It's not odd for a school to be making videos, but perhaps it's a tad unusual to have a film-maker on staff. But that's what Mulberry school for girls, in Tower Hamlets, east London, has done, and with impressive results.
It grew from our specialisms in English, media and the arts, says deputy head Jill Tuffee, describing the creation of Mulberry Films — the in-house company with a full-time film-maker to organise production, supported by a part-time film editor. While they work closely with the media studies department, the brief is much broader, serving audiences within the school and beyond.
In a large school you don't get to see the work of all departments. This is a way of sharing it, as well as a resource for the whole learning community. Something that enables the vision and the ethos of the school to be shared with a wide audience.
Before you can start filming, though, you have to get the kit. The one thing that took the most amount of time in setting up was sourcing the kit, says Dilsana Hussain, Mulberry school's resident film-maker. ìI took advice from the industry and did a lot of research on equipment. It needs to last but be something the pupils can handle — and be broadcast quality. She opted for Sony HVR-Z1E cameras, along with Manfroto or Vinten tripods on which to mount them. For good-quality sound she bought Rode and Sennheiser microphones.
The media studies department also believes in quality equipment. Besides Sony cameras it found Canon HV30s a good starting point, along with good lighting — such as Arri mini-fresnels — and sound systems.
For editing at all levels the school relies on Apple Macs, using iMovie on Macbooks to start, but moving on to Final Cut Studio 2 on iMacs for A Level, and for Mulberry Films.
But picking the right equipment is not the only area to play careful. Take your time planning and see how it fits in with the school vision and development plan, advises Tuffee, who has been responsible for the venture. If it's an extra for the media department, that's different to it being a whole school resource. She is also clear about the need for clarity with colleagues: You need to do a lot of work with the staff so they are aware of the purpose.
Dilsana Hussain goes further: It's not enough to say to staff: 'Here's a form to fill in. She attended many teachers' meetings at all levels to get production started and compiled a showreel to help show the potential. This led on to commissioning meetings, but for any ideas to become films they had to meet certain criteria, including promoting success within faculties, enabling students to have a voice, enhancing creative development and having educational content.
While the idea of film professionals working alongside teachers may seem unusual, head of media studies David Fairhurst is pragmatic, seeing their role in creating videos in his department similar to that of a technician in a science laboratory. You can't do any practical subjects without practical assistance.
Once you have spent sufficient time carefully researching and then purchasing the equipment, you should be set up to produce a diverse range of films of the type that Mulberry school has made over the past 12 months — films made both in and out of school time, some made by pupils, others about them. Their productions have included an assessment piece for BTec dance; a student-produced documentary on survivors' experiences of the Blitz for GCSE history; a recording of Mehndi Nights, the school show at the Edinburgh Festival; and Five Heroes, a mix of poetry and animation to explore students' situations and aspirations.
Pupils can see their achievements reflected in the film, says Tuffee. It's a way of valuing those and highlighting them to a much wider audience. It can take personalised learning to a very different level. Schools have a responsibility to nurture talents and gifts whenever they arise.
The project is also raising students' self-assurance levels. ìI'm apparently really confident in front of the camera, says Shahnaz, a year 10 student who came in during a half-term holiday to work with Eelyn Lee Productions, brought in to make the Five Heroes film. The impact on self-esteem is evident, as her co-creator Sharmin proudly says that they became famous around the school. Both girls are set to do work experience with the company this year, even though neither is taking media studies.
Creating such links into the film industry is another aim of this enterprise, particularly as the creative arts is one of the largest employers in the country, with many of the smaller firms based in nearby Shoreditch.
It is a glamorous world that young people may not necessarily see themselves having a part of, except as consumers, says Tuffee. We want them to see themselves as creators rather than only as consumers. Having active participation, active creation, active engagement in what is a very powerful industry that shapes and reflects ideas about this world.
By providing direct experience of working with professionals in the field, the school hopes to fuel students' aspirations towards a career in the industry. ìThose skills that they learn are really important and make a career in media a viable possibility for them, says David Fairhurst, the school's head of media studies.
This aim of developing pupil ambitions is further helped not only by the active involvement of Dilsana Hussain, the film-maker, but also because she provides a very direct role model as a former student of the school who went on to study at the London College of Communication. I want to inspire the students to do something different, she says. To do a media course. To show there is life after it.
It is an industry that constantly needs fresh programmes, something that makes a career in it a realistic ambition, believes Eelyn Lee, an independent producer brought in by Hussain. Film making now can happen in all sorts of different ways with so many TV channels, the internet, and so on. The industry wants more content makers. But it is still notoriously difficult to get into. And this is a problem the school is working hard to address, by developing more than just ambitions.
Mulberry Films fits in the area of developing confidence and creativity, as well as links with the community and enterprises that take students outside of school and into a bigger world, says headteacher Vanessa Ogden. Exam results have gone up over the last four years, not just because of the academic side, but also by creating aspiration. In media studies, all students passed at GCSE, with 89% of these at A* to C, while at A2 all entrants achieved at least a C grade.
By raising aspirations and providing professionals to work alongside students, the school has created a situation where the impetus to achieve is being driven by the students. The pressure is coming from the students. They up the ante once they know what they can do, says Fairhurst. It raises their ambitions and expectations. That can't be bad. Can it?
Weblinks
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Apple Solutions (K16): apple.com
Sony Creative Software (E26): sonycreativesoftware.com
