Weitz Fellow Voices: Kitty at Film Streams

This is a guest blog by one of our Weitz Fellows, Kitty Tyree. This blog is estimated to take 3 minutes to read.

Hi, my name is Kitty Tyree, and I am the Weitz Fellow at Film Streams! My day-to-day activities have differed over the last 6 months because I have been moving through the different departments to learn in-depth what each of them does for the organization.

I began the year working with the marketing team. I jumped right in and was managing the social media accounts, writing email communications, and creating/updating pages of our website. Since my only social media experience was through my personal accounts, I had to learn how to discover a professional voice while still finding a way to keep the content fun and engaging. My favorite project that I did for marketing was creating silly valentines to post on our Instagram account. Promoting movies in all of these different ways was really fun.

I started working in the programming department, which selects films that are shown, at the beginning of January. My first project was getting the data together for 2023 for what we played, how the films did, performance by genre, etc. This was a great way to get an understanding of what programming looks like month to month.

My next project was getting to curate my own series. At Film Streams, we do new release programming but we also have repertory series where three movies play for one week all tying to a common theme. Initially, I thought to program a series about road movies, so I watched several to decide which ones I wanted to play. But, a few days before my choices were due, I decided to pivot and change topics completely! I watched many, many movies over a weekend and finally settled on the theme “Girl Boss.” The films are still in the booking process, but the series is set to run in April. Stay tuned!

My final project, and perhaps the most ambitious, was doing research for a series we’re planning to run next year when the Dundee Theater celebrates 100 years. I went through the Omaha World Herald archives to accumulate a list of all the movies ever played at the theater. Because it is a long process, I am continuing this research after I switch departments.

To finish off my time in this department, Programming Director Taylor Eagan and I are traveling to Columbia, Missouri, for the True/False Film Festival, where we will both be watching around 15 movies apiece. As of writing this, I am seated in the audience waiting for my first movie to start! This is my first ever film festival, so I am very excited to be here.

Soon, I will be moving over to the education department, where I will develop an adult education course based around my series in April. I am nervous, but excited to talk about the films I chose because I think the discussions that will come out of them will be really interesting. I will then be helping to research films for the School to Screen program, where school groups come to our theaters to screen and discuss a chosen film with our Education Manager.

I am looking forward to the second half of my fellowship and can’t wait to see what comes next!