Teens with a Movie Camera is an artist collective and hands-on filmmaking collaboration between local media artists and teens in the city of Syracuse. Founded in 2024, the workshop focuses on community-building through personal visual storytelling, creating a supportive environment for self-expression through the arts, which culminates in the creation of original short films and their public presentation.

We work with tools readily available, such as our smartphones. Our ethos comes from the tradition of independent cinema and low-budget filmmaking, which requires creative problem-solving and an embrace of limitations. With genuine curiosity, an open mind, and a passion for exploration, anyone can go from being passive media consumers to active media creators!

As artists and filmmakers, we approach cinema and filmmaking as a personal, imaginative, and collaborative medium rather than an industrial or commercial product. Our goal for the workshop is for participants to see themselves as visual storytellers with their own agency, sharing their own distinctive stories. We would like to celebrate and highlight the diverse visions and voices of youth in our community.