Want to see how this is going to work? This is just a demo scene I did for the presentation so you can see how it will work. To make a decision and see how it plays out, visit the website: Leave The Light On
http://www.leavethelightonmovie.com/
Under films you can make a choice and see how it plays out. Thanks for watching! JASF
Would love to get some comments from some educators out there.
Getting an education; is it a right or privilege? I think it should be a right, too many people in the world are being left behind because they have no access to education.
We say we can’t afford to pay for everyone’s education, but yet we do pay for it in other ways. Teenage pregnancies, persons going to jail, crime. The list goes on and on.
I applaud the efforts of California State University in Fullerton, CA and the efforts of Ron Davis. Here is a man of passion and committment. He is not just talking about what needs to be done, he’s doing it.
The reason I named my film company Just A Spark Films is from the old song, “it only takes a spark to get a fire going,…” In real life it only takes that spark, that word of encouragement, the hand on the shoulder, the applause from the sideline, these are the things we can do to start this flame to ignite this country and the world.
As these kids get an education, they will in turn be inspired to teach others what they have learned and will go out and tell others the importance of an education.
We can make a difference and change the world. Write me today and let me know this is exciting to you and make a choice to help me in making this film. You can be a part of it, if only it’s just being a source of encouragement. Will you join with me?
Thanks Ron Davis for stepping out and making a real difference in the lives of young people who needed a hand.
To learn more about the Guardian Scholars visit California State University website today: http://www.fullerton.edu/guardianscholars/
Hello everyone!
After a lot of work, finally got the site up and running. I dream of the day that I can pay someone to do my websites! I do not like webwork, very time consuming and with me always having media on the sites, I have to build everything twice for Mac and PC users. Oh do I wish Microsoft would load Quicktime on their machines and OS, it would really make things a lot simpler.
A little note about the site. My hope is that as the film is complete I will have education partners and a place where schools all over the world can purchase this. If things go like I want them, I want to set up a fund to be able to give the movie away to those who need it and can not afford it, but that is later.
This is just a demo of how the film will work so those interested can see it in action. If this was the actually film, the viewer would only get the one choice and it would continue to play.
The way I wrote the script was just like life, sometimes you can make a decision that might take you off track, but not completely, later on you might get another chance to move back in the same direction. In the complete film, when the character Daniel walks up to the car, he thinks he’s doing the right thing by just seeing what they want and then walks off, but later in the film, he is beat up by these people for “wasting their time”. The correct choice is Harold who just walks on and goes about his business.
I wanted it to be real and also give choices that might look right, but can actually get you in trouble too.
There are also choices in the film where you will be rewarded by your good choices, so it’s not just about making bad choices.
Feel free to look around the site and please tell everyone about this exciting film that I hope to make this summer. If you would like to join with us in making this film, please contact Just A Spark Films for more information.
The Leave The Light On Movie website address is:
http://www.leavethelightonmovie.com/
Thanks for watching. JASF
You would have to live under a rock to not know about the terrible tradgedy that has struck Japan. As I’ve watched, listened and read about this event, it has at times been overwhelming. To comprehend the loss of life is something that is hard to grasp.
This morning as I do every morning, I make my coffee and download the NBC evening news and watch it on my iPhone. This report by one of my favorite reporters truly inspired me.
As Lee Cowan has been reporting in Japan all this week, this segment, “Human Spirit” should be looked at in the light of education.
If you were given the assignment of reporting on this disaster, most would just report on the loss of life, the damage to the area, the money that it will cost to rebuild, on and on, but what he did was look at something far greater; the power of the human spirit.
He did it in such a way that leaves you feeling hopeful, inspired. All week I’ve been watching the news and feeling really heavy all day thinking about the loss of humanity, but this report gave me a sense of hope and encouragement, that life can and will go on. The human race is a testiment to that.
How do you write and report like that? Education and also, a gift. Some have the gift to see things in a different light, but more importantly, to take the gift and use it effectively.
That is what Just A Spark Films hope to achieve, take the skills and knowledge of words and turn them into films that will inspire and encourage the world to think about their fellow man.
