At Oak Park High School, film class isn’t just teaching students about cameras, scripts, and editing software. For teacher James McLellan, filmmaking is a great way to support student mental health by fostering cooperation, confidence, and a sense of belonging.
McLellan’s film journey started years ago, after a career in the army and a fine arts degree. “When I started teaching, I had dreams of making films, but it wasn’t a reality back then,” he says. That all changed with the arrival of digital cameras and non-linear editing. Suddenly, filmmaking became something students could realistically do.
From Classroom to Film Set
Since then, he has helped build one of the most unique high school film programs in Manitoba. Oak Park offers both a video production course and a course called ‘Film Company’, where students in Grades 9-12 work on large-scale productions that mimic real industry environments. Their films are screened at Oak Park’s Screen Arts Festival, appear on Rogers TV’s Hollywood High, and are regularly invited to the Gimli Film Festival’s Young Filmmakers Program.
For McLellan the goal isn’t to produce professional filmmakers. Instead, he views film as the vehicle for advancing students’ collaboration in group and teamwork environments.
A Safe Place to Take Creative Risks
“We need to throw kids into these complex environments where roles are complex and the way they cooperate with each other is complex,” he explains. “But the consequences of failure are low. If the film doesn’t work, nobody gets hurt. That’s a safe place to learn.”
That safety is key, especially at a time when many students struggle with anxiety, isolation, and pressure. McLellan has shifted away from darker themes in student films, choosing to focus on comedy instead. “It’s hard enough being a teenager,” he says. “Let’s just keep it light.”
One notable production was a sci-fi film his class made during the pandemic called #2020 about people with 20/20 vision taking over the world. A recent short film called Mr.Ceasette plays on the ‘Six-Seven’ meme that’s recently gone viral among kids.
Running Film Company Like the Real World
McLellan runs Film Company like a workplace. Students take on roles as actors, crew members, or production leads. Meetings, teamwork, and problem-solving are a big part of the course. Everyone is important and everyone has a role to do. “It has to be an unbroken chain,” McLellan says. “If one link is missing, it doesn’t work.”
Through that shared purpose, students learn how to manage stress, communicate clearly, and lead big groups under pressure. They discover that they can handle responsibility and what initially feels overwhelming becomes comfortable.
Impact Beyond the Classroom
McLellan says he receives great feedback from parents, who are surprised when they attend screenings and realize the scale of what their children have helped create. “They’re like, ‘Wow, this is a real movie’,” McLellan says, noting that his students also say they look at movies completely differently now.
Outside the classroom, McLellan recently co-produced a feature film with Alexandre Trudeau called Hair of the Bear, which centers around teenage anxiety and resilience. While separate from his schoolwork, the theme goes along with what he sees every day – the need for kids to have resilience and experiences that build confidence rather than fear.
McLellan’s work with teaching film has earned him a Prime Minister’s Award for Teaching Excellence, as well as an award from the National Art Education Association, and he says he’s open to talking to educators who are interested in his program.
“It is a lot of work, but I tell myself that I have to be thankful that I’ve had an opportunity to have a career as a filmmaker, and a rewarding career working with kids.”
