The Bridges-Larson Foundation awarded a $500,000 grant to the University of Central Arkansas Department of Film, Theatre, and Creative Writing in the College of Fine Arts and Communication.
Awarded this past fall, the grant is the largest gift in the history of the department, and $100,000 will be awarded over five years.
Kick-started by director and screenwriter James Bridges – who is also a 2012 UCA Distinguished Alumnus – and actor and writer Jack Larson, the Bridges-Larson Foundation has for years supported the creative work of Department of Film, Theatre, and Creative Writing students. In lieu of continuing to give $10,000 a year for the department’s James Bridges Performing Arts Scholarship, the foundation gifted the $500,000 grant as a way to more directly impact the lives of students.
The department has created three categories for grant use: Bridges-Larson Experiential Learning Initiative, Bridges-Larson Internship Stipends and Bridges-Larson Film Production Grants.
The Bridges-Larson Experiential Learning Initiative will give students free access to live theater events, film festivals, writers’ workshops and national conferences to diversify their experiences and create networking opportunities.
Bridges-Larson Internship Stipends will provide travel, lodging and living expenses for students completing internships, and the stipend will also create paid internships for the Arkansas Shakespeare Theatre.
Bridges-Larson Film Production Grants will support the production costs of films created by both undergraduate and graduate digital filmmaking students.
“Our thought is that these funds will go directly to what was wished for by the foundation: to have a direct impact on the student,” said Mike Gunter ’08, interim chair of the Department of Film, Theatre, and Creative Writing.
CAPTION
UCA students perform in a campus production of “The Liar.” Students shown in the foreground are (left to right) Michal Petrarca, Zoe Allison and Sydney Stoner. Seated are (left to right) Levi Smith and Brent Welch. Students in the background (left to right) are Emma Boone and Phillip Donaghey.