Thank you for inspiring me this morning. Let’s all think about how fortunate we are to have life, go out and do something with it. Encourage someone today about the importance of seeking knowledge.
I saw this yesterday and got so excited! What Sal Khan is doing is amazing, but what is even better he’s giving it away! What a visionary and generous soul. With this kind of shift we CAN change the world.
This also confirms to me the push we need to have in this nation as well as the world to provide the internet to everyone. It should not be just for those who can afford it. Just like electricity was expanded to reach rural areas, this same approach should be implemented in providing the internet to those who can not afford it and who’s demographic is not marketable to the big cable companies to provide the infrastructure.
My educational film is targeted to the rural communities by providing it at a low-cost or at no charge through grants and scholarships to schools that might not be able to afford it. That is what I like about Khan Academy the most, he is not charging, he is providing it free to those who need it the most.
We can change the world by giving from our hearts. We have so much in this nation and can afford to give to those who are less fortunate than ourselves. We will benefit from this as we produce a more productive human race throughout the world.
Thanks to Mr. Khan and inspiring me and more importantly the world.
To find out more about Khan Academy go here:
http://www.khanacademy.org/
Another education movie, is this the year for making movies about our failing education system? Is this what I’m doing? Not at all, I am trying to give a solution, not just raise awareness to a problem.
We’ve all been talking about how bad our education system is, but what is being done about it? It’s time to act and that means taking action. Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad that the film is raising awareness and people are talking about it, but that is not enough.
I have not seen it, just the piece on the nightly news and from the clip I don’t feel that much for the families or the kids. First of all the fact that these kids are preparing for college in my eyes they are already winners. What about the kids growing up in a trailer park wondering whether or not they will have anything to eat over the weekend. Do you think they are worrying about too much extra curricular activities? I doubt it. Yes, that is a problem for these busy kids, but let’s put this in perspective, they have choices. I’m advocating for the kids in our world, especially this nation who don’t.
I work with kids that can barely read. Who’s fault is it? It’s everyone’s, it’s not the teachers, it’s not the parents, it falls on the back of the human race and the desire to have more and not care about how we get it or who we leave behind.
Ignorance leads to poverty and poverty leads to death. I know because I came from an environment that did not value education. Why did my family not value education? Because their family and their family did not value education. It is a cycle that is hard to break.
We need to collectively as a world value education. How will we know when our society has made progress? When the salaries of those in education are raised and teachers and educators are paid a decent salary so they can better teach and not be stressed about how to make ends meet. When we celebrate our educators like we celebrate our athletes.
As I begin to put these blogs out there, who will be with me on this? Who will help me on getting these films made? Part of the reason for these films is to also attempt to change the paradigm of how we teach. Changing from teacher lectures and kids listen; to teacher opens the floor up for discussion and letting kids make their own decisions and begin to listen to their own voice.
To quote from one of my favorite movies, “Dead Poets” “letting them think for themselves is a dangerous thing”. No I say, thinking for yourself is what makes you a leader and not a follower.
I’ve never done this, but all my life I’ve always wanted to write. So now I am. I used to write a journal, but I stopped, so this will be my new journal. What is the point? Two fold, it helps me feel balance when I get things out and I really want people to get excited about changing the world. I’m a film maker by the way, Just A Spark Films (http://www.justasparkfilms.com) and I’m working on my latest, “Leave The Light On”, hence the title of the blog. It’s an interactive film where you will make decisions for the characters and see it played out. My hope is that young people will see the need to make better life choices and learn better reasoning skills.
Where did this title come from? When I was still living at home, my mom would leave the light on for me. I don’t know why, but that made me feel pretty good, sometimes she was up, but many times she was not, but just having the light on gave me a feeling of home, safety. That is what I want to happen with this film, a sense of home, harbor, North.
I hope I can find others out there that are as passionate about education as myself. We have a crisis in this country and if we do not address it, we will suffer as a nation and more importantly as a world. I could write all day about this, but this is supposed to be my first blog, so I’ll keep it short, as short as I can.
Welcome everyone. I have a website for the movie that I’m working on. I’ll release that address when I get the site complete. I hope to hear from someone.
