SIFF Education Programs

At SIFF, we believe in the power of storytelling and the arts to inspire, educate, and transform lives, which is why we are dedicated to supporting arts education programs in our community and beyond.

In 2001, as an integral part of our organizational mission, we launched and continue to support student media arts programs at high schools and middle schools in our region. SIFF also provide generous scholarships and assistance to students pursuing college and university film degrees.

SIFF has proudly supported the Sonoma Valley High School Media Arts program for more than two decades by providing media lab equipment, internships, partial scholarships until now, and sustaining funding. The program has graduated hundreds of students, with some actively working within the industry. The program was spearheaded in 2002 by Kevin W. McNeely, SIFF Director Emeritus, and Ginny Krieger, SIFF Executive Director, and has been taught by Peter Hansen since its inception.

The Sonoma International Film Festival, in collaboration with Sonoma Valley High School, and Sonoma State University, four-year scholarships were launched in 2023 to inspire the next generation of visual artists and creators and to provide the needed resources to make the dreams of deserving high school students a reality. The 2023 inaugural recipients of the first full SSU scholarships were Sonoma students Jacob Ceron Echeverría and Sakcham (Sam) Mishra.