Starting this February, the TV and Film Production classes went to Westwood’s downtown to interview some local businesses in the area. Their main goal was to find out if there were any ways that the students could help with local business owners’ media needs, whether it be through social media, commercials, or any other content.
The trip was meant to make students think about business, content creation, and anything to promote these businesses in their community. Other than creating content to promote the businesses, these students can learn more about their community. Some students only learned about these new businesses on this trip.
Each student was able to take something different from each business they interacted with, and eventually, through this hands-on experience, they could create a piece of media for their chosen business.
For example, one of the students interviewed the owners of Triple 10 Boxing, a boxing gym in Westwood. The student who did this had a brand new experience learning about businesses in the area. Through this, they were able to make a commercial with highlights of people boxing, the students were also taught hands-on techniques.
Another group of students consulted with Goldberg’s Bagels, which was already a known staple in their community, but the company was happy to welcome students. For Goldberg’s, the students put together a commercial highlighting their family history as Goldbergs have been family owned and operated for over 60 years, and the business is deeply rooted in the town of Westwood.
Other than the learning experiences, the students were able to look at their communities, learn things about them, and learn about themselves. Each group of students developed a unique and personalised piece of media, based not only on what they learned and saw from these companies but also on the effort and dedication of their teacher, Mrs. Petrocelli.
“I want to say that I’m grateful for the businesses that were open to students; they helped us have a strong sense of community through this program. We are grateful for the help with this,” Mrs. Petrocelli said. 