Ms. Rebecca Orr Recognized by the Maine 207 Foundation #207Now #excellenteducator @wmth_west @MTHSfoundation

 

On Wednesday, April 26th, Maine West Fine Arts teacher, Ms. Rebecca Orr, received recognition for her extraordinary work incorporating career connections and experiences in her Broadcasting curriculum and programming.

Specifically, Ms. Orr was recognized for the Media Career Day she organized in October, which involved a panel of media professionals and a trip to Noise Floor studios. Read more about the Media Career Day HERE. 

Mr. Dan Kolen, Coordinator of Digital Media for District 207, created a wonderful video capturing the tremendous work of Ms. Orr.

Congratulations, Ms. Orr! You are so deserving of this recognition!

Nikhil Nair Places 3rd in Screen Test Student Fest! #207Now #mediaarts #awards @wmth_west @mwactivities @mainewestfab

Nikhil Nair's film, "How to Make a 'Dum' Good Biriyani," placed 3rd in the festival!

On Saturday, April 15, Maine West film students, along with their teacher Ms. Rebecca Orr, attended the 16th Annual Screen Test Student Fest, an international screen test featuring the best short films created by high school filmmakers.

Two Maine West students, Ash Carmichael and Nikhil Nair, had films selected for the festival.

Nikhil ended up placing 3rd at the festival!

CONGRATULATIONS Ash and Nikhil! We are so very proud of you!

Brooke Capper filming a news package on the event. The photo is of her interviewing Rob Pileckis who runs the Screen Test Student Fest.

Nikhil Nair speaking about his film, "How to Make a 'Dum' Good Biriyani.

Ash Carmichael speaking about their film, "Expressing Identity Through Art."

Ash Carmichael and Nikhil Nair Selected as Finalists in Screen Test Student Fest 2023 #207Now #filmmakers @wmth_west @mainewestfab

We recently learned that two Maine West students have been selected as finalists in the Screen Test Student Fest film competition! Representing Maine West are the following students:

Ash Carmichael

Nikhil Nair

The Fine Arts Department and the entire Maine West community are so proud of these students for being accepted into this festival. We are honored to have them representing our school.

Screen Test Student Fest is on Friday, April 14th at 7:00 p.m. and will be held at Al Larson Prairie Center for the Arts in Schaumburg (201 Schaumburg Court). Winners of this festival receive a cash prize and will compete the following day in the international round, which is held virtually. The 2nd and 3rd place and audience choice winners also receive a cash prize.

Check out the amazing films created by these students below:

Ash Carmichael's "Expressing Identity Through Art"

Nikhil Nair's "How to Make a 'Dum' Good Biriyani"

Speech Team Awards and End of Season Celebration #207Now #speech #forensics

 

On Thursday, February 23rd, the Maine West Speech Team celebrated the conclusion of a successful season at their Speech Team Awards Celebration. This year's team participated in a number of competitions, even placing several times!

Congratulations to the Maine West Speech Team on a successful 2022-2023 season! 

Thank you to head coach, Mr. Rick Rosenberg, and assistant coach, Ms. Gizelle Alverio, for your leadership of the Speech Team!

Ben Pluta Receives Recognition from Western Illinois University! #207Now #mediaarts #broadcasting @wmth_west @wiucofac @mainewestfab @mwhs207

We recently learned that Maine West junior, Ben Pluta, has been selected by the faculty of the College of Fine Arts and Communications (COFAC) at Western Illinois University to participate in the inaugural COFAC Young Artist Awards Day on Thursday, April 6, 2023. 

The awards competition recognizes talented high school juniors in various artistic categories, including music, musical theatre, dance, acting, visual arts, broadcasting and journalism. Ben received this recognition for his achievement in broadcasting through his participation in Advanced TV & Film classes at Maine West, as well as his extensive involvement in WMTH.

On April 6, 2023, Ben will be participating in a day of activities at the College of Fine Arts and Communication at Western Illinois University, and will be receiving his award recognition.

Congratulations to Ben and to his broadcasting teacher Ms. Rebecca Orr on this wonderful recognition!

Congratulations, Class of 2022! Thank you for your tremendous contributions to the Fine Arts at Maine West! #207Now #Classof2022 #Graduation @mainewestband @mworchestras @mainewestchoir @mainewestdrama @mainewesttechcrew @mainewestart @lahartanddesign2 @ wmth_mainewest @mainewestfab

The Maine West Fine Arts Department salutes the Class of 2022! Thank you for your contributions and dedication to the arts at Maine West! 

The students in the slide show below have distinguished themselves as outstanding students in their Fine Arts classes!

Five Maine West Student Filmmakers Nominated for National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Crystal Pillar Awards #207Now #studentfilmmaking #studentemmys @wmth_west @mainewestfab

Five Maine West student filmmakers had works nominated by the Midwest Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS) for Crystal Pillar Awards in four categories of filmmaking. This distinguishes these students' projects among the top 3 or 4 films in each category in the region.

The NATAS organization sponsors the Emmy Awards, and similar to the Emmy Awards, after being nominated, the next step will be for the NATAS to announce winners in each category. Winners are invited to attend the Silver Circle Dinner on May 13th to receive the Crystal Pillar Award. Winners will be announced at the Midwest Media Educators Association (MMEA) Festival on April 29th.

Enjoy the films nominated this year below!

News Report- Light News: Brooke Capper for The Hope Wall

Short Form Non Fiction: Ben Pluta for Libraries of the Past: Terry Blue's Honor Flight

Sports Program: Nitya Nair and Lindsey Kulesza for Girls Talk Sports

Commercial: Abby Wilson for Goldfish Cheeze-It® War

Congratulations to these students for their excellent work and for earning this recognition! A huge thanks to Ms. Orr for making this opportunity available to the students at Maine West!