What's the schedule for the camp?

The summer camp runs for three weeks, Monday through Friday, from July 19 through July 27. Each day will begin at 9:00 AM and will conclude at 4:00 PM. Lunch will be provided through vouchers to the Bourse at Independence Mall.

Where is the camp held?

The program is located at the Hamilton Public Media Commons at WHYY, 150 N. 6th Street, Philadelphia, and the surrounding neighborhood. We are on Independence Mall across the National Constitution Center. Click here for driving directions.

We are also accessible by public transportation. Students taking SEPTA regional rail should get off at Market East Station (11th and Market). From there, they can walk five blocks east on Market St. and take a left onto 6th St. The building will be a block and half down 6th St, on their left.

They can also take the Market-Frankford El to 8th St. Once they've walked two blocks to 6th St., they can follow the directions above.

How do I pick-up and drop-off my child?

Parents can pick up and drop off students on 6th Street. There is a passenger loading zone in front of the American College of Physicians building just to the north of us on 6th St., immediately after Race St. on the right.

Students should arrive between 8:45 and 9:00 AM and will be waiting in the lobby of WHYY at 4:00 PM.

What do the students do?

They make movies. Through hands-on experience they learn to script, storyboard, location scout, cast, light scenes, record sound, shoot video, and edit in Final Cut Pro. They even act.

The first week is dedicated to smaller projects that teach the basics of continuity editing, multi-camera shoots, shot composition, storyboarding, and Final Cut. By the end of the first week, the students are ready to plan, produce, and star in their own short film.

Over the next two weeks, they are in production and post-production, shooting scenes around the neighborhood and editing back at WHYY. It's no easy task, going from script to screen in two weeks, but WHYY's Public Media Commons specializes in fostering team work and breaking down complicated tasks into digestible chunks. We're always impressed at the talent of our students and the quality of their finished products.

Who teaches/runs this camp?

This program is presented by the Dorrance H. Hamilton Public Media Commons (formerly known as WHYY's Learning Lab).

Public Media Commons staff have almost 20 years experience among them working with teens and media. Since 2003, then under the Learning Lab name, the Commons has been running after-school documentary workshops, summer camps, and teacher trainings in an effort to teach the teens of the Delaware Valley to express themselves through digital media. The team includes:

Craig Santoro, Director of Media Instruction: Craig joined WHYY in 2002 and shortly thereafter started the station's first youth media program. Since then, he has created and managed ongoing after-school documentary workshops for Philadelphia teenagers and partnered with community centers to hold video production classes for teens who had dropped out of school. He's developed award-winning video summer camps, partnered with numerous schools to train teachers to use video in their classrooms and created video learning experiences for nonprofit organizations and area retirees.

Steve Dixon, Media Instructor: Steve is a graduate of Philadelphia's High School for Creative and Performing Arts and holds a Communications Studies degree from West Chester University. In his third year as a media instructor at WHYY, Steve has taught video and audio production to elementary-school children, teens, teachers, and seniors. He is a skilled videographer, editor, and producer, and particularly talented at sharing these skills with others.

Henry Cohn-Geltner, Media Instructor: Henry is a native of Brooklyn, NY, with a degree in Broadcast Communications from Temple University and a Masters in Mass Media Studies from the London School of Economics. A veteran staffer of several Philadelphia community media programs, Henry also proudly served as an intern at WHYY, before returning as a media instructor.