Picture Perfect

Who was left out

Upperclassmen teach Paly’s consent and relationship workshops to freshmen, and a teacher asked me for a film to anchor them. At the same time, Paly had cut its film and video production classes, so students who wanted to make films had nowhere to learn.

Company 3 in Los Angeles color graded a high school workshop film at no cost.

What I made

FilmLab ran under Friends of the Palo Alto Children’s Theatre, a 501(c)(3), and brought together the Palo Alto school district, the City of Palo Alto, the Teen Arts Council, twenty2films, Company 3, and Full English Post. More than 35 teens made a real production there, and director PJ Palmer mentored us every week.

What happened

The film is part of the curriculum and plays every year. In 2026 it was an Official Selection at Just Film at PÖFF in Estonia, SF Shorts, the Lone Star Film Festival, and the All American High School Film Festival, and won Best Student Short and Best Cinematography at the Crown Point International Film Festival.

What I'd test next

In my study the film group gained more knowledge on average, but that group also included freshmen seeing the material for the first time. Next I’d run it with matched groups and a follow-up survey a few weeks later to see what students remember.