You Ain't SCENE Nothing Yet!

AFI + USC MAE PARTNERSHIP

October 29 - November 2, 2017

    LAUSD / USC Media Arts & Engineering Magnet was honored to be one of two LAUSD high schools selected to participate in this year’s inaugural AFI Storytelling Bootcamp.  For three periods during one week in late October, two AFI alums visited Matthew Waynee’s Filmmaking 2 & 3 classes. The AFI Bootcamp focused on teaching the students how to create professional loglines, develop believable characters, and utilize elements from their own lives as inspiration for their film projects.    

    The bootcamp provided a mix of lecture, discussions, and assignments.  The class also had a chance to read excerpts from professional screenplays like Jaws and Blade Runner and then analyze video clips of the same scenes to see how the script laid the foundation for what was ultimately shot in the final film.  AFI artist-teachers Erika Grediaga and David Ross offered the students invaluable insight into how to make their own stories stronger and their obstacles more engaging.  Grediaga noted, “I think that giving kids the tools to be able to tell their own stories is one of the most powerful gifts that you can give a young person.”

    The AFI Storytelling Bootcamp went beyond just lessons in the classroom. Waynee’s students also attended the annual AFI Film Festival in early November to watch an advanced screening of the award-winning animated feature The Breadwinner.  Inspired by the novel by Deborah Ellis, the film follows the life of a young girl living in Afghanistan who must help her family survive after her father is taken away by Taliban soldiers.  After the screening, the director of the film Nora Twomey met the students and answered their questions about how the film got made and how Twomey began her career in film. Waynee was excited to be a part of this new partnership.  “I’m always looking for new ways to bring in professionals to give my classes a taste of the opportunities that are out there. Especially for my students who want to go into animation, they had an amazing experience learning from Ms. Twomey.”    

    The bootcamp culminated in one final classroom visit by Nicholas Arioli, who wrote and directed the animated short Coin Operated.  Arioli began his career as a computer scientist but took two years off to create this animated short, which was submitted for Oscar consideration this year.  Arioli said he was struck one day by the phrase “life savings.” He shared, “Our dreams and our mortality collide in this common phrase. I liked the interesting mix of feelings I felt thinking about that.”  A couple students also had the opportunity to pitch their own film ideas to Arioli and receive his feedback. Arioli’s comments and his willingness to share how he followed his dream to make films were inspirational to many of the USC Magnet students, who have gained solid advice from a few Hollywood professionals on how they can start making their own career dreams into a reality. 

AFI Festival:  Q&A with Directors

Students Pitch To Pros