School's Out For Summer
A reflection on the past school year, and hopes for the future.
The school year has concluded, leaving me time to reflect on the journey. As most of you know I started a film and media program from scratch last fall. Beginning anything is difficult, but also rewarding. As I took time to reflect, I realized it couldn’t have started any better.
The Numbers:
Films Produced: 50 +
Broadcast episodes: 4 15-minute episodes and 20-plus segments
Images Captured: Over 10,000
Photo Exhibits: 2
Film Night Screenings: 1
Clubs Created: 2
Student Art Walls: 1
If you had told me this would be the result, I would have been elated. When starting the program I knew I wanted to focus on empowering students to tell their stories, instead of mimicking what they see. What happens if we use our imagination and go for it, what is possible? Over the year, the students did just that, forcing me to reconsider what this medium is, and more importantly, what it will become.
The past year has been full of changes and forced me to grow as an artist and educator. What is the medium of film anyway? Besides a piece of plastic, what can it become? What will the future of filmmaking be with the rise of AI? This year has taught me that artists still want to be pushed and challenged about their understanding of the world around them. A camera’s only limit is your imagination.
Now that the school year is finished, I have switched to my projects. Over the past year, I have been printing in a makeshift darkroom in my office. In anticipation of the upcoming shows I have this summer, the first of which is on June 27th at Hub 101, I wanted to print the work at home. Blacked out windows, enlarger in the closet, rinse in the bathroom. Even though this is not the fanciest of setups, I wanted to show my students and other collaborators that the setup is not the important part. If a camera is just a black box with a lens, then an enlarger is the same, but in reverse. Cover as much of the light as you can and print. No one knows what equipment you use, and frankly, I don’t think most viewers care.
As I take the summer to reflect on my process, I am optimistic about the future of our program. The first year’s goal was to empower students to tell their stories, and not worry about what others are making. With that in their back pockets, this coming year will be a journey of teaching students to teach themselves, in other words, be autodidacts. The skill of teaching oneself opens an entirely new world. A world that couldn’t have been shown to me through any other means than my curiosity to learn.
I hope you all have a great summer, and I look forward to seeing some of you on June 27th, 2024 from 6-9 for:
“Imagination Ecosystem”
31416 Agoura Rd Suite #105, Westlake Village, CA 91361
Keep Creating,
Jerry J White III
