PEABODY — Peabody Youth TV (PYTV) is preparing a new generation of media professionals, entertainers, and YouTubers via their 12-week commercial production program.
More video production programs are planned through the summer. The kids can apply skills acquired through the programs in a variety of job opportunities.
Program educator Stephen Valenti, said the students are learning how to film, storyboard, and edit the commercials.
“If I had known about this program, when I was their age, I would have done it as well, because I do exactly what they are doing right now,” said PYTV staff member Bernard Perisie.
He said students are the future of the professional media world in a time when media is so important. The kids who are a little older than the participants of this 12-week program start as PYTV work-study students, and if they like the experience, they might end up working there too.
“I haven’t heard any complaints about it so far,” said Perisie.
Most of the kids engaged in the program said that they liked it, because they were interested in new technologies and making videos for their future or existing YouTube channels.
Reid Pimental, 11, who attends Carroll Elementary School, said that he already had his channel on roller coasters, and the channel had around 40 subscribers.
“I am what some people call an enthusiast,” he said about his commitment to roller coasters.
Pimental said he did not mind expanding his channel to explore other topics. He appreciated the program, because before he got involved in it, he used iMovie for making his videos, and not Adobe Premiere Pro, which is taught at the program.
Something that Pimental “was not expecting, was humor. We definitely had a lot of humor in my video,” said Pimental.
Higgins Middle School student Marcos Gonzalez, 13, said he decided to get involved in the program because he wanted to become a YouTuber and he wanted “to entertain people.”
He learned video editing, shooting, and setting up a tripod — all valuable skills in video journalism.
Emma Ruci, 10, a Saint John the Baptist School student, said that she had fun at the event, and she could use the skills she obtained to make the videos of how she played video games.
The kids split into two groups, and each group worked on their own video.
The first group came up with the idea of a disappearing spray, one that could be used to make people and objects you don’t want to see disappear. The second group came up with a spray with the power to transport people to different places.
Drew Little, 14, from Higgins Middle School, talked to his classmates about the cost of travel. The group came up with a catchy slogan — “take a sip and you will be gone in a blip,” according to Little.
Little said that he liked the program, because “a lot of these skills can get you into jobs like news production.”
He said that he wanted to develop his own YouTube channel, and that entertainment was a very hiring industry. Little has participated in PYTV youth programs since 2020.
“Pretty much almost every time; I’ve done it for like two weeks each summer.”
More programs are planned for summer.
For more information about PYTV visit https://peabodytv.org/learn/peabody-youth-tv/.
Oksana Kotkina can be reached at [email protected].
