Lights, Camera, Action! Bronxville Debuts TV Studio

Lights, Camera, Action! Bronxville Debuts TV Studio
Bronxville, NY

A group of more than 35 high school and middle school students have been mastering all facets of television production at the district’s newly built, state-of-the-art TV studio, which was completed at the beginning of the 2018-19 school year. 

Thanks to a generous grant and support from the Bronxville School Foundation, the professional-quality TV studio is equipped with three cameras, LED lighting, teleprompters, an anchor desk, playback monitor, green screen and a control room. Under the leadership of teacher Chris Doyle, the students take on the roles of on-air anchors, reporters, camera operators, producers and editors to produce news shows and segments. 

“Our new studio allows students to learn how to make a TV show, how to edit and produce it, and it really brings them the opportunity to do this in a way that has never happened in this district,” Doyle said. 

While Doyle has been running Bronco TV as a club for high school students for a few years, there had been no dedicated space until now. His students used handheld cameras and tripods to film and edit in different spaces throughout the building. Due to the immense student interest, Doyle launched Bronco TV, Jr. as an afterschool program for middle school students in the spring. This year, the district further expanded the opportunities for its students by launching a high school TV production class, which meets every other day over the course of the school year. 

“It was important to get the space,” Doyle said. “We now have the most modern, cutting-edge equipment. It will allow not just the high school, but the middle school students to really have this ability to learn how to produce TV and maybe even make a career out of something like this.” 

As part of the experience, the students are learning how to work as a team and communicate with each other as they direct and produce a show together. They’re also studying how to equalize sound, balance the lighting, create a script, think on their feet and ask the right questions during interviews, and edit their final videos. 

Doyle said the TV studio is a valuable contribution to the district and will be utilized by students, who create documentaries and commercials as part of assignments for other classes districtwide.