There will never be quiet on this set — it is, after all, a busy Bay Area hospital. But that isn't stopping young patients at UCSF Children's Hospital from writing, directing, starring in and editing their own movies, all while hospitalized for conditions ranging from cancer to kidney failure.
The creative buzz in the hospital halls is thanks to the MovieMaker program, brought to UCSF in 2003 by the nonprofit group BayKids. The group also runs a similar program at Children's Hospital Oakland.
"It's an amazing outlet for the kids to be creative, to be themselves, to ham it up if they want to," says Christy DuBois, a teacher in the hospital's school program who occasionally serves as a crew member for MovieMaker projects. "It lets the kids be kids."
Another benefit, says BayKids executive director Devora Kothari, is that it gives kids control over something at a time when they may feel very powerless. "We find there's so much value in turning over the keys to the kids," she says. The budding auteurs can learn about each stage of making a film, from storyboarding through post-production editing, or they can simply pick up a camera and start rolling — but at every step, they take the lead.
Most of the kids' movies are pure flights of creative fancy, says DuBois and Kothari. But some use the camera to explore the condition that brought them to the hospital, interviewing their doctors and nurses or speaking on camera about their illness and life at the hospital. Often, these hospital documentaries are sent back to the patient's school to give classmates and teachers a glimpse of what their absent classmate has been experiencing.
Screenings are regularly shown in hospitals and at awards-style premieres — a recent one was at the de Young museum. You can also watch some of the movies on YouTube.
BayKids offers volunteer opportunities for people with film skills who'd like to help with the movie projects. They're also looking for original music to use for soundtracks. The hospital's Child Life Services has volunteer staff who help out with MovieMakers and other activities.
Sierra Senyak is a freelance writer in San Francisco.
Story written in September 2009.
To learn more about volunteering at BayKids, visit baykids.org.
For volunteer opportunities with UCSF Child Life Services, visit Volunteer Services.
UCSF Children's Hospital and BayKids will be recognizing talented, young moviemakers at the premiere movie festival night on Sunday, March 21. Come celebrate and view the cinematic accomplishments of our youngest patients. For more information, visit www.baykids.org.