This year, Wheaton faculty and students welcome Kelly Goff and Patrick Johnson to the college community. Professor Johnson is the instructor for both the film production and screenwriting classes, previously taught by Jake Mahaffy. Johnson hails from New Hampshire and graduated from Vassar College with a degree in film. He attended Boston University for his MFA and remained there as a Professor for beginning and intermediate film production. Additionally, Johnson spent time at Tufts University where he taught new media along with various hybrid courses.

Besides teaching, Johnson makes his own films, which he described as “a one-man band operation.” Johnson counts Wes Anderson’s “Moonrise Kingdom” and Paul Thomas Anderson’s “There Will Be Blood” among his favorite movies, but noted, “I don’t consider myself a film snob. I don’t mind seeing the Avengers. I love everything. I consider film as an art form.” Other than teaching at Wheaton, he spends time at his home in Somerville with his family, including his two children. Johnson already has film production and a documentary storytelling class lined up for this spring.

Professor Goff is teaching studio art classes, including drawing, sculpture, and three-dimensional design. Goff attended New College of Florida for a degree in visual arts, afterwards attending Rhode Island School of Design for his graduate degree in fine arts. He has previously taught at Salve Regina University, Rhode Island School of Design, Massachusetts College of Art and Design, and is also currently a lecturer at MIT. Although he is well established in New England, Goff is originally from Curacao, an island in the Caribbean. The official language of the island is Dutch, but Goff learned more than just Dutch in his childhood. He speaks English, Spanish, Dutch, and Papiamento. “I spoke Papiamento with my friends and I learned Spanish from television because the only few channels we had were in Spanish,” said Goff

When it comes to making his own art, Goff explained, “I get inspired by objects that look abandoned, like under a highway pass or by a mall dumpster, where objects are in some state of decay.” He expressed how there are many different materials that can be used for sculpture, some of which range from the classic clay to contemporary materials. In his spare time, Giff works in the studio, attends shows, reads critical theories about art, and builds furniture. This spring he will be teaching three-dimensional design again along with sculpture.