Alexandria Eighth Grader Wins National Award for Documentary on Gerrymandering
Maddox Schutter of Browne Academy earned national recognition in C-SPAN's StudentCam competition for his film examining how political district boundaries can affect voters.
ALEXANDRIA, VA – Across the country, nearly 4,000 students submitted films to C-SPAN’s annual StudentCam documentary competition. Among all the entries, Maddox Schutter, an eighth grader at Browne Academy, earned an award and a $250 prize for his five-minute documentary.
The film submission was titled, “Is Gerrymandering Going to Affect Your Vote?” and on Friday, May 29, at 8:30 am, classmates, community leaders, teachers, and representatives from C-SPAN and Cox gathered on the polished floors of the elementary school gymnasium to watch the film and honor its production.
According to Schutter’s teacher, Alissa Kharkar, who served as his advisor for the competition, the film began with a storyboard. From there, the project skyrocketed into a well-researched video featuring several expert sources about Gerrymandering and its effects on the country.
“Speaking with people who work in this field and are dealing with the effects of changing districts and their impact on voter representation helped turn this research project into something tangible and real for him,” said Kharkar.
In recognition of the U.S.’s 250th anniversary, StudentCam’s competition focused on the importance and relevance of the U.S. Declaration of Independence. Throughout the video, Schutter uses this document as a baseline for his argument.
“(…)This year’s StudentCam participants masterfully documented important political as well as societal issues and key moments from our nation’s history (…),” said Craig McAndrew, C-SPAN’s director of Education Relations, in a press release.
The video ends with a scene in which, standing outside the Albert V. Bryan United States Courthouse, Schutter states the need for stricter rules on gerrymandering, including measures that limit redistricting to every 10 years and establish a common approval process for every state.
After Browne Academy screened the film, the school ceremony invited Schutter and his fellow classmate, Kason Wilson (whose film was on the cusp of receiving an award), to discuss their individual filmmaking processes.
“In an age when most answers can be at your fingertips in seconds, it’s no small feat to have students continue to dig deeper for answers. I couldn’t be prouder of their efforts!”, said Kharkar.
However, this isn’t the first time StudentCam has recognized some of Kharkar’s students. According to Zach Lowe, a C-SPAN Education Resource Senior Specialist, Kharkar has watched her students earn awards for their films for six consecutive years, including this year.
“Year after year, I am blown away by [students and] their determination and the ownership they take in these projects,” says Kharkar.
As a history teacher struggling to find a way to engage students over zoom, Kharkar stumbled upon the competition which allowed students to participate and film at home while demonstrating key creative skills. Almost three years later, this project would continue to inspire students and their local communities and has grown into a defining feature of the school’s eighth-grade capstone experience.
“As a history teacher, I do my best to inform and educate my students about past events and how often history repeats itself,” said Khakar. “However, nothing compares to when students start looking into matters on their own and the light bulbs start to go off, so to speak.”
