Student earns video editor of year

After spending multiple hours shooting, editing, and writing for the ASPA competition, senior Sam Lewandowski won the Editor of the Year award. She had no idea what to expect going into this competition since she had never competed for this award before. Lewandowski found it very encouraging to win such a big award in videography because it was verification and a product of all of the hard work that she had put into the year. 

“I honestly didn’t know what to expect going in because I had never competed for that award before, but I knew that Har-Ber has a really big reputation at the festival and always does really well,” Lewandowski said, “so there was definitely some motivation from that factor.” 

The Video Editor of the Year award is given to a student in Arkansas who displays the best editing skills in either broadcast or film. The deciding factor for the winner is based on  a student’s work from the past year, a teacher’s recommendation, and a demo reel that showcases the student’s overall accomplishments. 

“Mr. Sherman helped me to keep track of films and news packages that I could use as entry pieces and encouraged me to be shooting all year with ASPA competition in mind,” Lewadowski said. 

As a sophomore, Lewandowski looked up to upperclassmen Nick Luttrell and Charlotte Mcwhorter winning multiple “Of the Year” awards in videography. While going into her junior year, she decided that she wanted to try her best to win one. 

“My favorite part about videography would have to be the creative freedoms you have with it,” Lewandowski said. 

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Lewandowski has run into a problem. It has been difficult for her to film and work because everyone has been getting quarantined from exposure. Also, finding certain locations to shoot at has been difficult for her. 

“Even in years before the pandemic, finding a location that you have permission to shoot at and that is a well lit or accessible area is really difficult,” Lewandowski said. 

According to Lewandowski, there are various paths to take in broadcast or film. She finds it captivating to be able to let your creativity flow when coming up with ideas for whatever you desire. When she started attending Har-Ber, she knew she wanted to be a part of the television program, so she took the fundamentals of television class.

“My desire to pursue videography as a career, specifically as a producer, had only grown over the years,” Lewandowski said. 

Lewandowski’s favorite film that she has shot was over the summer for SkillsUSA. She worked with some of the seniors that graduated last year for the last time. For this film, they had one week to assemble a four-minute one-shot video that mimicked the style of Alfred Hitchcock. 

“My passion started out from a love of reading books,” Lewandowski said, ”And so from there, I fell in love with movies and the idea of bringing stories to life.”