Franklin Academy sponsors two-week cinematic arts residency

Josh Weissbach, coordinator of the Franklin Academy cinematic arts residency.

By David DeLucia

Franklin Academy has the right to be very proud lately. The institution was recently named “best private school” in the state by Connecticut Magazine. In addition, from July 11 to 24, the first ever cinematic arts residency was offered by the school, expertly coordinated by Josh Weissbach.

Weissbach wears many hats at Franklin having been the Associate Dean of Students for eight years. In addition, he has been the school photographer for 20 years. His father, Fred Weissbach was the original Head of the School. Josh attended Hampshire College from 2004 to 2009, where he majored in film production. He also did further studies in film at the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee.  

Josh has been fortunate to obtain grants which has enabled him to take part in several residencies in overseas countries. In 2022, he went to Sweden and produced a 14-minute documentary about two Ukrainian artists that had been displaced by the ongoing war with Russia as Artists At Risk. This was followed by residencies in Latvia in 2024 and Portugal last year.

For the summer of 2026 Josh had a brainchild to offer a two-week residency at Franklin Academy for analog and digital video filmmakers. The interest was keen, and ultimately 10 people were selected from Massachusetts, New York and even England! There was no fee for the individual participants who all got free room and board along with meals. They were only responsible for their travel expenses and materials related to their craft such as cameras and other equipment.

Josh reported the 10 filmmakers got along with each other very well and participated in many rewarding activities. For example, a nighttime excursion was made to Devils Hopyard to obtain “watergrams.”  A “watergram” is related to camera less filmmaking, where film is briefly placed underwater and then developed, resulting in a myriad of patterns representing ripples and movement.

The two-week intense residency culminated in a program at the Ray of Light Farm on July 23. Each participant got to present a 10-minute film representing past work. Josh is seeking to repeat this very successful cinematic experience in the summer of 2027. For information on how to apply, and to peruse some of Josh's own work, visit joshweissbach.com or write to joshweissbach@gmail.com.