An 8-year-old Rockville Centre student has already achieved something few young artists ever do.
Hewitt Elementary School second-grader Wes Birnbaum earned a National Award of Merit in the Film Production category of the National PTA Reflections arts competition for his short film, “I Belong.” He was one of just nine students from New York state to receive one of the organ izaton’s national awards this year.
It was presented at the Nassau Region PTA Spring Conference May 23 at the Hilton Long Island Huntington in Melville, and marked the culmination of a journey that began at Hewitt Elementary before advancing through county, state and national judging. Wes’s film was inspired by this year’s Reflections theme, “I Belong.”
He took a hands-on approach to creating it, worked through the creative process from start to finish — helping develop the story, organizing scenes and directing family members who appeared in the production.
His cousins and younger sister were featured in the 90-second film, which centered on the themes of belonging and friendship.
“It’s about a kid who doesn’t belong, so he starts a new club where anyone can do whatever they want,” Wes explained.
He said he hopes people his age learn from the film that “you don’t have to just try to fit in — you can be yourself.”
After filming, Wes learned basic editing techniques with help from his cousins, who are around the same age, and assembled the final product. His favorite parts, he said, were “when the boy in the film made his own club” and getting to work on the project with his cousins.
Wes has always been interested in the creative process. He enjoys drawing, building projects, making videos and experimenting with how things work. While he had previously entered artwork in the Reflections program, this was the first time he submitted a film.
“I am beyond proud of him. I don’t think he really understands the gravity of it,” his mother, Emilie Shapiro, a jewelry designer and owner of Emilie Shapiro Jewelry, in Rockville Centre, said. “I’m an artist myself, so we’re a very creative household, and it definitely makes me feel really happy that he did this.”
The film advanced from Hewitt Elementary to the Nassau County competition before earning the program’s New York State Award of Excellence and qualifying for the national competition in the Primary Division, which includes students in prekindergarten through second grade.
“I am incredibly proud of Wes for being recognized at the national level in the PTA Reflections contest’s film category,” Gina Pastier, Wes’s teacher, said in an email. “He is a kind student who consistently brings enthusiasm and innovative ideas to the classroom. His creativity, dedication and storytelling talent were truly showcased through this achievement.”
For Wes, the award is already inspiring future projects. “I’m not sure what it would be about,” he said, referring to the next one, “but I want to make more movies with my cousins.”
The Reflections program has encouraged artistic expression among students for more than 50 years. Created to promote arts education, it helps students explore their thoughts, feelings and ideas through creative work while developing artistic literacy, confidence, and a lifelong appreciation for learning.
“Any school can participate,” Shapiro said. “I love this program because it’s free and really promotes the arts.”
Each year, hundreds of thousands of students from prekindergarten through high school create original works of art inspired by a student-selected theme and submit entries in six categories: visual arts, photography, film production, dance choreography, music composition and literature. Students are evaluated not only for the quality of their work but also for how effectively they connect their project to the annual theme with an accompanying artist’s statement.
