Rules I gave myself for making my first high school student film that wouldn't seem like a high school film:

1) Don't shoot any of it at a high school
2) Don't cast any high school aged actors in the film
3) Don't work with any classmates so you don't have to compromise
4) Sound is just important as the picture

My senior year is just starting and I'm looking forward to filming my next project that promises to be different.