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Here’s the summer camp that has all of Hong Kong’s hippest parents wishing they were tweens again. “Our vision is to be the breeding ground for the next Wong Kar-wai,” enthuses Elissa Rosati, expat filmmaker and founder of non-profit organisation Focus On Film, which runs summer moviemaking camps for kids aged 11 to 18. Invoking the Hong Kong auteur’s name in conjunction with a children’s camp isn’t that farfetched; not when you consider that Focus on Film saw seven of its campers’ films accepted to the Short Film Corner at the Cannes 62nd International Film Festival in May.

“Our mission is to demystify the filmmaking process to empower kids creatively,” Rosati explains. During FOF’s five day camps, participants act, edit, direct and produce their own short films. Camp begins at the organisation’s studio space in Kwun Tong with a day of introduction to the basics of film appreciation and production. By day two the students are already out on location, shooting at a site of their choosing somewhere in the SAR. The kids use high-end video production equipment, such as Pro HD cameras, fluid head tripods and professional editing software. “I would never say to a kid, ‘Here’s this incredibly cool and expensive piece of equipment, but you’re not good enough for it,’” says Rosati. “If the kids want to carry on with this in college or as a career, they need to know how to use real equipment.”

FOF’s instructors are graduates of premier film schools, and teach the same production protocols used on professional sets. “Of course we have tons of fun on location,” adds Rosati. “But you’d be amazed by how quickly the kids get serious about their productions.”On the last day of camp, friends and family are invited to the studio for a night of screenings of the students’ short films.

Apart from being great fun, filmmaking is an invaluable educational tool, says Rosati, in that it cultivates important skills, such as self expression, creative storytelling, hands-on problem solving, and applied computer skills. She also believes that exposing Hong Kong kids to film practice at an early age might help restore our local film industry to its former place near the pinnacle of international filmmaking. “The next Wong Kar-wai could be a little girl from a fishing village out in Tai Po somewhere. With Focus on Film we’re trying to give her the early exposure and education to discover that incredible talent.”

Rosati is eager to expand the scope of FOF’s engagement with the local school system, as soon as she secures greater financial support from government and independent donors. “We want to bring filmmaking to as many kids as possible, not just the ones who can afford to come to camp,” she says. With a grant application under consideration with the Hong Kong Film Development Committee, there’s a good chance the city’s children will soon be able to add film production to their roster of afterschool activities. “There are so many artistically talented kids in Hong Kong; we just need to water them a little and watch them grow.” Patrick Brzeski

Focus on Films next two Film Camps run Aug 17-21 and Aug 24-28. To sign up see www.focusonfilmhk.com.