Wrangell students take their talents to the big screen
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) - In the small island town of Wrangell, which has a population of about 2,000, a group of aspiring filmmakers are making their mark, and bringing Alaskan stories to the silver screen.
Wrangell high school students Jackson Pearson and Silje Morse are two such filmmakers, getting the chance to show their work at the Vancouver International Mountain Film Festival in February.
“It was really nerve wracking,” Pearson said. “But at the same time, it was really like it was really nice to see, all this effort that I had put in, that my mentors had put in with me and seeing that recognized on the big screen with all the other really amazing films that played there.”
Pearson, a sophomore in high school, featured his film “More Than a Fish” about declining salmon populations and their effect on Alaska Native populations.
Morse’s film centered around the story of her grandmother, and the music she recorded as a folk musician in the 1970s.
“I had a couple of people say ‘Wow, I loved your film. It was really good for like a young filmmaker’ and it was really nice,’” Morse said. “I’m not really - I wouldn’t say I’m not used to getting praise, but it’s like... it was like the first time I’ve ever been congratulated on such an accomplishment.”
Both films were encouraged and had guidance by their teacher, Laura Davies, who spends time working with both middle and high school students who are drawn to media and filmmaking. Davies is the supervisor for the Stikine Stories Club, a documentary and podcasting club that meets at Stikine middle school, and where Pearson and Morse got their start.
“One of the challenges is like I’m kind of operating by myself here in Wrangell,” Davies said. “So that would be the like obvious challenge, but mostly because I’m so excited about every students project, every interview. I’m excited, So all of my friends have to endure listening to my excitement and and enthusiasm which is over the top.”
At the high school level, Davies said she and her students receive support from See Stories, an Alaskan non-profit that supports young Alaskan filmmakers.
“The thing that people maybe don’t realize is there’s a huge network behind us,” Davies said. “And without them we wouldn’t have the success we do.”
Both Pearson and Morse said they enjoyed their experience in Vancouver. For Pearson, it motivated him to keep creating, beginning work on a new film about Alaskan Native populations and mental health challenges.
“I got really inspired and I kind of realized that I really want to make another project,” Pearson said. “I really want to do this and I had a project in mind that I already wanted to do.”
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