Sixteen students will receive full-ride scholarship to pursue their choice of VFS’s 3D Animation & Visual Effects, Classical Animation, or Programming for Games, Web & Mobile programs.
Announcement Highlights:
- The 16 scholarships, valued at over $500,000, are thanks to the financial support of VFS and The Schroeder Foundation.
- VFS and The Schroeder Foundation have collaborated on this initiative since 2020 and have previosly awarded 25 prior scholarships.
- The students are from the Winnipeg School Division’s CREATE program which offers both high school and post-high school courses that provide education and career pathways into the creative industries.
- This is the most VFS scholarships that have ever been awarded to CREATE students in a single year.
(VANCOUVER, B.C.) February 16, 2022 – 16 students from the Winnipeg School Division’s CREATE program at Sisler High School have discovered that they will receive full-ride scholarships to Vancouver Film School (VFS), thanks to financial support from VFS and The Schroeder Foundation. This is the most VFS scholarships that have ever been awarded to CREATE students in a single year.
The recipients were notified at a socially distanced live event held at Sisler High School on February 16 and the event was broadcasted virtually to the students, their family, the community, and the media.
“We cannot thank VFS and The Schroeder Foundation enough for their support,” said Jamie Leduc, CREATE Department Head. “They go out of their way to make this happen for our students – providing them a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to pursue their dreams at a prestigious school. It’s incredibly heartening, and very emotional, for me to watch these students achieve their potential.”
VFS and The Schroeder Foundation have collaborated on this initiative for the past two years. In 2020, 10 full scholarships were awarded, followed by 15 scholarships in 2021.
This year’s students will be pursuing studies in Classical Animation, 3D Animation, or Visual Effects and Programming for Game, Mobile and Web. VFS covers 40% of each scholarship, and the remaining 60% is covered by The Schroeder Foundation. Together they are providing over $500,000 in support.
"Students in the CREATE program are doing incredible work and performing at a high level,” said Walter Schroeder, Head and Founder of The Schroeder Foundation. “At the Foundation, we believe in removing barriers for young people who are working hard to achieve their goals and just need that extra boost. We're thrilled to be able to invest in these students and help set them up for success."
The Schroeder Foundation is a major supporter of the Sisler CREATE program, providing over $700,000 in scholarships and an additional $900,000 in equipment to the high school and post-grad program since 2019. The foundation also funds an industry liaison and communications manager to help provide education pathways and job opportunities for students.
The VFS contribution to the scholarships is the latest offer in the school’s long-standing relationship with the Sisler CREATE program. Including these 16 students, there will have been over 80 Sisler CREATE students who have received scholarships to study at VFS in the past five years alone. This year’s group will be the largest yet.
"Vancouver Film School’s relationship with Sisler High School is one we value very highly,” said Jonathan Bell, VFS’s Managing Director. "We have seen so many talented students attend VFS through the CREATE program, and we are honoured to play a part in preparing these students for and immersing them in the creative media industries.”
"VFS is thrilled to be offering our Sisler 2022 winners a full-ride scholarship for their choice of our Classical Animation, Animation Concept Art, or Programming for Game, Web & Mobile programs,” said VFS’s School of Animation Head, Colin Giles. “The animation industry, in particular, is booming, and our Classical Animation and Animation Concept Art programs train our students in the #1 global animation hub – Vancouver – for an industry that is always hiring talented young animators.”
The Winnipeg School Division’s CREATE program at Sisler High School offers both high school and post-high school courses that provide educational and career pathways into the creative industries. Students can take courses in animation, film, game design, visual effects, graphic design and other digital media. This year, CREATE students worked with mentors and artists from Nickelodeon, Ubisoft, CBC, Flipside XR, The Gord Downie and Chanie Wenjack Fund, Eagle Vision Inc. and more. Students in the post-high program are currently doing work placements with Nelvana, one of Canada’s leading animation studios.
Registration is now open for the 2022/2023 Sisler CREATE post-high school program. High school graduates from Manitoba are invited to apply. More information can be found at www.sislercreate.com.
About Vancouver Film School
In 1987, Vancouver Film School introduced the world’s first true immersion film program. Today, VFS is Canada’s premier post-secondary entertainment arts institution, offering an immersive curriculum in film, animation, design, and beyond. VFS is known for providing high-quality education in accelerated time frames and offers 16 industry-integrated programs in which students graduate in one year as an in-demand, industry-ready creative professional. VFS alumni are consistently credited on the highest grossing films, television shows, and games worldwide, in a global industry set to generate US$2.1 trillion in revenue in 2022.
For more information, or to schedule interviews, please contact:
Evan Biswanger
Creative Director & Head of Marketing
Vancouver Film School
ebiswanger@vfs.com
vfs.edu
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