Opportunities for Youth Making Ripples Finalists

Since we started the Youth Making Ripples competition in 2014, we have received 100’s of films from student-filmmakers around the country and around the world. Each year, we select 15–20 top films to be screened at the Youth Making Ripples premiere event in January and up to 30 films to be included in the Youth Making Ripples database. The top finalists are judged for scientific accuracy by our scientific review panel. Each year, we award cash awards to the winners for the best scientific message for the elementary/middle school, high school and college categories. We also award a cash prize to the viewer choice winners (chosen by audience votes at the premiere event). In addition to cash prizes, we also established a partnership with the Marine Litter in Europe Seas – Social Awareness and Co-Responsibility (MARLISCO) project. The MARLISCO group is dedicated to stopping marine litter and also has a youth film festival that premieres throughout the European Union. The Youth Making Ripples finalists will have the opportunity to debut before international audiences at select MARLISCO film festivals. We also have an on-going collaboration with the International Seakeepers Society DISCOVERY Yachts Program which partners scientists with yacht owners to accomplish scientific expeditions and educational outreach initiatives. Each year, the teacher and creators of Our Best Scientific Message film are awarded a scientific expedition with scientists and professional film makers (travel expenses are not included but lunch is!). Finally, the finalist’s will be stored in our on-line database for use in classrooms across the country in select Youth Making Ripples satellite festivals.

For Educators

Film can be a powerful hands-on strategy to help students highlight their science research projects, retain content knowledge and even increase learning gains. Incorporate Ocean Literacy standards into your lessons, and challenge your students to link their films to Ocean Literacy Principles. Our partners at Schoolyard films produce films specifically for use in K-12 classrooms. Each Schoolyard film lesson comes complete with study guides that correspond to state and national science standards, and it’s all for FREE! The films that are selected as finalists are stored in our database and available for educator use. Additionally, our Youth Making Ripples program is always looking for new venues to bring our traveling satellite festival throughout the year. Hosting a Youth Making Ripples Film Festival at your school or in your community is free, however, we encourage your organization to provide an in-kind donation. To find out more details about our classroom resources, getting access to our database or hosting your own Youth Making Ripples Film Festival please visit our teacher resources page.

Audio Software

Audio software has two main functions — recording and editing. Most programs make recording as simple as clicking a red button and editing usually requires just knowing how to copy and paste. Here are a few audio editing programs that are easyto-use to get you started:

• Garageband — This iLife program comes pre-loaded on Macs. Here are some tutorials on how to use this program.
• Audacity — One of the most popular freeware programs for audio editing. Here is the site for the free download and with tutorials.
• Wavepad — Another popular and free program that is easy to use. Click for the free download.

There are many other audio editing software programs out there that may be more to your tastes. Check out this article for more programs. If you want to invest some money into your software, Adobe Audition comes with Creative Suite 6, though this program is a bit more advanced than the other programs previously mentioned.

Video Software

If you know how to use PowerPoint or Keynote (and we have a feeling that you do), you can turn your presentation into a video! Both of these programs have recording options where you play the slideshow while recording a voice over. The program will then give you the option to save your file in a video format.

• For how-to instructions in PowerPoint, click here.
• For how-to instruction in Keynote, click here.

Using software specifically designed for video editing will help you do some fancier tricks with your footage and give it more of a polished and professional look. Both Windows and Mac operating systems actually come with their own video editing
software that you can use.

• iMovie — This iLife program comes pre-loaded on Macs. Here are video tutorials on how to use this program.
• Windows Movie Maker — This programs is usually included in Windows 7, but may need to be downloaded for earlier versions of Windows. Here is the free download in case you don’t already have it and some info on how to get started with this program.

These two programs are great for beginners, making it easy to import, organize, and edit your media quickly and professionally, but also work for intermediate to advanced movie makers. On top of those programs, there are a bunch of free programs out there
that are also relatively easy to install and use. Here’s a long list of other free others that may work for your video editing needs:

• Animoto – has a cartoon/flip book quality
• Avidemux – Instagram of video editing: quick editing
• BlackMagic: Resolve Lite
• Camtasia (free 30 day trial)
• DebugMode Wax
• Google Picasa
• Lightworks (windows) – high quality and precise Hollywood-like professional, great for longer complex editing
• Machete Video Editor lite
• MPEG Streamclip
• Pinnacle Videospin – allows you to add sound effects (free download)
• VirtualDub
• VSDC Free Video Editor – not as reliable as above, but lots of features
• Wax (free download)
• WeVideo (online editor, works like dropbox)
• YouTube Editor (web based)

Most video editing software, including those mentioned above, also has built-in audio editing so you can simultaneously work on the visual and audio portions of your movie. If you are a bit pickier about your sound quality, you can use the audio editing software mentioned above in conjunction with these programs.

For the more advanced filmmaker who wants to invest in the best editing software, Final Cut Pro and Adobe Premier Pro may be for you. Save your nickels, though, because these programs are pretty pricey.

One major thing before publishing any media is to check that it properly follows copyright laws. When possible, make sure that you have explicit permission to use media that is not yours. In some cases, it is impossible or impractical to obtain permission to use certain materials; if this happens to you, follow the guidelines of the Doctrine of Fair Use to help determine if or how to use the material. Here are some other general rules to stick to when making materials for public distribution.

Don’t use just any picture off of the internet! — Just because something is on the internet does not make it yours to use; putting the website where you found an image on the bottom-right corner does not cut it either. The easiest way to avoid copyright issues with images is to use those in the Public Domain. Another way is to use images with a Creative Commons license.

Buying music doesn’t mean you own it — Many recent, high-profile lawsuits made it clear that you can’t illegally obtain or distribute music. Included in that illegal distribution is using any part of a copyrighted song, even for non-commercial purposes, without permission and/or paying hefty royalty fees. The myth that using 30 seconds or less of a song is allowed is just that — a myth. Your best bet, like with images, is to use music in the public domain or to find royalty-free music and sound effects. Most sound and movie editing software, including those mentioned in the above sections, come with their own royalty-free clips for your worry-free use.

Check out our Free Music and Imagery document for sources of media in the public domain.

We have compiled a list of music and image resources that you can use to help enhance your films here. We are working on compiling b-roll video clips from marine science researchers and film makers for you to use as well. If you know someone who might have some film footage to contribute, please email us at youthmakingripples@gmail.com