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ClassMovies founder and managing director Phillip Lewis was only four years old when his father passed away, leaving a powerful legacy - a box full of old home movies. "Watching my dad on film really brings him to life for me - I can see his smile, the way he walks, how he sounds. I have three children of my own and understand the value in preserving priceless memories in a practical and enjoyable format" said Phillip.
In 2004, this passion saw Phillip embark on a project to capture and preserve the everyday classroom life of school children in movies. "Our aim was to provide a high quality, professionally edited class movie which was what parents wanted, was fun for teachers, used no school resources and was affordable to all parents and, ultimately, connected schools with their communities."
The project gathered momentum and Phillip took the step of leaving a successful 17 year career in finance to devote his energies to what has now become the ClassMovies Program. "In the early days, our biggest challenge was to make sure everyone in the school community enjoyed and benefited from the Program. In 2006 we were ready for school trials. We learned a lot that year."
Successful school trials in 2006 set the stage for a national launch. The Starter Pack™ was developed in that year and has now become the centrepiece of the Program. Using this simple Pack, just 60 minutes of filming over 5 days plus 50 photos captures a week in the life of the class - forever. Teacher response to their ClassMovie has been overwhelmingly positive with over 97 percent of teachers filming again each year.
"I like the way all the materials are presented and everything is supplied. I also like the feedback you give us in relation to our filming. Overall I love doing the filming and looking at the end result that you put together. Thank You!" said Jenny Ashenden, class 1/2 teacher at Larapinta Primary School in Alice Springs, Northern Territory, Australia
Today, the ClassMovies Program is delivering a unique and powerful movie insight into the life of thousands of classes around Australia. ClassMovies employs editors from selected film schools and is a major employer in the creative arts sector. Schools are now experiencing a new and powerful format which promotes the school and preserves priceless memories for parents, students and teachers.
"My teachers have found the process of shooting video for their class DVD not only easy but enjoyable and the product is very professional. We are only just beginning to explore the potential of this excellent product," said Michael Dunn, Head of Junior School at Cranbrook School in Bellevue Hill, New South Wales, Australia.
The ClassMovies Program is now available to educations organisations and their associated schools across Australia and, from 2010, in the UK.
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