As high school students continue their academic year and consider college, First Generation Films and Wells Fargo are bringing the “Go College!” national education initiative to Dallas with screenings of a one-hour version of the award-winning documentary, First Generation, at Adamson High School, Moises E. Molina High School, DeSoto High School, South Grand Prairie High School, Grand Prairie High School, and RL Turner High School. Go College! Dallas will reach and inspire more than 2,000 students and host a free community screening at the Angelika Film Center on Oct. 30.
Filmed over the course of three years, the First Generation documentary is narrated by two-time Golden Globe Award nominee Blair Underwood and explores the challenges of college access faced by first generation and low income students due to their families’ unfamiliarity with college applications, scholarships and the federal aid process. The documentary profiles the journey of four students attempting to break the cycle of poverty and bring hope to their communities as they pursue their college dreams.
“Our goal in making the film was to help high school students learn from their peers about the college admissions process,” said co-director Jaye Fenderson, a former senior admissions officer at Columbia University and the author ofSeventeen’s Guide To Getting Into College. “But it evolved to become so much more than that – an emotional experience and message that resonated with underserved communities.”
Go College! Dallas is the eighth major stop on a 10-city tour that will bring together for the community screening eventsFirst Generation filmmakers Jaye and Adam Fenderson, and cast member, Cecilia Lopez, who will join local educators, student lending experts, and civic and community leaders for an interactive panel discussion on how students can make attending college a reality. Those interested in attending the community screenings may RSVP atwww.firstgenerationfilm.com/gocollegedates.
“A college education can change not just a life, but the prospects of an entire community,” said John Rasmussen, Wells Fargo’s Minnesota-based head of Education Financial Services. “By working with First Generation Films to create the Go College! initiative, we hope to plant seeds of hope in America’s first generation students and make the prospects of achieving higher education a reality.”
Go College! visited Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Oakland and Washington D.C. in the spring, reaching an audience of 10,000 and more than 1,000,000 people across social media channels who used the #GoCollege and #WFCollegeTour hashtags. This fall, the initiative is visiting Atlanta, Miami, Houston, and Twin Cities, in addition to Dallas.
“By bringing the film directly to students and speaking with their parents, we want to remove any perceived and actual barriers to college access,” said co-director Adam Fenderson. In 2011, First Generation won Best Documentary at the Idyllwild International Festival of Cinema and was selected as a Special Jury Award winner at the Napa Valley Film Festival in 2012.
