The series was created for the Cinnaminson community to get to know teachers.
Before Cinnaminson High School senior Jen Faiola took Sean Wilson’s Advanced TV class, video production never crossed her mind. Now, it’s something she sees herself continuing as a lifelong hobby.
For the past two months, Faiola, along with other Advanced TV students, have been working on a series called “5 Songs That…” The video series involves interviewing CHS teachers and staff members on the five songs that shaped their lives, with the intent of allowing the Cinnaminson community to get to know the staff on a more personal level.
“It’s really getting to know your teachers on a level that wasn’t really possible before,” Faiola said.
Wilson says when he presented the idea for the series to his senior students, they immediately ran with it, completing 12 videos in less than two months.
“After that initial four or so, then people started to express interest to us,” Wilson said.
Faiola says she received requests from students who were interested in hearing from specific teachers.
The first step, Wilson says, was deciding what the videos would look like. The students decided on a plain black background, a large microphone and having the teachers and staff members talk directly to the camera. The students quickly realized this may look a bit boring, so they decided to add music video clips from the songs the teachers were discussing.
“I think you definitely discover who takes music really seriously and who … it really is their life and not just background filler,” Wilson said. “When you have your music teacher do it and they talk about how music is a huge part of their life, it really doesn’t come as a shock to you, but when you talk to a world language teacher and they talk about their passion for opera, you’re like, ‘Whoa.’”
In addition to allowing her to dive deeper into video production, the project also gave Faiola a new playlist she’ll take with her after she graduates.
“This series was kind of a jumping board for me to get into different genres of music,” said Faiola, who grew up listening to classic rock and alternative music. “It definitely made this music a lot more personal for me.”
The videos have garnered hundreds of views on the class’ YouTube channel, CinnaminsonHSTVProd, which features not only “5 Songs That…,” but other projects as well.
“I sort of give them free rein to develop things that they’re passionate about doing,” Wilson said. “This group was obviously very interested in learning about the staff.”
Wilson plans to continue the series in the fall with a new set of students, and is excited to see where they can take it. He says the diverse group of students and staff at Cinnaminson High School is what made the project so interesting.
“We’re not cookie cutter, we’re not vanilla, we’re sort of an interesting bunch,” Wilson said.
At the end of June, the Advanced TV class will air a “10 Years of Advanced TV” project on the YouTube channel. For this project, the senior students interviewed 23 CHS graduates and previous Advanced TV students to find out what they learned from the class.
To watch “5 Songs That…” or see the trailer for “10 Years of Advanced TV,” visit www.youtube.com/user/CinnaminsonHSTVProd
