GEECT conference
FilmED: Teaching to Learn—Where Theory Meets the Body, The Polish National Film, Television and Theatre School, Lodz, Poland (27–28 November 2026)
On location of The Polish National Film, Television and Theatre School in Lodz
Organized by The Polish National Film, Television and Theatre School in Lodz, HDK-Valand (Gothenburg), Netherlands Film Academy (Amsterdam) - The FilmED consortium
Context and Urgency
Film educators across Europe share a common challenge: the landscape in which we teach is shifting rapidly. As image-making becomes instantaneous and ubiquitous, the relationship between theoretical discourse and craft practice is evolving. Students increasingly arrive as digital natives fluent in visual communication—through memes, short-form video, and algorithmic media—yet they still benefit from frameworks for critical engagement with the images they produce. At the same time, our field is recognizing the value of expanding beyond primarily verbal and linguistic modes of knowledge transfer, creating space for diverse learning styles and neurodiverse ways of thinking that have always been present in our student populations.
The FilmED consortium has been exploring how multimodal, embodied, and practice-based methodologies can complement existing approaches, integrating critical reflection directly into the act of making. Rather than asking students to write about film theory, we invite them to think through their medium—using video essays as research tools, audio walks to explore concepts like juxtaposition, gamification to open up production strategy, and choreography to understand screen movement. This conference offers GEECT colleagues the opportunity to experience these methods firsthand and consider how they might enrich their own teaching contexts.
Conference Format
This is not a conventional conference. Rather than passive keynotes and panels, the programme works exclusively with workshops and interactive formats. Participants will engage directly with experimental methods developed through the FilmED project, experiencing pedagogical innovations from within rather than merely hearing about them.
Target audience: GEECT colleagues actively involved in teaching, curriculum development, and programme leadership. The aim is to provide hands-on opportunities for educators to explore, adapt, and adopt methods emerging from this three-year experimental pedagogy initiative.
Conference Motivations
• To enhance educators' capacity to respond to the changing competencies of students in the audiovisual digital age
• To integrate practical and theoretical curricula through multimodal, practice-based teaching methods that stimulate creativity and innovation
• To promote inclusion through diversified pedagogical approaches, accommodating different learning styles and neurodiverse cognitive predispositions
Workshop Programme
The two-day programme features parallel workshop sessions exploring various experimental pedagogic enquiries undertaken by the three partner schools. Each workshop offers participants an experiential encounter with theoretical concepts made accessible through film practice.
Conditions
The Conference will take place in-person on location at The Lodz Film School on November 26-27.
A fee of 430 euro (for GEECT members) and 700 euro (for non-GEECT members) includes:
- Accommodation in a boutique hotel from 25th till 28th November (3 nights)
- Full board including Welcome dinner on the 25th November
- Transportation from Warsaw airport to Lodz and return
- Great and friendly atmosphere