There are lots of ways for young cinephiles to get their ya-yas out in the Bay area, from the free kids’ matinees regularly presented at the Beach Theater to the handful of drive-in theaters that manage to cling to their toehold on our local landscape. But the hands-down coolest conduit for budding Spielbergs and Lucases is Tampa Theatre’s Young Filmmakers Camp, a summer-long program of hands-on sessions that trains kids in just about every aspect of filmmaking. James Welsh and his team of educators from USF’s Florida Center for Instructional Technology give the campers informative but uniquely entertaining crash courses in digital photography, editing, lighting, sound and acting, then turn the little rascals loose to create their very own short films. The kids work in small groups of three or four, coming up with an idea on Monday or Tuesday and projecting the completed project on the following Friday — working feverishly against a ridiculous deadline, just like it’s done in Hollywood. All of the campers’ work from the summer is shown at a big grand finale presentation at Tampa Theatre. Tampa Theatre, 711 Franklin St, Tampa, 813-274-8286, tampatheatre.org, Welsh’s website: fcit.usf.edu/lmm
This article appears in Sep 10-16, 2008.