News & Events

Teen Poetry and Video Workshop in South Orange

We at the South Orange Public Library recently completed a three-part workshop for teens which combined poetry and video.The idea of the series was to explore the creative potential of both poetry and video and to use video in an imaginative way to express poetic ideas.

The series was run by a local published poet, Holly Scalera, and Boris Gavrilovic, who teaches film and animation at Columbia High School of the South Orange/ Maplewood school district. It consisted of three sessions, roughly divided into writing, editing, and filming. During the first session , Ms. Scalera used specific exercises to help the teens compose poems. For instance, they wrote a group poem in which each contributed a few lines , and each wrote a poem based on a word picked from a list of objects (all of which were in the poet's home.) During the second session, participants edited their poetry. The third session was held at Ms.Scalera's house, a rambling Victorian full of quirky objects, and all the filming took place there, with the assistance of Mr. Gavrilovic. Students worked in small groups in various parts of the house as well as outside.

The resulting videos were compiled onto one tape and were shown at a follow-up program, to which participants, friends and family, and the public were invited. The videos showed humor, creativity and variety, and used movement, sound and the setting to enhance and interact with the poetry. Using a venue outside the library was especially effective in providing an informal atmosphere and stimulating the teens' imaginations.

The project was funded by the Edison Media Arts Consortium, an independent, nonprofit media arts organization based in Jersey City, New Jersey.

Submitted by Ellen Columbus, Head of Adult Services South Orange Public Library 65 Scotland Rd. South Orange, NJ 07079 973-762-0230