![“[Building nerf blasters] became this outlet of creativity for me that hasn't been matched by anything else. The process [of] making a build complete to your desire is such a painstakingly difficult process, but I've had to learn from [the skills needed from] soldering to proper painting. There's so many different options for everything, if you think about it, it exists. The best part is [that] if it doesn't exist, you can build it yourself," Ishaan Parate said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/DSC_8149-900x604.jpg)
![“When I came into high school, I was ready to be a follower. But DECA was a game changer for me. It helped me overcome my fear of public speaking, and it's played such a major role in who I've become today. To be able to successfully lead a chapter of 150 students, an officer team and be one of the upperclassmen I once really admired is something I'm [really] proud of,” Anvitha Tummala ('21) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Screen-Shot-2021-07-25-at-9.50.05-AM-900x594.png)
![“I think getting up in the morning and having a sense of purpose [is exciting]. I think without a certain amount of drive, life is kind of obsolete and mundane, and I think having that every single day is what makes each day unique and kind of makes life exciting,” Neymika Jain (12) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Screen-Shot-2017-06-03-at-4.54.16-PM.png)
![“My slogan is ‘slow feet, don’t eat, and I’m hungry.’ You need to run fast to get where you are–you aren't going to get those championships if you aren't fast,” Angel Cervantes (12) said. “I want to do well in school on my tests and in track and win championships for my team. I live by that, [and] I can do that anywhere: in the classroom or on the field.”](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/DSC5146-900x601.jpg)
![“[Volleyball has] taught me how to fall correctly, and another thing it taught is that you don’t have to be the best at something to be good at it. If you just hit the ball in a smart way, then it still scores points and you’re good at it. You could be a background player and still make a much bigger impact on the team than you would think,” Anya Gert (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AnnaGert_JinTuan_HoHPhotoEdited-600x900.jpeg)
![“I'm not nearly there yet, but [my confidence has] definitely been getting better since I was pretty shy and timid coming into Harker my freshman year. I know that there's a lot of people that are really confident in what they do, and I really admire them. Everyone's so driven and that has really pushed me to kind of try to find my own place in high school and be more confident,” Alyssa Huang (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AlyssaHuang_EmilyChen_HoHPhoto-900x749.jpeg)
Stories in motion: Students attend broadcast workshop at JEA convention
April 22, 2023
SAN FRANCISCO — High school student journalists sharpened writing, film and edit skills in the “Advanced Broadcast and Video Boot Camp” at the Spring JEA/NSPA National High School Journalism Convention (NHSJC) on Thursday from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
HTV Magazine adviser Dave Davis and his former student Brandon Goodwin, now Director of CaveState Productions, first discussed how to develop engaging focuses for video stories. Davis split the workshop attendees into pairs, and the students conducted five minute interviews to learn about each other. After the interviews, students shared ideas for hypothetical video stories on their partner’s interests. Aquila Co-Managing Editor Selina Xu (11) appreciates how the workshop showed her a new approach to video stories.
“Coming into this year, I approached video stories the same way as written articles where I would go to school events and just shoot everything I saw,” Selina said. “But from this session, I realized how important it is to really hone in on video stories and find a focus for the story that can really have an impact.”
Goodwin dove into technical elements of videography such as sound bites, interview framing and voiceovers. He encouraged students to incorporate “nat sound,” ambient noise from the surrounding environment, and series of shots that depict the same scene, called sequences. Participants explored the convention to find shots for their first assignment, which was to piece together six clips with “nat sound” in 30 minutes.
“I learned a lot [about videography] in high school,” Goodwin said. “I learned the most just by consistently practicing and publishing. And right now, video is so critical in every profession, just like reading and writing.”
Students shared their videos and received feedback on how to capture clear audio for “nat sound.” Davis broke down the broadcast writing process and instructed attendees to include an attention-getter, new information and story significance. The workshop leaders announced the second assignment, a NHSJC themed broadcast with live voice-over.
“It was really helpful how [the workshop] combined presentations with actual assignments where we could go out and shoot and also critiques,” Selina said. “The session was packed with so much useful information and feedback, and I’m feeling very inspired to improve our multimedia game.”
Davis and Goodwin invited students to perform their live voice-overs on broadcast topics like the convention trade show and travel jet lag. To close, the workshop leaders presented examples of strong video stories as encouragement.
“It’s always great to meet kids and teachers from other places that you normally wouldn’t meet and to inspire them to really do [journalism] seriously and do it better,” Davis said. “I’m always impressed with the students at NHSJC. They give me a little inspiration to keep going, so it’s a two way street.”
