Clarke Central High School senior Dakarii Williams poses with a camera in the equipment room of the A/V Tech and Film class at the Athens Community Career Academy. Williams is the only student enrolled in A/V Tech and Film III at ACCA with instructor Michael Bosby. “I like being able to create things I see in my head and actually put it for other people to see. Since I’m a student and I’m young I don’t really have the means to do it by myself so taking this class I can have all of the equipment and editing tools I need to be able to do that,” Williams said. “I like having this class as a leg up so then when I graduate I don’t just jump into the field not knowing what to do.” Photo by Mackenzie Caudill.
Audio Visual Technology and Film instructor Michael Bosby’s A/V Tech and Film III class at the Athens Community Career Academy has only one student enrolled this semester, Clarke Central High School senior Dakarii Williams.
Clarke Central High School senior Dakarii Williams is the sole student enrolled in instructor Michael Bosby’s Audio Visual Film Technology III course at the Athens Community Career Academy. The course deals with the production of film projects and is separated into three levels.
“I guess I was the only one who was really serious about it and wanted to keep going because I actually want to do this,” Williams said. “I went ahead and took the third class because if I didn’t take this class, I wouldn’t want to be at Career Academy.”
Previously, only Film I and II were offered at ACCA and III was added when Williams advanced. Williams is passionate about film and wants to continue in the industry after high school.
“I like being able to create things I see in my head and actually put it for other people to see. Since I’m a student and I’m young, I don’t really have the means to do it by myself, so taking this class I can have all of the equipment and editing tools I need,” Williams said. “I like having this class as a leg up, so then when I graduate I don’t just jump into the field not knowing what to do.”
With only having one student to focus on Bosby is able to observe Williams’ qualities through her work.
“I told her early on, I see a lot of me in her. I don’t know if any of this has to do with us being Capricorns, but I’m gonna say, yeah. I’m an ambitious creative person and film, music anything like that. She seems to gravitate to it,” Bosby said. “When you got somebody who’s ambitious, who wants to do what it is they’re trying to learn and they’re very creative it’s really easy to teach them because you’re only teaching when they need you.”
As the only student enrolled in the course, Williams says she receives great support from Bosby.
“He gives me a lot of room to do things that I want to do and that makes me comfortable and helps me be able to do the things I think will help me go forward. He won’t stifle me,” Williams said. “He’s just very supportive. He said he says a lot of him in me and I see the same because we both are Capricorns if that means anything.”
With only one student in the class, Williams has little opportunity to interact with peers.
“People would question if I’m lonely because I’m in here by myself, but I can get all of my projects done,” Williams said. “I can get all of my work done, get something else from him and continue to move forward. I like being alone.”
According to Bosby, isolation is not an issue for Williams, though it could be for other students.
“In the real world you work with other people,” Bosby said. “Watching her last year, she doesn’t have a problem with working with other people, so I know that won’t be a problem. I think that for some students her situation would not be good if you weren’t a people person and you didn’t know how to work with people but for her, it’s not a problem.”
According to Bosby, it’s been common for the A/V Film and Tech classes to have fewer students enrolled.Bosby wants to have more students interested in the class and invested in the industry because of the opportunities it can provide.
“Students don’t know about this course, which is what I’m trying to do now is get more students aware of this course. One of the main things I’m trying to do to promote this class is that Georgia being known (as) the second Hollywood because of all of the movies that are being made here. There are more than enough jobs for students who want to take this class,” Bosby said.
According to Bosby, the more students know about the course, the more students will enroll.
“Once that happens, I think that we’ll have (more students in) A/V one, two and three and it won’t be a problem with any students,” Bosby said.
