Film-making Boot Camp

The Kansas City Star and the AP reported today about an innovative new film-making program at Stephens College in Missouri that my writing partner Bill Rabkin is actively involved in as an instructor. The students learned by doing — they worked as the crew on an hour-long pilot directed by Bill and written by Ken LaZebnik, who is also dean of the School of Performing Arts at the Stephens College.

Director Bill Rabkin, whose credits include a stint as director and
executive producer of "Diagnosis Murder," called the student crew
members eager to learn and overwhelmingly positive – even in the face
of lunches on 16-hour days that often consisted of bologna and cheese
sandwiches on white bread.

For LaZebnik, who co-wrote the "Prairie Home Companion Movie" with
Garrison Keillor, the film camp is more than just a teaching exercise.
He hopes to shop "Triangle" – his story of a family struggling to cope
with the death of a 6-year-old child while adopting a new daughter from
China – to studios as well as regional film festivals.

"This is an educational experience. But it’s also for real," he said.

4 thoughts on “Film-making Boot Camp”

  1. Now see, y’all croissant-munchin’ latte-sippin’ city folk act like that’s some sort of hardship, to eat baloney (the proper spelling) and cheese. And on white bread, no less. Some of us appreciate the simple pleasures. Gimme a Big Grab bag of Fritos on the side and a Cheerwine to wash it all down, and I’m a happy man.

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