Award-winning documentaries produced by high school students? Elementary school children, too?
That’s what the Area Nine Cable Council and Cablevision of Connecticut thought about the work of Westport students from Staples High School and Green’s Farms and Long Lots elementary schools.
These students took top honors and awards totaling $5,000 in U.S. savings bonds for their productions cablecast during the school year on Cablevision Educational Access Channel 78, school officials announced today.
Staples High School freshman Jonathan Karman, Carter Meyers, a sophomore, and Ben Blyer, a senior, won the overall excellence award and $2,100 collectively for their four-minute project entitled �Trash: the Lunchroom Dilemma.” Their faculty advisor was James Honeycutt.
In addition, four Staples freshmen from Mike Zito’s class —Jamie Boone, Caroline Casey, Caroline McDavid and Emily Weingart—won the silver award worth $1,600 for their production “Surviving Life as a Freshman.”
The awards were not limited to high school students, either. Joyce Losen, school system spokesperson, said students at Green’s Farms Elementary School and Long Lots Elementary School also took home awards.
For their project �Return to the LMC,� produced by Green’s Farms fifth graders, Emily Ashken, Carson Einarsen and Alexandra Wiener took home the gold award and a $600 prize.
A bronze award worth $300 went to fifth graders Emily Ashken, Alexandra Wiener and Eric Essagof for their music video, �Patches.” All of the students worked on their projects with Green’s Farms librarian Bill Derry.
At Long Lots, Linda Johnson’s third grade class won a silver award worth $400 for a project entitled �Erosion is Everywhere.� Losen said the subject was tied directly to the curriculum.
According to Losen, the competition’s purpose is to encourage students to develop video production and storytelling skills by creating access television shows relevant to their school and community.
I first met Jon Karmen when, about a year ago, I arrived home to find that my property (conveniently located near Bedford Middle School) was the site for his latest film project. The torrential rain did not deter Jon, who stood on the roof of my back porch, shouting directions down to his crew of eight grade production assistants and actors. I knew immediately that this young man—whose vision could induce 14-year olds to dress up as ninjas and scurry about in the rain and mud—was destined for a great career in film! Congrats to Jon, Carter, Ben and everyone else on your film awards.