YDP
YDP (Youth Development Program) is a public afterschool program pertaining to LAUSD and Beyond the Bell which consist of 142 schools all over Los Angeles. Christopher Alvarez has produced hundreds of short films, documentaires, PSA's, and educational videos with grades Kinder through 8th grade using professional camera equipment and editing software.  Chris has now taken duties training other staff and overseeing the direction and editing of the 30 minute YDP NEWS show built entirely from kid created content.  YDP NEWS has 62 episodes and seeking partnerships.  The following videos are a few samples of the type of programming completed by the students.

 YDP NEWS intro 

The focus of the program is to emphasise Attitude, Commitment, and Teamwork.  The classes are broken down into three week rotations. Pre-production falls into the first week of the program in which the kids brainstorm, write, storyboard, and cast their projects.  The second week is all production with tripods, mics, cameras, and green screens.  The third week moves the project onto the editing room in which all the kids learn and master basic editing with Final Cut Pro or Adobe Premiere & After Effects.  After the projects are finished a large culmination and screening is held in the schools auditorium with parents present and certificates are awarded.