - giving them creative license, while still educating them on all aspects of film production. I recommend them for any child with an interest in film as a career or hobby! Also, Nina helped my son greatly with his audition for a film HS program, and I am happy to say that he got into the program!

    Shubra Breivogel, Parent

AFFMedia Lab

The AFF Media Lab is a Workforce Development program that aims to empower historically-ignored youth between the ages of 16 and 30 throughout NYC, providing them with essential skills, hands-on experience, and valuable connections to pursue industry careers in film/tv/digital media production.

The AFFMedia Lab offers 3 months of free Master Classes, Lectures, Workshops, and Filmmaking Experiences, usually between October 1 and February 1.

Students can take classes a la carte and also have the chance to immerse themselves in a Series, with options including Filmmaking (producing/directing) and Marketing.

There is also a fully-online Zoom Careers Series, where students learn about various jobs in the industry from Industry Professionals.

Those who take the filmmaking series create their own group film during the Lab as well, which is then Premiered at our Youth Festival in the spring.

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Testimonials

  • I would definitely recommend the Astoria Film Festival Lab program. It allows you to learn about so many different roles in the media industry and you are also just able to put yourself out there creatively as well.

    Sara Gamelin, 2025 Lab Fellow, Cornell

  • I really appreciated all the workshops, especially gaffing and grip work, because I always wanted to improve my lighting skills and never had that type of instruction before. This program gave me the experience I wanted and the outlet to express my passion.

    Alex Gamez, 2025 Fellow, HS of Art & Design

  • When I first heard about the program I didn't expect it to be THIS broad and intensive. It really exceeded my expectations.

    Ji-Won Ahn, 2025 Fellow, The Baccalaureate School for Global Education

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