Arts & Entertainment
Ridgefield Independent Film Festival Partners with The Prospector Theater
The partnership was arranged by RIFF Director, Joanne Hudson, and Emily Pambianchi, Director of Marketing of The Prospector Theater.
RIDGEFIELD, CT - The Ridgefield Independent Film Festival (RIFF) recently partnered with The Prospector Theater for a training session for its high school interns. The partnership was arranged by RIFF Director, Joanne Hudson, and Emily Pambianchi, Director of Marketing of The Prospector Theater.
The session, which took place May 12th, was run by the Prospector's experienced team of Prospects. The RIFF Interns, who attend Ridgefield High School and John Jay High School in Cross River, NY, were taught the basics of floor operations and how to provide excellent customer service. RIFF runs May 20-22, with screenings and master classes in seven different venues, including The Prospector, in Ridgefield, CT.
"Whenever I go to the Prospector Theater I am so impressed with the customer service provided by their Prospects," said Hudson. "It just makes sense to have our interns, who will be new to the job, get some training from the experts."
"We welcome the opportunity to have our Prospects teach students their knowledge of our business," said Pambianchi. "This reinforces every skill they have learned, boosts confidence, and continues the cycle of inclusion; an important practice the Prospector Theater embraces."
The Prospector Theater, which opened in 2014, is a non-profit dedicated to social enterprise. It pairs a first-run movie theater business model with training and employing adults with disabilities. The Prospector model demonstrates how community groups, businesses, and people in the private sector - working together - can improve the quality of lives for those with disabilities, while lessening the financial burden on the government and helping boost employment rates. For more information, visit here.
The Ridgefield Independent Film Festival, created by local playwright and theatre director, Joanne Hudson, is a site-specific film festival that aims to make the world a more compassionate place through the sharing of stories from around the world through cinema. RIFF brings more than 70 films from 23 countries around the globe to Ridgefield, Connecticut for thoughtful screenings in curated venues such as the Ridgefield Playhouse, Ridgefield Library, Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, Keeler Tavern Museum, the Prospector Theater and Ballard Park. In addition, RIFF offers master classes in different aspects of film and filmmaking. The festival runs May 20-22. 
