In East Islip High School, there are many interesting rooms, but by far there is one that stands out from the rest. There are big cameras and green screens and in the control room there are lighting and sound boards. Endless creations have been and will continue to be made and that’s only the beginning of what happens in Room 248.
Room 248 is the location of WFTK Studio and home of Mr. William Lackner’s Video Production and Broadcasting classes. When you walk into the room you are almost always greeted by Mr. Lackner. Then you see cameras – a whole lot of them lined up around the stage that has all the props you can think of and a huge green screen that covers the wall making endless possibilities come true. The computers to the left on the wall for editing all have Adobe Premiere Pro – the best editing software a person can have.
Heading into the control room there are more computers on the wall making for easy editing, then the control panel with a wall of TVs to get every angle that is being filmed.
If your hobby is to use cameras to create short films and other videos, come to Room 248 and take Video Production – it’s the class for you. You will be making anything from news stories to interviews and at the end of the year you will be making a short film final product. Lackner gives you the tools to create these films like the Canon HF R800 camera and tripods. But if being a movie star or a recorder isn’t for you, some roles in the control room might just be.
The control room has many different gadgets but there are four main jobs to do in the control room like sound control which involves tuning sounds, muting things, adding commentary, and highlighting a person’s speech by raising their mic volume. Then there is audio which plays background music and allows for theme music to play. Then there is the green screen background person switching from logos to anything from being in a car or on the news. Last, somebody switches from commercials back to the tv show.
If none of that suits you, there are more jobs in the studio like the set director, which may catch your attention. This involves being on the floor and making sure everything goes according to plan, the stage is set up to how it’s supposed to be, and everyone is remembering their lines.
In the class you will have almost full power making independent films from picking partners to writing your own lines and making an amazing creation. It should be clear that video production has many different things to offer and it’s thrilling to think about.
“It’s a fun class to take with your friends,” Chris Rizzo, a Junior in Video Production, said.
“We work in groups to produce short films and it’s definitely worth it,” another Video Production student, Dylan Hordyski said. “We learn to do the control room and how all the camera work and all the different camera angles.”
After you take Video Production 1, you don’t have to leave the coolest room in EIHS. Next comes Broadcasting. Broadcasting is all news and stories about our school. You can be a podcaster with your own show talking about anything that goes on in school or even outside of school like sports. Students produce and direct their own original digital news package filled with original stories about the students, events, clubs, and programs of East Islip High School and East Islip School District. Kids will use digital editing equipment, and a broad range of video/sound gear in the fully equipped TV Studio at EIHS.
No matter what class, Mr. Lackner will be there for you. He originally went to college to with visions of teaching Wood Shop, but jumped at this great opportunity. “It’s a growing industry,” Lackner said. “I wouldn’t change it for the world.”
What has gone on so far in Room 248 is just the start and there are amazing things to come.
“I’m blessed to have the opportunity to help these students build important skills and allow them to connect with the school and community.”