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Hollywood's budding filmakers - 15th March 2023

As the creme de la creme of Hollywood gathered for the 95th Academy Awards, a group of budding filmmakers were hard at work in a school sponsored by Oscar winner George Clooney.

The Roybal Learning Centre, a public high school in Los Angeles, is home to a magnet program for film and television studies and was set up with the goal of combatting the lack of diversity in American film and television. The students receive comprehensive training in all aspects of filmmaking, with Brittany Hilgers serving as one of their teachers.

Britanny Hilgers: "We wanna teach them how to tell a story and not just how to write a story. But how to tell a story as a cameraman, how to tell a story as a costume designer. Because that is part of the story, you know, it contributes to it. So, we wanna make sure that the students understand that these, all these jobs are available to them."

Actors George Clooney, Don Cheadle and Mindy Kaling frequently offer support and inspiration during their school visits.

Ja'saray Juarez is one of the attending students.

Ja'saray Juarez: "Before coming to this school, I wanted to be an animator and storyboarder. And I think now, I still want to storyboard and animate, but I would mainly wanna be a director and a scriptwriter now since we're learning a lot about that."

For David Flores it isn’t just about the practical filmmaking skills but about learning to communicate.

David Flores: "This school has taught me networking skills, that's very important. I've learned that it's very important to make connections with other people. And I've also learned lots of the basic film techniques, like how to work a camera, how to work a boom mic."

For principal Blanca Cruz, providing students who live in Hollywood’s backyard with the training to work in the film industry is vital.

Blanca Cruz: "Those are the students that many times have been left behind, have not had access to the, the support, these resources, well direct access. And so the partnership is key because they themselves in Hollywood see that there's a need."

'Everything, Everywhere All At Once' was honoured with 7 Oscars this year. Malaysian Michelle Yeoh dedicated her Best Actress award to children who share her background, to encourage them as 'a beacon of hope and possibilities'. Perhaps further inspiration for the students of Roybal to pursue their dreams.