LESS Outdoor Education and the North Valley Mountain Film Festival Partner in Student Project
Throughout the fall months, local professional film maker Isaac Carter worked with Lucerne senior outdoor education students to build skills in the areas of script writing, filming and editing. The partnership was spearheaded by the North Valley Mountain Film Festival, which is celebrating its tenth annual event at the Silverton Memorial Hall March 5, 2015.
“We wanted to help build the capacity of locals to create high quality films,” said Myles Berney, Coordinator for the festival and the filming workshop. “Some of these students have been submitting films to our event for many years, and it is nice to be able to help them build their skills.” Funding for the workshop was provided by the Turner-Zion United Church.
Isaac Carter helped LESS outdoor education students create their film scripts based on a rock climbing trip to the Slocan Bluffs climbing area. For all of the students, it was their first experience rock climbing, and the filming process added to the adventure. Yoan Shandro-Gosselin was the rock climbing ‘actor’, and he described his first rock climbing experience as, “another exciting outdoor activity.”
“Going up was fine, but when it was time to come down, I had a hard time trusting the gear and my belayer,” stated Shandro-Gosselin. Students belayed each other, adding to the seriousness factor.
Quade Nicholson-Chodat not only climbed, but also filmed while on the rock wall. “I enjoyed climbing, and would like to try something harder next time. I was most nervous about the potential for dropping an expensive piece of camera equipment while balancing on the rock,” remarked Nicholson-Chodat.
Other students involved in the project were Viktors Vilks, Rayan Deurichen, Eli Collier and Logan Mengler. Isaac Carter was satisfied with the results of the project, noting that each student created a unique edit that reflected their individual styles. One of the students’ edits will be selected by Carter and the class to premier at the North Valley Mountain Film Festival.
The North Valley Mountain Film Festival will be accepting submissions for its tenth annual event until January 31, 2016. As always, locals are encouraged to create short films that reflect their unique mountain experiences and perspectives.
