Tuesday, April 17, 2007

You know. For kids.

Somer Miller, my sister and a second grade schoolteacher, was teaching her students about outer space. During a discussion about Mars, she mentioned that her brother was making a movie set on the red planet. The kids immediately wanted to know all about filmmaking, so she asked me to stop by for a question and answer session.

I took some time off from the day job and visited her class on Friday. I started off showing a relatively kid-friendly clip from Hide and Creep. The students immediately got on my good side when they laughed at the right places. I then showed them some Interplanetary props (the kids took turns trying on a space helmet), filmmaking equipment (director's viewfinder, boom pole, Bolex camera), and behind-the-scenes photos.

What was planned as a 30 minute discussion turned into an hour and a half. I heard about some of the creative writing projects they'd been working on for Somer (sounds like these kids are quite creative). One student suggested we make a zombie movie, with the students as the zombies and Somer as the heroine-in-peril -- that would actually be pretty hilarious, though I'm not sure the students' parents would appreciate it. We also discussed current cinema -- Meet the Robinsons was recommended to me, and we all agreed that The Incredibles is awesome.

I was really happy to see that these youngsters are excited about films and filmmaking. There's a lot of talk about new media killing off traditional feature films, but, if Somer's students are any indication, I think there's still a future for the cineplex and DVDs.

Here's Somer, taking her turn in the Interplanetary space helmet. To prove her geek cred, she's also throwing a Mr. Spock "live long and prosper" salute.

2 comments:

Karl said...

How cool is that. Doesn't it invigorate you to see such enthusiasm in the students? Great job.

Anonymous said...

Yay for you!!! My son is in Somer's class and he was absolutely THRILLED that you came that day. He wants to be a movie star now. Thankyou for inspiring kids, your sister does it every day.

PS....let me know if you're looking for a handsome 2nd grader!

SK