FLICKER for Schools
Bring the new industry standard for intimate storytelling into film education
A school partnership model from CINTIMA and FLICKER in which selected student filmmakers develop and shoot intimacy-centered short films under certified Intimacy Coordinator guidance, culminating in a live workshop experience and festival submission pathway.
SAG-AFTRA now recognizes intimacy coordination as a unionized professional field. Film schools have an opportunity to prepare students accordingly.
With SAG-AFTRA standards, accredited training pathways, and formal recognition of intimacy coordination as a unionized position, intimate storytelling now requires a clearer production process than many schools were built to provide.
CINTIMA helps film programs close that gap, equipping students and faculty with a framework for intimate storytelling that supports safety, collaboration, and stronger creative outcomes.
An Advanced Filmed-Scene Workshop
A school partnership model in which selected student filmmakers develop and shoot intimacy-centered short films under CINTIMA and certified Intimacy Coordinator guidance, culminating in a live shoot experience and FLICKER Festival submission.
4-step process
Select
Schools identify student projects suited for intimacy-supported development.
Guide
CINTIMA and trained ICs support prep, communication, choreography, and production planning.
Shoot
Projects culminate in a filmed-scene workshop and supported shoot day.
Submit
Completed short works move into FLICKER Festival consideration.
Part production lab, part advanced workshop, part festival pathway.
What Happens in the Workshop
Selected projects move under CINTIMA leadership and trained Intimacy Coordinator guidance, culminating in a live shoot experience designed to turn process into practice.
BEFORE THE WORKSHOP
Selected student projects are reviewed, matched, and prepared for intimacy-supported development.
GUIDED PREP
CINTIMA and certified ICs support communication, choreography, scene planning, performer-centered process, and production logistics.
LIVE WORKSHOP + SHOOT DAY
Student filmmakers move through rehearsal and filming with a professional intimacy process in place, culminating in a supported shoot day.
POST-PRODUCTION + SUBMISSION
Completed short works are finalized and prepared for FLICKER Festival submission.
The workshop can also function as a live learning environment for participating ICs, approved observers, or auditors.
What Students Gain
Students leave with more than a finished project. They leave with a stronger process.
First-Hand Collaboration
Students work directly with a certified Intimacy Coordinator.
Professional Process
They learn how intimate scenes are communicated, choreographed, rehearsed, and filmed.
Industry Awareness
They gain working knowledge of the SAG-AFTRA guidelines and protocols necessary to film intimate scenes safely.
Portfolio Outcome
They complete a short-form work under seven minutes in length.
Festival Pathway
Their work may move into FLICKER Festival consideration, with free submission to the festival.
Academic Potential
Course credit may be possible pending school approval.
What Schools Gain
This is a unique offering for innovative film schools that want students to receive practical, on-set experience while gaining visibility through a public-facing festival pathway.
Curriculum Relevance
A practical framework for teaching intimate storytelling in a contemporary production environment.
Faculty Support
More structure around student work that may otherwise feel difficult to supervise or support fully.
Student Preparedness
Graduates with stronger production awareness, collaborative process, and professional readiness.
Institutional Visibility
Promotional visibility for the school through festival association, on-screen credits, social media, and the FLICKER website.
Adaptable Model
A partnership that can be tailored to each school’s calendar, faculty structure, credit model, and production resources.
Built to Fit Different Programs
Each institution will implement this differently. The model is designed to be flexible enough to support a range of faculty structures, production pipelines, and academic calendars.
WORKSHOP INTENSIVE
A concentrated 1–2 day experience built around selected student productions and a live shoot period.
SEMESTER PILOT
A limited cohort of projects supported across prep, workshop, production, and post-production.
FESTIVAL LAB TRACK
A filmed-scene pathway designed to culminate in FLICKER submission and showcase potential.
Each partnership can be tailored to a school’s calendar, faculty involvement, student selection process, production resources, and credit framework.
Why This Model Works
Intimate storytelling is strongest when supported by process, professional standards, and creative rigor.
CINTIMA helps schools align student filmmaking with the practices shaping the field today, so filmmakers can approach intimate work with greater confidence, clarity, and artistry.
Not to make filmmakers more cautious, but more capable.
From Workshop to FLICKER
The festival is the culmination of the process, not the only goal. This model gives schools and students a public-facing pathway for work developed through the workshop.
4-part structure
About CINTIMA
CINTIMA was founded and is led by professionals who have been helping shape the field of intimacy coordination since 2007. That experience informs our work with schools and filmmakers, grounding our approach in real production practice rather than theory alone.
Our leadership has been part of the field’s movement toward safer sets, stronger standards, and a more professionalized framework for intimate storytelling. As the first online training organization in intimacy coordination, CINTIMA helped create a more accessible and structured pathway into the profession.
For film schools, that means partnering with an organization that helps students and faculty build the clarity, communication, and process needed to support ambitious work with greater confidence, professionalism, and creative integrity.
Festival Details
Submissions are made through FilmFreeway. By partnering with CINTIMA, student submissions will align with festival rules and SAG-AFTRA-informed guidelines and practices.
Students may use the code FLICKERSTUDENT to waive the submission fee.
Students may submit their films here
IMPORTANT DATES
Early Bird Deadline — June 10, 2026
Regular Deadline — August 10, 2026
Late Deadline — September 10, 2026
Festival Date — October 22, 2026
LOCATION
Los Angeles — Venue TBA
We’d be glad to talk through timing, faculty collaboration, student fit, and how this model can be adapted to your program.
Let’s explore a pilot, partnership, or custom implementation for your school.
Yehuda Duenyas, MFA
Founder / Lead Instructor, CINTIMA
yehuda@cintima.co
917 863 5701
Jaclyn Chantel
Founder / COO, CINTIMA
jaclyn@cintima.co
330 651 4026
