Last semester, several film students at The Episcopal School of Dallas had the opportunity to visit the set of '12 Mighty Orphans’ with cinematographer David McFarland, ESD class of 1994. Focused on the football rivalry between Fort Worth and Highland Park in the 1930s, the film stars Robert Duvall, Martin Sheen, and Luke Wilson and is expected to be a box office hit. 

Since ’12 Orphans’ is being filmed in Fort Worth and Weatherford, students and ESD film teacher Bobby Weiss were able to travel to set, where they asked David questions one-on-one about cinematography and the process of filming. “David is a true artist and it was amazing to see him directing the multiple cameras on set. It was a closed set and we were lucky to be there,” said Bobby Weiss. “It was clear that he hoped the day of observing would inspire and motivate the students to create better films.”

The students also shared their experiences with their classmates when they returned after break. With ESD's annual Film Festival in January, this was a great opportunity for students to learn more about filmmaking and the perspectives of different crew members. “Being on a real movie set was such a great experience,” said Sabrina Gies ’20. “Mr. McFarland was very nice and even let us watch the filmmaking process through the camera monitors, which was very interesting.”

Special thank you to David McFarland for this wonderful learning opportunity for ESD students!