Student stories explore where art meets science in Los Angeles at the 2025 Winter Academy

January 30, 2025

By: Anthony Payne

This year’s SRL Winter Academy was held January 2-6 in Los Angeles, California, where 13 high school students spent the first week of the year collaborating to report, film, and produce their own original news stories just before fires broke out in the area. This year’s stories centered on the Pacific Standard Time Arts Initiative, a series of art exhibitions that explore the intersection between art and science.

Victor Fernandez, director of SRL’s Youth Media Program, led the five-day training event.“This Winter Academy was an engaging and insightful experience for all the students that attended,” he said.

“In collaboration with PBS SoCal, these young storytellers were able to receive support and mentorship from professionals during the production of their stories. It is such an amazing process to witness!”

The students started in workshops taught by SRL and PBS SoCal mentors, where they learned the production process from top to bottom. The mentors reviewed filming, including camera settings, framing, and best practices for conducting interviews. Students broke the ice by filming practice interviews with their teammates.

  

“I liked the Art of the Interview workshop the best,” said Jake Salas, a junior at Northview High School in Covina, California. “After leaving, I can confidently say that I learned skills that I will remember for the rest of my career.”

The week wasn’t all work and no play – the fellows also got to explore Los Angeles. This included a trip to Universal Citywalk, a tour of Warner Bros. Studios, and visits to iconic tourist spots like the Griffith Observatory. These daily excursions gave the fellows a sample of the many experiences Los Angeles has to offer.

“I live in LA, and it’s been really cool seeing everyone’s reactions to coming to the city for the first time,” said Fernando Leiva, a junior at Ulysses S. Grant High School in Van Nuys, California. And, he added “it was great getting to collaborate and learn from other student journalists.”

After a tour of California State University, Northridge’s media departments, PBS SoCal producer Jaime Morgan Munoz led a storytelling workshopand helped the fellows pitch their stories. Once the workshops concluded, the students took their new skills into the field as they worked in trios to film and produce short video pieces on their chosen exhibits, at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, Autry Museum, Hammer Museum, and Armory Arts Museum. 

Students headed to their chosen exhibitions to film b-roll and interviews with artists and curators before a full day of recording voiceover and editing. Once the pieces were finished, the experience culminated with a screening of the student projects at the PBS SoCal offices in Burbank. 

   

Read on to learn more about the students and their stories.

Special thanks to the PBS SoCal team for their partnership in making this event possible, particularly Desiree Gutierrez, Kathryn Weibezahl, and Emily Moncata.

And a note: This event took place just a few days before the destructive Palisades and Eton fires began in Los Angeles. If you or someone you know has been impacted, PBS SoCal has compiled this list of resources to help navigate recovery after wildfires.

Meet the teams!

Team 1

The students: Michelle Ho, a junior from Arcadia High School in Arcadia, California; Ruby Kilar, a junior at Lick-Wilmdering High School in San Francisco, California; and Jake Salas, a junior at Northview High School in Covina, California.

The mentors: Quinn Hettich, Editor-in-Chief of The Sundial, and Leah Clapman, SRL Executive Director

The story: Reclaiming Indigenous authenticity

Team 1 brought together two Native American artists at the “Future Imaginaries” exhibition at the Autry Museum to discuss the complexities of what it means to be a “first people.” Future Imaginaries explores the rise of Futurism in contemporary Indigenous art as a means of enduring colonial trauma, creating alternative futures and advocating for Indigenous technologies in a more inclusive present and sustainable future. This story will be available to watch on the SRL Winter Academy YouTube playlist soon.

Team 2

The students: Samantha Yee, a junior at Granite Bay High School in Granite Bay, California; Angela Alvarado, a senior at Los Angeles County High School for the Arts (LACHSA); and Fernando Leiva, a junior at Ulysses S. Grant High School in Van Nuys, California.

The mentors: Victor Fernandez, SRL Sr. Director of Youth Media Programming, and Anthony Payne, SRL Communications Associate

The story: Preserving Indigenous knowledge for future generations

Team 2 produced a profile of artist Beatriz Cortez. She created a sculpture for the Armory Arts Museum in Los Angeles called “Generosity 1,” her version of the historic spacecraft Sputnik 1. Her version is designed to carry seeds and is Cortez’s interpretation of preserving Indigenous knowledge to share with generations even further into the future.

Team 3

The students: Emilie Berkowitz, a sophomore at Canyon Crest Academy in San Diego, California; Steven Andrade, a sophomore at Clearfield High School in Clearfield, Utah; and Ebonie Shelley, a student at University Charter High School in Los Angeles, California.

The mentors: Wyatt Mayes, SRL Associate Producer, and Eduard Cauich, a professor at California State University, Northridge and Sports Reporter at the Los Angeles Times

The story: How technology shaped Hollywood

Team 3 explored two exhibitions at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures that analyze how we visualize the future in film, and ask us to think about where we can go with advancing AI, extreme climate change, and other modern challenges. Stay tuned to watch their story on the SRL Winter Academy YouTube playlist.

Team 4

The students: Maya Morton, a senior at Layton High School and the Davis Catalyst Center in Kaysville, Utah; Nico Fischer, a junior at Santa Clara High School in San José, California; and Brooklyn Rudd, a junior at Farmington High School in Farmington, Utah.

The mentors: Marie Cusick, SRL Editorial Director, Jasmine Mendez, Editorial Assistant at the LA Times

The Story: Artists explore climate change and social justice

The “Breath(e)” exhibition at UCLA’s Hammer Museum features 25 international artists exploring the intersection of climate change and social justice. Team 4 spoke to Sonja Cayetano, the museum’s educational programs assistant, who explained why the effects of climate change are inextricably linked to social justice.