At Mayfield Middle School, eighth-grade students have the option to take a class in video production as an elective, taught by Cheryl D’Amico.

The class was not always at the middle school; Mrs. D’Amico and Mr. Bok started it at the high school ten years ago, and it was later transferred to become an eighth-grade elective.

Video production teaches the essentials of editing videos. In class, students are given a task to create a video based on the topic they are provided. They learn how to film using different angles and camera shots strategically and about how each shot should have a purpose and be important to the overall meaning. Students collaborate in pairs or small groups to complete their tasks–having fun and working at their own pace while becoming more comfortable with being behind the camera, interacting with other individuals, and using the video editing features in iMovie.

“I want students to walk away feeling confident with who they are. I want them to have the ability to communicate in a visual sense; hopefully that will add to their ability to communicate in a written sense,” expressed Mrs. D’Amico.

It is important for students to be good listeners and effective communicators, which are a couple of the skills that Mrs. D’Amico teaches.

She explained that to be an effective educator, continuing education is essential, even beyond the required degrees. This has been important to the success of this class especially, she says. “Everything that I know in video production I had to literally teach myself.”

When asked, students said they enjoy recording the most, specifically when they are recording their friends. Mackenzie Reid, video production student, explained, “My favorite thing to do in video production is to film because it’s fun and I get to speak to my friends and interview them.” Patrick Dinnen also enjoys filming his classmates. “It’s just fun to see how they act on camera,” he expressed. 

Video production has changed the way many students think when they pick up a camera. For some, it may be more than just editing and filming and may spark interest in a future media industry career.