Golden Valley High School Film Students Nationally Recognized

GVTV works with PBS to produce documentary on homelessness

Golden Valley High School TV has been a nationally recognized video production program that has been serving the school for more than 10 years.  This year, GVTV received the honor of being selected as one of nine video programs in the country to work in conjunction with the Student Television Network and PBS on a national documentary examining poverty in various communities.
“We were completely taken back, and by the opportunity we have been presented,” said Director and GVTV instructor Charles Deuschle.  “Of course we have a lot of work to do in the span of three months, but we have so many talented students working on this project.”
The purpose of this project is to highlight the current issue of homelessness across the nation.  With the familiar “Awesometown” moniker, Santa Clarita residents sometimes don’t realize how much homelessness affects their own community.
“For many people in the United States, homelessness is one of those issues that not many people talk about,” Mr. Deuschle said.
To get the message out there, the GVTV program is tackling this project just like any other television production company would. Currently 10 out of the 23 students in the GVTV class are working on the documentary.  They have writers, cinematographers, and a producer, who happens to be high school junior Eduardo Martinez.  Eduardo, better known as Eddie by his classmates, recently filmed a documentary on poverty and homelessness in Mexico.
“For me, this documentary itself is a great opportunity,” Eddie said.  “I just recently did a documentary on homelessness and poverty in Mexico, so I know a little more about the process and what they are looking for.  Before, I used to think film was just about making people laugh, but I realized how much of an impact film can really have.  I am so proud of my team, and I would like to thank Mr. Deuschle for everything he has done for us.”
The GVTV students, many of whom are preparing for a career in the film/video industry, are currently hard at work on their portion of the documentary, which will premiere at the STN Convention in Atlanta, Georgia, in early March.
Currently their goal is to raise funds to cover the costs of attending the convention including airfare, conference fees, ground transportation and workshops.
To date, Golden Valley is the only high school in the Hart District that has never attended the conference due to the financial hardship of many of the families they represent.  Should the required amount of funding not be achieved, the donations will be applied to updating and maintaining the equipment needs of their program.
Those interested in supporting the hard-working GVTV team can donate at www.GoFundMe.com or www.DonorsChoose.com.