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JP Catholic News, September 25th, 2009
New Sound Stage project has begun
Students returning to JP Catholic at the end of September will be excited to find that the school has grown in more ways than one. In addition to new students and new professors, the campus itself has grown. The university has added to the space it rents on Old Grove Road. This new space is currently being converted to a sound stage.
A sound stage is used for recording video or sound footage. It’s a large open room that has been sound proofed. “A sound stage is like a blank canvas for your painting,” explains Tom Dunn, Professor of Film Production. “You can create whatever you want.”
The sound stage will be a huge asset for the university. Over the summer quarter, Nathan Scoggins, Adjunct Professor of Film, taught Directing II to the Media majors of the Junior class. There were eighteen students in a media lab meant for ten. Not only was it difficult to fit everyone in the lab, but the lack of space also made it difficult for Professor Scoggins to show students how to set up a scene and where to place the camera.
Once the sound stage is completed, everything related to film production will be centered there. All of the production and directing classes will be conducted in the sound stage. The filming equipment will also be stored there. Even Professor Dunn’s office will be relocated to the vicinity of the sound stage. With the media lab next door for editing, everything necessary for the production and post-production of student films will be in a centralized location. “Students will get a lot less exercise,” Professor Dunn jokes.
The sound stage will give the students the opportunity to create their own sets instead of having to go out and find locations. “When you go on location, you’re always fighting against something,” Professor Dunn explains. “It’s never big enough for all of your equipment and people. You’re told, ‘You can film here from 3 to 5, but don’t touch anything!’ You’re battling light that’s coming in from a window.” The sound stage eliminates these problems by allowing the students to build their own sets. “It will improve the environment the students are working in, which should improve the quality of student films,” Professor Dunn says. It will also encourage students to grow in their abilities as filmmakers. “The sound stage will force students to grasp a new skill set,” says Professor Dunn. “They’ll be learning how to build sets for filming.”
The whole student body will benefit from the new sound stage. On Wednesdays, Father Richard Huston, JP Catholic’s chaplain, celebrates an all-campus Mass. With a 25% increase in the student body, even the largest classroom is too cramped for all of the students. The open space of the sound stage provides the perfect place for the students to worship the Lord in the Holy Mass. The sound stage will also be equipped with a projector and surround-sound stereo for the screening of films.
This new sound stage will help students to become better filmmakers. It will also give them exposure to different facets of production. JP Catholic is growing rapidly, constantly striving to meet even the unspoken needs of its students.
Read about funding needs for the new Sound Stage
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