Hand It To The Kids

Film production at Benton Park School in Leeds, including examples of films produced the school’s pupils.

Film identifying the activities of school children at Benton Park School in Rawdon, Leeds, who comprise the Benton Park Film Unit, with a voiceover commentary provided by their teacher (and amateur filmmaker) Mollie Butler. The film identifies the activities of children in the classroom, including use of film cameras, projectors, audio recording and editing kit, and showcases examples of films they have produced, with a particular emphasis on activities based around animation. In her voiceover commentary, Mollie Butler outlines how she uses introduces filmmaking to the youngest age group, by demonstrating the principles of animation and noting their reactions to the Zoetrope and Praxinoscope. She also outlines the types of activities she encourages and the reasons for doing so. The activities are based around working in groups or activities which allow a large number of pupils to actively participate, although she does acknowledge that some pupils prefer to work on their own in producing animation. Mollie Butler also highlights areas of filmmaking that children enjoy, notably handling cameras, and how she builds on this to teach editing at a later stage. Apart from animation, she teaches pupils to make film plays, often based around real life situations, which she feels is valuable to the children. At the conclusion of the film, Mollie Butler identifies the skills and rewards that her pupils derive from film-making activities. ‘Young people quickly learn to plan direct shoot and act in their own films. They learn the art of choosing words carefully and to good purpose. All these aspects of filmmaking are very relevant to the learning of basic skills of writing, speaking and the marshalling of one’s thoughts. Filmmaking gives the young person motivation and imparts a feeling of confidence and above all a sense of achievement’. Examples of films or extracts from films produced by pupils at Benton Park School included within the movie comprise: Batman Defuses Electroman, cartoon (Neil [surname not known], Paul [surname not known]). The Story of Yop, cartoon (Philip Hatton, animator, Richard [surname not known], camera, Neil [surname not known], lights). Jaws, cartoon (Andrew [surname not known]). Disarmed, animation [story from Aesop’s fables] (Lisa [surname not known], animator, David [surname not known], lights, John [surname not known], camera). Radars [sic] Adventure, cartoon (Nigel Clark, artist). [Harewood Bird Gardens], documentary (Michael [surname not known]). Hand It to the Kids. Morph Goes Fishing, animation (Peter, [surname not known]). Fishing Mad, animation (Paul Wood). Soul Snatchers. Sequences comprise: the animated film produced by two pupils, Batman Defuses Electroman; an introduction to the principles of animation by means of drawing a figure on and flicking separate sheets of paper to create the impression of moving images; pupils observing a zoetrope and praxinoscope in action; pupils engaged in a group activity, making their own zoetrope strips, pupils measuring, drawing, working in small groups and observing their own creation in action; Philip Hatton drawing cartoons for his first film, with an example of one drawing; Philip Hatton seated in the classroom, sharing a desk with a colleague; pupils filming Philip Hatton’s cartoon; the film The Story of Yop; another animated film produced by a pupil, Jaws; four pupils handling cut-outs to produce an animation based on one of Aesop’s fables, pupils in a group clustered around a table, some discussion between them; pupils filming the cut-outs; three pupils manipulating artwork or operating lights, with close shots of other pupils watching the activity; the animated film produced out of this activity, Disarmed; another animated film produced by a pupil, Radars Adventure; a pupil (Michael) holding a cine camera and filming penguins in the Bird Garden at Harewood House, interspersed with extracts from his film; Michael at an editing bench winding through his film and using a splicer; a group of pupils filming a film play in the classroom, Hand It to the Kids!, including a pupil dressed in pyjamas at a breakfast table, classmates watching the action; pupils organising action for an unnamed film outside on the school grounds, involving a mock fight between two pupils, the action being filmed by an unidentified school girl; an animated film Morph Goes Fishing; another animated film produced by a pupil, Fishing Mad; the film, Soul Snatchers. The film concludes with a montage of shots of the activities of school children in film production at the school, including pupils in a group in a discussion, pupils operating a slide projector, the group of pupils making Philip Hatton’s animation, pupils recording sound with tape recorder and microphone, a school boy operating a camera, Michael at the editing bench.

Featured Buildings

Benton Park School Bird Garden, Harewood House, Leeds

Keywords

Children’s film-making; Film production in schools; Benton Park School; Animation; Group film-making activities; Mollie Butler