We recently sat down for a second interview with Matt, who teaches RARE’s filmmaking classes in Pflugerville for his thoughts on the art of filmmaking, memorable student interactions and more!

Matt, who has been working with RARE for three years, found the beginnings of his interest in filmmaking when he worked for an elementary school, sometimes helping put together short videos for their P.E. classes. From there, he developed a passion for the art, later taking classes at college to build his professional expertise in the subject.

On the educational value of filmmaking classes:

For Matt, the filmmaking camp offers students a way to get hands-on in a way that a formal classroom environment doesn’t usually offer.

The students, typically from a range of ages, have to work together during the class to produce their short film projects- for example, with “one holding the camera, another with the lights and others as actors,” meaning that the children cement their social skills and learn to effectively work within a team.

On what he enjoys most about teaching the class:

Seeing the kids come in “excited and enthusiastic, and ready to learn!”

On some of the most memorable student success story he witnessed:

Every year, Matt says, there are always students that show exceptional talent that surprise him as an instructor.

This year, for example, one of his filmmaking class students is going to be working for Matt’s production company as a second cameraman! The “die-hard” student demonstrated remarkable skills during the class, working the camera expertly and penning a great script that caught Matt’s eye, and was brought on board to assist.

Similarly, in his third year teaching the class, he recalled a young third-grade student who played the main acting role in the class’s short film project and “blew her role out of the water.”

“She did the best job I’ve ever seen a third-grader do!” he remembers enthusiastically.

It’s witnessing these student success experiences that Matt finds the most rewarding and an “unforgettable” part of his job here in Pflugerville.

On how the class is structured:

Matt outlines what the typical week looks like:

With the first day allocated to the students getting to know each other, brainstorming ideas for their film, discussing different genres and getting a script and story ready to start shooting by the second day. The rest of the week is taken up by shooting and preparing the film for viewing by the parents on Friday at the end of the camp.

On teaching at the recreation centre:

“It’s a fun environment there,” Matt says, “the people are awesome!”

“There’s always stuff going on and we actually get a lot of feedback from people that are walking around and seeing what we’re doing.”

On what parents think of the class:

Matt notes that parents are equally enthusiastic about the class- and are in regular attendance to come watch their children’s film projects play out on the screens.

“Every Friday we invite the parents to come up and we see the majority of parents show up to support their kids,” he observes, saying that parents love to see the work that their children put into creating the films.

In fact, Matt has even had some students come back to take the class twice!

Thank you to Matt for some great insights into what a RARE Filmmaking camp looks like!

For more information on filmmaking classes available, please visit rarelearning.com.