Silent Films at UMA have been a yearly tradition for some time now. Hosted by Major Curtis for his US History II class, silent films are cadet’s attempts at recreating historic events, media, or figures from the early 1900s. Cadets separate into groups, use props, and spread out across the school (or out of school) for filming. And each year, new topics are chosen and old topics are re-invented.
Cadets film their scenes in and out of school with their groups. Then, these scenes are added together with text and background music, sometimes by Major Curtis, and sometimes by the cadets themselves. Each with the express goal of at least vaguely educating their fellow cadets on their chosen topic.
Many cadets enjoy recording their silent films, in fact, it’d be hard to find a cadet who didn’t. Cadets like Max Richins, one of the actors for Grapes of Wrath, who says he “had fun, my head hurt, I had Chili’s” and enjoyed time in and out of recording.
Or maybe cadets who enjoyed the learning experience, like Cadet Jet Le, part of the crew for the Speakeasies silent film, who says “It was a culture shock for me to find out the real truth behind America’s history as me and my fellow actors went through the journey of producing this film.” And this shock (which you’ll have to watch his film on your own to uncover) highlights the different aspects of these silent films that cause them to be so enjoyable to make, while still being a valuable educational experience.
After all the filming is complete, the cadets get to watch their movies as a class. These films even end up on Major Curtis’ YouTube account, Joshua Curtis, where the past few years of silent films can all be seen. Last year had films on topics like Babe Ruth or moonshine. And, if you want to see what this year has in store, the YouTube channel will be wide open: Major’s YouTube channel