Students Lend Creative Touch To Parker Flick

The creative touch of dozens of Howell High School students will be present in the independent film being shot at the district's Parker Campus thanks to a collaborative effort between producers and the school.

Students from the digital arts, marketing and student leadership classes are designing posters to create the atmosphere of a full-fledged in-session high school at the Parker Campus, which is being transformed to Morgan High School, "Home of the Patriots" for the Parallel Media film "High School." The culinary class also reportedly is expected to provide catering services this weekend.

"I think it's cool," junior Megan Hatter, 16, said about knowing her movie posters may be in the film.

The film crew provided a 30-some list of items they needed and the projects were divided between John Mozdzierz' digital arts class; Tim Olszewski's marketing class; and Martha Cesarz's student leadership class.

The students are creating posters, banners and other wall hangings depicting the faux Morgan High School's various clubs and events that will be featured in the background throughout the movie.

"We're broadening our horizons," senior Josh Markovich, 19, said. "We're getting our name out there and showing this is what we can do. ...I like to draw.

"I like the entire graphic design department. It's creative," he added. "It's a way to express whatever you want."

Markovich, who hopes to have a career as a freelance graphic designer, is designing eight projects for the movie, including posters about tutoring, a Battle of the Bands mock-event, computer science and school plays about Shakespeare.

Junior Robyn Baughn, 16, who hopes to have a career as a special effects technician, said she is excited about working hands-on with the film crew to learn their trade.

"It's a real-life opportunity," agreed senior Keia McLean, 17, a member of the marketing class.

Some Howell students will visit the set and see the movie being filmed. It's all part of the film company's efforts to teach their craft to future filmmakers.

The excitement surrounding the filming is not limited to students.

Teachers, including Mozdzierz, look forward to learning from the crew as well as their students.

Mozdzierz hopes his students take away "excitement, motivation (and) opportunities for professional goals" from the experience. He hopes to learn as much as he can so he can bring that experience back to future digital arts students.

The students working on the posters and banners plan to see the movie once it is released in 2010, even if to simply point out their artwork to friends.

The crew, and reportedly some of the cast of the $9.5 million independent film, arrived at the school on Wright Road, off D-19, Monday to prepare for filming.

"High School," which is produced by Parallel Media, centers on Henry, a valedictorian heading to MIT who gets high smoking marijuana for the first time and then learns about a random drug test that could put his college scholarship at stake.

As a result, he enlists the school's biggest stoner and his one-time best friend, Breaux, in an effort to nullify the results of the screening by getting the entire student body high, according to the Web site Internet Movie Database.

November 13, 2008