Rochester High Students Compete for $18,000 in Video Awards

Young filmmakers from are using video cameras and editing programs to create short, strong messages about underage drinking.

Video production students from all three district high schools are preparing half-minute entries for the 12th annual Courageous Persuaders contest, featuring $18,250 in scholarship money – mainly for Michigan teens. The campaign, which drew 743 entries last year, challenges students to write, shoot and produce public-service ads aimed at middle school viewers.

Youngsters from that target age group help judge entries after the Feb. 9 submission deadline.

"It takes courage for high school students to produce these sorts of messages" about health, safety and legal risks of drinking alcohol before age 21, says broadcast teacher Roger Smith of Lake Orion High.

Christopher Guyor, a video production instructor at , feels "the best part is that students have to prepare for an actual audience."

Delivering a high-impact warning in 30 seconds requires a different approach "than making a video for fun or for posting on a website like YouTube or Facebook," adds Guyor, who encourages participation. "A number of students are preparing entries and one submitted his already."

Guyor, who lives in Berkley, has taught video production since 1999 and added an advanced course in 2003. Students from the district's two other high schools, and , also can enroll.

'Good fit for the curriculum'

"I have used some campaigns as [advanced] class projects," Guyor adds, "so the students receive a grade as well as any possible rewards from entering the contest. So competitions like Courageous Persuaders are a very good fit for the curriculum."

Last year's winners, announced at a Troy Marriott banquet in May, include these Metro Detroiters:

• Della Paul and Sean Mouton, Utica High ($2,000 each)
• Morgan Lawrence, Eisenhower High in Shelby Township ($1,500)
• Jonathan D'Ambrosio, Lake Orion High ($1,000)
• Alexandra Eastman, Hailey Thrasher and Alex McPherson, Dearborn High ($500 shared)

Among runners-up were Ellen Daniels and Shannon McGovern of Lahser High in Bloomfield Hills, Charlie Mauer of Lake Orion High and Ashley Niemi of L'Anse Creuse High North in Clinton Township.

Winning commercials from 2011 will be on view at the North American International Auto Show at Cobo Center in Detroit during Education Day, a Jan. 18 reduced-admission event for student field trips.

The Detroit Auto Dealers Association, based in Troy, manages Courageous Persuaders and is among six prize sponsors.    

Prizes and exposure

During the first round of Courageous Persuaders judging, a panel from the auto dealers' group picks 60 semi-finalists. Students at middle schools review those and fill out questionnaires, which are used to determine the winners.

In addition to a $3,000 scholarship, the top winner works with professional editors on a broadcast-quality version of the spot for airing by the CBS affiliate in Metro Detroit and on screens at Secretary of State branches throughout Michigan.

All 13 finalists also are distributed by Community Media Network of Troy for viewing on public access cable Channel 18 in Berkley, Clawson, Ferndale, Huntington Woods, Oakland Township, Pleasant Ridge, the Rochester area, Royal Oak and Troy.

The competition has expanded since 2000 along with the popularity of digital video cameras, editing programs and production courses.

That first year, 17 teams from Troy and Clawson were the only participants. Last year, students from 383 schools sent videos. Overall, about $90,000 in prizes have been awarded.     

Career inspiration

Educators see benefits beyond scholarships.

"These contests are extremely helpful for students wishing to build their portfolio and receive feedback from those in the broadcasting field," says Michael Kaufman, who has taught TV and Broadcast Media electives at L'Anse Creuse Public Schools in Macomb County for three years.

"The most important thing that my students learn from these contests," he adds, "is that they have a real opportunity to make money in this business. Quite a few of them leave my classroom to find jobs in the video field."   

Similarly, many Rochester alumni "have gone on to develop successful careers in the industry," according to instructor Guyor.

Courageous Persuaders began as the brainstorm of Michael Martone, a former district court judge for Troy and Clawson, and John Barczyk of the McCann Erickson ad agency branch in Warren.

A brochure about the competition can be downloaded here.