COLUMBUS (WCMH)-Students at the Fort Hayes Metropolitan Education Center participated in a screenwriting workshop Thursday afternoon that focused on artistic aspirations, both on stage and in the cinema.

“These are young people with big dreams,” said visiting filmmaker Jim Burnstein, Director of Screenwriting Program at the University of Michigan, who led the students in reading, pitching and reciting stories. “Many of them want to be writers, storytellers, and I’m going to talk about the steps it takes to tell the story.”

Matthew Swift, Program Coordinator and Production Manager with The Film Studies Program at The Ohio State University, said that the program is a great way “for students and the general public to learn more about the world of screenwriting.”

The goal of the Leventhal Artist Program, founded in 2006, is to bring talented visiting artists to the Central Ohio community and the Ohio State University campus.

On Thursday evening, the Columbus Jewish Film Festival presented “Harold and Lillian: A Hollywood Story,” introduced by Burnstein at the Jewish Community Center.

The annual Leventhal Artist Program, teaming with The Ohio State University Film Studies Program and the Columbus Jewish Film Festival, 2017, will then host a screenwriting program for students and the general public at the OSU Ohio Union on Friday, from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

On Friday evening, starting at 4:30 p.m., Burnstein will be at the McConnell Arts Center in Worthington for another “pitch session” to teach the art of selling a screenplay.

Tickets for the Columbus Jewish Film Festival and the McConnell Arts Center can be obtained through their websites.