Ridgefield Film Festival Joins With Prospector Theater For Intern Training

The partnership, arranged by RIFF Director Joanne Hudson and Emily Pambianchi, director of marketing of The Prospector Theater, was run by the Prospector's experienced team of Prospects. The RIFF Interns, who attend Ridgefield High School and John Jay High School in Cross River, New York, were taught the basics of floor operations and how to provide excellent customer service.

"Whenever I go to the Prospector Theater I am so impressed with the customer service provided by their Prospects," said Hudson. "It just makes sense to have our interns, who will be new to the job, get some training from the experts."

The Prospector Theater, which opened in 2014, is a nonprofit dedicated to social enterprise. It pairs a first-run movie theater business model with training and employing adults with disabilities. The Prospector model demonstrates how community groups, businesses and people in the private sector, working together, can improve the quality of lives for those with disabilities, while lessening the financial burden on the government and helping boost employment rates.

"We welcome the opportunity to have our Prospects teach students their knowledge of our business," said Pambianchi. "This reinforces every skill they have learned, boosts confidence and continues the cycle of inclusion, an important practice the Prospector Theater embraces."

The Ridgefield Independent Film Festival, created by local playwright and theatre director Hudson, is a site-specific film festival that aims to make the world a more compassionate place through the sharing of stories from around the world through cinema. RIFF brings more than 70 films from 23 countries around the globe to Ridgefield for thoughtful screenings in curated venues such as the Ridgefield Playhouse, Ridgefield Library, Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, Keeler Tavern Museum, the Prospector Theater and Ballard Park.

RIFF runs Friday, May 20 through Sunday, May 22. Click here for more information about RIFF 2016. 

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