While many aspects of life at University School have been upended as a result of the Coronavirus pandemic, the Film Society, headed by sophomore Arman Taheri, will return this year. Taheri, in his first year leading the Film Society, has high hopes for the year and hopes to provide a rewarding experience for students all across the school.

The Film Society will meet weekly during X Block, though Taheri hopes to be able to hold an additional weekly meeting that would take place after school. Film Society gatherings will entail both watching movies and discussing them. Taheri also plans to hold a theme of the month, in which participants would watch movies that fall under a specific genre, are produced by a certain director, and/or feature a certain actor. He hopes these components of the Film Society will “expand everyone’s horizons” and help them to discover films and genres that they like. However, Taheri really wants participants to be introduced to directors that they may not know. “I really am hoping for Film Society to introduce people to directors that they probably haven’t heard of,” explains Taheri. “That would include showing really awesome movies and perhaps bringing in external sound systems so that they’re able to fully experience the movie the way the director intended.” Although Taheri has a plan laid out for the year, he says that participants will have a lot of freedom to decide how they want to spend the meetings. He wants to provide a memorable and enjoyable experience for all the members of the club.

Although the Film Society will be able to return to some sense of normal, there are still a couple restrictions in place to prevent the spread of Coronavirus. In past years, participants could order food from outside the school to consume during meetings. This year, however, members may only bring food from either their own home or from the school vending machine. The Film Society also has a limit on how many members may participate in one meeting in order to enforce social distancing guidelines. Despite these minor inconveniencies, the Film Society has been able to function relatively similarly to years past.

Taheri hopes the Film Society will help students to identify a great movie when they see one. “I would really like [students], if nothing else, to know when a really good movie is there,” he explains. “A lot of people nowadays watch movies like Marvel movies or things that they find on Netflix, and yes, these are amazing films, but there are so many other ones that are just so much above, and I feel that if people were able to get exposed to those kinds of films and be able to watch them, their perception on how they watch them and how movies are as a whole will change.” Taheri would like to provide a meaningful experience to students by showing lesser-known films to help them greater appreciate the movie industry.

Taheri says that anyone is welcome to join Film Society, and one does not have to show up to every meeting. “If you are into immersion, or if you want to see a great movie that could potentially impact you, then I would strongly recommend joining.” He hopes to create a fun environment in which students can watch amazing movies. Anyone interested is encouraged to stop by Room 213 during X Block.