Peer behind the lens

For more than a half-century, television has been the primary vehicle for people to express their ideas to a mass audience.

Most of the time, though, those opportunities are limited to directors, writers and other media professionals.

But for the last two years, a rotating group of students from Audenried High School also has had the chance to get behind the camera, courtesy of a program of public-television station WHYY.

The students currently participating in the program are filming Growing Up in Philly, a documentary that gives outsiders a glimpse into the everyday lives of Philadelphia teens. The movie features African-American teenagers from different walks of life – a teen father, a poet, an athlete and a self-described "hustla" – all acquaintances of the students.

Beyond depicting the stories and challenges of local teens, another goal of the program is training the next generation of media experts.

"Video is an amazing medium for kids to express themselves," said Craig Santoro, project director of Media Lounge. The year-old program, which works in conjunction with United Communities Southeast Philadelphia, is geared toward students with a strong interest in video production.

"This program is part of the WHYY strategy to put the community first," said Santoro.

Since January, Santoro and the students have been meeting twice a week at Southwark House, 101 Ellsworth St., where WHYY’s digital production studio is located. The group is now putting the finishing touches on the documentary.

The project taught the students the importance of video literacy and trained them in the components of video production and editing.

NOW IN THE final stages of editing, the documentary will be shown at screening events, online at www.whyy.org and on one of WHYY’s yet-to-be-determined digital channels.

About a dozen students are involved in the program – some more seriously than others, Santoro said. But all are interested in production and took advantage of the opportunity to express themselves.

"Video is a really great tool for giving students a voice, particularly students who don’t have a voice," Santoro said.

He added that it’s often difficult to find people receptive to the documentary project, but said the Audenried students and faculty welcomed the idea. "It’s been a great learning experience," said Aisha Abudullah, an 18-year-old senior who ranks at the top of her class.

The students enjoyed working in a nontraditional classroom setting.

"I liked learning how to put a movie together and the environment – the people I was working with – that’s why I came every day," said Blanche Jackson, 17.

"The most interesting part was hearing real people’s stories, their experiences and what they’re going through," added junior Tim Cavanaugh.

Jackson and junior Rameek Hudson, 16, particularly appreciated the chance to learn skills that could start their careers in media and production. Both said the intense sessions also made them aware of the time and precision every step of filmmaking involves.

All agreed the hard work was worth every minute.

"It took us off the streets and taught us real-world techniques we could use in the future," said Abudullah.