It is so rare to find someone who loves their profession and is able to help people as much as film studies professor Alison Hoffman.

“I have a postcard in my office to remind me; it says ‘critical thinking equals survival;’ it is my motto when in doubt,” Hoffman said. “It’s not about just getting your degree or learning how to write a paper, it’s the matter of teaching students how to think critically.”

Many people find inspiration in little messages to remind them of what they are doing. For Hoffman, that message gets her through the tough moments in life.

Hoffman has been a professor at Moorpark College since 2014 and is the only full-time faculty for the film studies program. She and her husband, Charles, found their way to Ventura County after Hoffman left her last teaching job at Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan to come to Moorpark.

Her time in graduate school and studying to get her Ph.D. in Cinema and Media Studies at UCLA helped give her the passion to teach. Hoffman always wanted to be an educator, but did not think it would be in film. UCLA provided her with the chance of being a teacher’s aid and to give a few lectures at a handful of different universities.

“Originally I thought I wanted to be a high school English teacher, but later on in my third year of college I decided to shift focus,” said Hoffman. “At that point, I thought I wanted to be a college English literature instructor, but I ended up taking a Women and Popular Culture class when I was at CSU Long Beach and that class was totally life-changing. It was the first class where it focused on media, film, and I was like ‘okay, this is what I want to do.’ ”

She stated that it always came naturally to her and her inspiration comes through instructing. She said it is all about perspective and seeing the world in a new light. Hoffman truly wants her thinking to be transformed everyday, by a watching a film, reading, or during her in-class discussions with students.

“Learning from my students, nothing makes me happier or keeps me feeling more alive and engaged with the world,” she said.

When Hoffman first came to Moorpark, she hosted a social gathering at her house for some teachers, and one of the instructors who was there was part-time film studies professor Lauren Snowden.

“She had us over for appetizers and wine, we talked about our aspirations and what we did,” said Snowden. “She had us over just to get to know us and I thought that was a very cool way to get to introduced to her.”

Snowden also loves working with Hoffman. She states that Hoffman is a very genuine person and is a wonderful friend, but she is also someone who recognizes strengths as well.

“[Hoffman] generously passed on the Contemporary Cinema class to me,” said Snowden. “Alison is very instinctive about pairing instructors with their strengths and she is very selfless as an educator.”

Another coworker of Hoffman’s, English professor Brian Young, partnered with her to teach a linked English MO1B class and Contemporary American Cinema together. The class was taught together for the first time this spring and will continue to be co-taught every spring semester.

“From the start, planning this class has been a very natural and organic discussion about film and art,” said Young. “The theme of the linked class grew out of an ongoing discussion we were already having about films in-person as well as through email and texts.”

The two have a lot of common interests, such as shared love of films and literature, so it made sense for Hoffman and Young to collaborate on the linked courses.

“This has been so much fun and very seamless,” said Hoffman. “Brian is just an incredible teacher and thinker; our approaches to teaching and learning are very similar.”

Hoffman tries to make the students her main focus. She also stresses that she has been a student and knows what it is like to struggle through finances and follow your dreams. Hoffman wants people to know about the resources around them.

“No one had ever told me how to do financial aid,” said Hoffman. “I had to utilize the sources on campus. Whether it was to see counselors, financial aid officers, and everything else, I had to use those resources in order to make it through. I want students to get through the class and achieve what they want to achieve whether it’s telling them about the Health Center or telling them they could read my course textbooks for free in the library.”

Along with teaching several film studies courses, Hoffman is the advisor to the Film Club and a part of the Student Success and Equity board on campus. She would like to grow in faculty leadership and shared governments.

Hoffman teaches multiple film studies courses each semester. However, her personal favorite is Film M15: Introduction to Documentary. She loves the genre of film because of the tension between representation and reality.

“Cinema is and will be an artistic construct there can never be total objectivity in any film whether it’s a documentary or a narrative film,” said Hoffman.

To find out more information about the film studies program please visit http://www.moorparkcollege.edu/departments/academic/film-studies.