JCHS Audio, Video, Film Students Attend Macon Film Festival

Jasper County High School’s film students kicked the school year off with a field trip to the 18th annual Macon Film Festival. Thirty-eight students in the Audio, Video, and Film CTAE pathway viewed and critiqued films from college filmmakers across the country in the “Student Shorts” block.

First-year film student Dalaini Howell commented, “Me and my friend occasionally whispered to each other about some scenes — it’s like we were professional critics.”

The JCHS students also participated in a Q&A with filmmakers after the screenings. Hearing from the filmmakers, film student Rocio Sanchez-Hernandez noted, “It made me realize you can make a whole film with just about anything.”

There was also a special screening of the JCHS Film, “The Story of Driftwood Dan,” produced last fall on Jekyll Island, Georgia by and starring several of the JCHS Film students in attendance.

Now in its seventh year, JCHS Film produces original short films, documentaries, local business promos, and a school/community news show. Reflecting on the upcoming year, JCHS junior Hollie Prentiss said that “watching those short films really broadened my perspective of what goes into everything we watch. I got really inspired to make my ideas a reality.”

The students also toured the Center for Collaborative Journalism at Mercer University and the historic Capricorn Music Studios in downtown Macon. The JCHS Film program is a three-year career tech pathway with 60 students across four classes taught by Dr. Tyson Harty, as well as 45 students in the “Dramatic Writing for Film, Television, and Theatre” courses taught by Luke McFarland.

Check out JCHS Film’s productions at YouTube.com/JCHSFilm and follow their behind-the-scenes exploits on Facebook and Instagram @JCHSFilm.