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Wellington College has been named Independent School of the Year for Student Video Production. The judges from Independent School Parent magazine were impressed by the creative flair and professionalism of WTV, the College’s student-led television company. WTV is a part of College life that both typifies the creative energy that exists here and captures it brilliantly, as evidenced by this fun-filled, exuberant, entrance film from Speech Day 2016.
Julian Thomas commented: “WTV has been chronicling the quirks of Wellington Life for the best part of a decade. They deserve this recognition. The work that our WTV students put into the films they make, and the final products they produce, are an aspect of Wellington that makes me very proud: here our students can follow their own path; they can be as creative as they want to be; they can learn and develop through real-world experience; and, by taking ownership of what is captured on film, they can play their part in telling the story of the College”.
James Ellis, the teacher who oversees the work of WTV, wrote the following submission for the award:
“Wellington College WTV is a student-led film production club that has become a staple of life at Wellington College. The club includes members from throughout the school year groups and creates high quality video content that chimes with the character of the school: fun, creative, and bold. This includes satirical scripted films to open the College’s annual Speech Day, parodies of TV staples such as the Welly Bake-off, and extensive media coverage of the Festival of Education held annually at Wellington. Alongside these headline projects, members of WTV work throughout the year in collaboration with our singer-songwriters to film studio sessions and live-stream concerts on the WTV YouTube channel; they also create short monologue films with budding actors. In short, WTV is completely embedded in school life at Wellington.
Our students are given free-reign to make the creative film content that they want, and to develop the skill set that they are most interested in. Some of our students are technical superstars, their editing and camera operating skills vastly outstripping the staff supervisors by the end of their time here. Others are pure creatives, developing impressive scripts, concepts, and cinematographic ideas for the content they make. All of them work brilliantly well together as a team, sharing the knowledge in their areas of expertise, and learning from their peers and friends in order to successfully make films. Every year a group of three executive producers lead the club, giving direction and mentorship to younger students, and leading members of the core team to complete the ambitious projects the team have envisioned.
WTV’s worth to the school takes many forms. We provide a platform for emerging actors and musicians to showcase their talent for the school, we create video content that shares the school’s holistic approach to education in a way that is accessible to the wider public, and most importantly we give our members the chance to explore their own creative vision and develop leadership skills in the pursuit of creating outstanding films”.
Well done to the WTV team for achieving this award from Independent School Parent.
