Category: Film

Week Three

9/19/2016

2nd Annual STEAM Film Festival

Students spent this week working on and then presenting their videos that included topics about making healthy choices, celebrating diversity, promoting character, and choosing appropriate online behavior.

It was fun to see students work in groups as they took their scripts and storyboard from last week and transformed them into videos this week. At the end of the week, we had students present their videos in small groups as they rotated to different groups. This was a technique we learned from last year that worked well for us in a different challenge. It also helped keep us off the hook if there were internet issues accessing the videos since students streamed them directly from their computers.

Here are a few that were shared and will make their way into various competitions:

One new feature of our STEAM collaboration was having our community television crew visit the kids on our final day! In addition to talking about their work on Byron Center Community Television, students were offered an opportunity to check out and work their equipment and sign up to get more information on volunteering.

There are definitely things we will work on to make this project even better next year. We made sure to ask our students to help us with that by having them fill out a Google Form as a self-reflection. In it, many students said their favorite part of the PSA Challenge was filming and working in groups that included students from both Art and STEM.

Some things they would like us to do in the future is open up even more categories for topics they can create films about in this project.

We will definitely be looking into that...

3D test prints

When students finished their videos early, they were directed to Tinkercad to play with the 3D print designer. We are still learning the potential of our 3D printer, but one student was able to walk away with a pretty nice chicken they printed...

Week Two

9/16/2016

Starting with STEAM

For the first full week of school, the STEM teacher and I combine our classes for a STEAM collaborative. This allows for us to start the year out showing the students that we use common language and methods for design thinking.

Students use their sketchbooks to map out the process, so they can have it available as they move from my class to his (and visa versa) at semester. For Design Thinking, we use DICE (Discover, Ideate, Create, Evaluate). We used to use a longer process, but have found that this fits just right.

Lights, Camera...

After students were introduced to the basics of video production and given a variety of topics to choose from, they got into their groups and started working on scripts and storyboards. Students know from past examples that a well done video could mean recognition in a variety of venues and used that to help generate new and innovative ways to approach topics like "Building Character" and generating a "positive digital footprint."

Students spent the later part of the week actually filming their work based on the scripts and storyboards they crafted. It was interesting to see groups make choices on whether or not they were going to "act" in theirs or use animation or use a combination of both.

It will be fun to see hoe these works come together in the end and the showcase that follows as they are featured in our 2nd Annual STEAM Film Festival.

1st Annual STEAM Film Fest 2015

9/27/2015

Friday was a great day. Not only did it still feel like summer outside, it was also a day to finally view and celebrate the work students have been doing over the past two weeks. Earlier this summer, the STEM teacher and I took a day of planning to map out quarterly collaborations. Because we see the same students (but at different times of the year), we wanted to really utilize the potential to show them the overlap in our content and glean the most out of the learning experiences.

Although it was a bit scary at first because we had never combined grade levels, classes, or thrown such rigorous challenges at our students so early in the school year, it turned out great! It offered an opportunity for older students to coach younger ones, a way for us to show design thinking in action using common language, as well as a chance for students to push themselves to tell stories in interesting ways using technology and learning the science behind how animation works.

Here are some of the favorites from the event that will make their way to local and state (maybe even national) competitions:

Finishing Up Films

9/24/2015

Students are finishing up their films today so that we can enjoy them as a part of our viewing tomorrow. It has been fun to see students collaborate, create, and communicate their ideas about concepts ranging from making healthy choices to standing up for others. I look forward to seeing which ones move onto competition and how they do when they leave WMS to reach a wider audience!

Collaborating Through Storytelling

9/15/2015

It has been very exciting to see students dive into their videos as they work with each other to narrow down ideas, write scripts, and begin storyboards. Today was a day spent on working on scripts and starting the storyboarding process.

One of my favorite resources to use with students to showcase the purpose of storyboarding is the AFI video below:

Tomorrow we plan to spend some time finalizing ideas and doing a peer critique before setting production schedules and filming.

State Winners

4/13/2015

47th Annual Michigan Student Film Festival

This is the first year we have entered student work in the State Film Festival. For years, our High School program has participated in the event with great success, leading the way for my students to get involved and be successful, too. I am proud to announce that we had 10 videos receive recognition, with 29 students involved in the creation of those films. We want to extend a special thanks to the Byron Center Fine Arts Boosters who sponsored our competition entries. The BCWMS winners are featured below:

Junior Best of Show

Junior Excellence

Junior Honor

MAEA State Winners

Saturday we celebrated the Elementary and Middle Level winners for the Michigan Art Education Association State show. It was fun to celebrate with students and see so many parents and families travel across the state to join in the success of their artists at the Grand Rapids Art Museum. This competition is a process that starts in each region with teachers selecting 5 works to compete from their school, work is then juried in that region with some moving onto state adjudication, afterwards the work is then narrowed to the Top 15 for grade groups. This is the second year we have had two students in the Top 15 and the third year we have had any Top 15 finalists for Middle school work.

Storyboards and Filming

2/17/2015

Students are working on videos that are being created to inform their peers about making quality choices both in life and online. This project is funded through a MACUL grant that helped us purchase cameras, tripods, and other accessories like SD cards. Videos will be complete just in time to compete in the Meijer Great Choices Junior Film Competition, The Digital ID PSA Challenge, and the DAFT Film Festival!

Before filming, animating, or editing their films, students brainstorm ideas based on the topics outlined in the competitions. We also learned some basics involving the process on the CheckThis poster found here. Students then worked together to create a script, make a storyboard, and plan a production schedule. The best part of teaching this is explaining that you do not need to film in order (rarely any film gets made that way) and seeing students group scenes together and plan out how they are going to divide up the work. Students document the process by making notes on their storyboards and production schedules each day to track progress and see what is left to do. Students will be creating the footage for the next few days before putting it together in iMovie, editing, and submitting it to the various competitions.

Some students work in groups using Photoshop to animate their clips before editing them together in iMovie.

Some students use the Cannon cameras and tripods to film their scenes.

Some students use stop motion techniques with cameras and tripods to tell their stories.

denver art museum

8/5/2012

Whenever I am visiting a new city, I always try and check out their art museum. I had the chance to visit the Denver Art Museum while in Colorado last week. When we first approached the building, I knew I was going to be in for a treat. The severe angles and large public art pieces made for a visually interesting piece of architecture on the outside. On the inside, the varying wall angles made for a different kind of display space. Who says walls have to be perpendicular to the floor anyway?

My favorite part of any Art Museum is the contemporary wing. This place was no different. From Jim Dine to Sandy Skoglund, it was really a treat to be in such an interesting building filled with artists I knew and some that I am interested in knowing more about.

One artist that really captured my attention was Tony Oursler. His piece Zero, shown below, was in a dark corner of the contemporary wing. It was bizarre to see this little doll in a suitcase, having a conversation with itself. It made my husband and I smile, laugh, and question. It did what art is supposed to do, change the way you look and think about things.

Have you been to any good museums this summer? What new artists have made you rethink art? Please share any interesting art experiences as we start getting geared up for another school year!

vote and help us win!

4/7/2012

From now until April 27th, you can help our classroom win one of the 12 cash prizes from the Meijer Great Choices Film Festival where students created various PSAs promoting character, diversity, and healthy choices.

8 student films from BCWMS were accepted into the competition and can be found by scrolling through these pages:
http://www.meijergreatchoices.com/k-8/vote/

Thank you for your help in this effort to showcase student work and garner additional funds for our classroom!