Alena, from the Czech Republic, is enjoying her exchange experience in sunny Scottsdale, AZ. She arrived on the PSE program with an interest in photography and creating short videos. In her free time back at home, she would film videos of her friends wave boarding and free skating, edit them, and post them on Instagram.
“In my home country, my dad and I fly a drone and make recordings of the scenery. It is our hobby we do together.” She and her boyfriend also share an interest for filmography, “[He] is an editor for famous people such as Jon Marianek and Jake Paul. We share a passion for film.”
Alena always wanted to learn more about creating short films, but never had enough time. When she noticed that her school in AZ offered a TV/Film class, she was thrilled. “It sounded very cool! We don’t have this type of class in my home country.”
The class is everything she could have hoped for, and more.
There are only 15 people enrolled in the class, but Alena enjoys the small group setting and the projects they work on together, which include writing, acting, video editing, and much more.
Presenting the School News
“My friend and I volunteered to be news anchors together. Not a lot of people are into sharing their faces with the whole school. I really like it and have learned a lot,” she shares. Her TV/Film teacher complimented her ability to present the news so eloquently and professionally. “He says that other teachers have told him that I do a really good job as an anchor, and that makes me feel good.”
Alena anchors the news every other day because crew members are rotated. The productions range from two to seven minutes depending on the amount of information and videos to share and number of guest speakers.
To prepare for the news, each person has a different job. “We receive emails from teachers with information that should be in the news for that day (ex. food options, sports news, etc.). One person compiles the information, and another writes the script. Other members oversee video and sound. My friend and I read the final script from the teleprompter.”
The reports usually consist of the Pledge of Allegiance, morning welcome, food specials, a fun fact, where to send emails, the Best Teacher/Student of the month, sports games information, and other current events.
There are many challenges that come with presenting the news live. Alena recalls her very first time anchoring for the news, “The microphone stopped working. We did the entire news segment, but no one could hear us! It was embarrassing. I stayed calm. I felt a bit nervous, but not as nervous as the others. I just kept reading the teleprompter and stayed focused.” She says that she is very careful about rehearsing the script before they go live, as well as practices the correct pronunciation of names.
Alena enjoys hosting guest speakers on the show. There is typically a teacher who announces winners of the football team and swimming team (which Alena was part of). The school psychologist is also an occasional guest speaker, addressing issues such as stress and anxiety and how best to manage them.
Alena thrives in front of the camera as a news anchor and enjoys the studio vibe with LED lights, music, and the “chill” atmosphere. She also enjoys the creative process of filming and editing short videos. She and her classmates made the following short video that highlights the recording process, creative transitions, and fun out-takes:
More to Film
Creating daily news segments is not the only project Alena works on in her class. Her favorite experiences have been traveling around to film video shorts, intros, and outros.
One such video project that was especially memorable took place around Halloween. “We filmed an 11-minute horror movie in the auditorium. It was very scary, dark, and people could appear in remote places out of nowhere! I played the part of a girl who was camping with her friend at a college recruitment camp. But it was really a cult, and once you are there you cannot leave!”
Another unique project was making a silent movie. Alena played a side character involved in time travel to different dimensions. It was creative and out of the box, which are her favorite types of projects.
One of the best benefits of taking film class is the deep friendships that she has developed with her classmates. “I love the crew that I am in. They are nice, and we talk a lot in the class and spend time with each other outside of school. When we have finished all our work in class we play cards. It is so fun!”
Alena plans to continue exploring her creativity and artistic ability as it relates to film even after the PSE program. We wish her the best on her artistic journey!
Written by Flo Webb; Edited by Lauren Lunt