With only an iPad and the basic iMovie suite, two Wrangell high-school freshmen turned personal curiosities into fully-realized non-fiction films. Their short documentaries have earned slots at two respected events: the Red Nation International Film Festival in Los Angeles and the Anchorage International Film Festival. The achievement marks the second year in a row that students from this remote Alaskan community have reached audiences far beyond their hometown.
From classroom tools to festival screens
Middle-school digital-storytelling instructor Laura Davies volunteers her time guiding the young creators. Working with standard iPads, the students learned to shoot, edit, and polish their pieces without the luxury of high-end cameras or professional software. Davies notes that the experience underscores how grit and imagination can outweigh technical limitations. She hopes future projects will grant every learner access to more powerful computers and advanced editing platforms.
The films and the stories they tell
Quinton Davies focused his lens on a beloved community ritual – the multi-day totem-raising ceremony held in July 2025. Titled “Standing Tall in Wrangell,” the short follows veteran carver Mike Hoyt, who not only crafted every pole for the event but also completed an entire totem on his own. The film weaves extended interviews with Hoyt, highlighting the cultural significance of the poles and Quinton’s own connection to his Native heritage.
Erika Jabusch turned inward, exploring her family’s immigration journey from Russia to Alaska. Her documentary, “New Beginnings — Zanovo, Diving Deep into the Rich Tapestry of Russian Culture,” features interviews with her mother, Natalya Jabusch, and other Russian-born residents such as Valentina Bardin and Laris Bardin-Siekawitch. Translating the Russian-language interviews proved challenging; initial machine translations missed nuances, prompting senior student Andrei Bardin-Siekawitch to painstakingly verify each line for cultural accuracy.
Creative problem-solving on a tablet
Both filmmakers encountered technical hurdles while editing on a tablet. Jabusch discovered that the software would not let her overlay explanatory text atop photographs. Rather than abandon the idea, she redesigned each frame, positioning the captions beside the images. Davies praises their “perfectionist” instincts, noting that the duo welcomed constructive criticism and pushed back when necessary, resulting in a more refined final product.
Roots of the program and what lies ahead
The documentary workshop began in 2022 when the nonprofit See Stories introduced a film-making curriculum to Wrangell. At the outset, most participants had never handled a camera beyond their phones. Despite lacking school-district funding, the grassroots effort quickly gained momentum; last year freshman Ayla Harris earned a spot at Canada’s Banff Centre Mountain Film and Book Festival.
Looking forward, Quinton is already outlining a new project on sea-otter populations and their impact on commercial and subsistence fishing, envisioning interviews with federal and state officials. Erika plans to pivot toward a science-focused piece examining human psychology and behavioral origins. Meanwhile, Davies dreams of establishing a Southeast Alaska film festival in Wrangell, echoing the encouragement she received from a supportive art teacher in rural Canada.
“Seeing our small island town featured in Los Angeles and Anchorage fills me with pride,” Davies says. “It shows that with determination and the right mentorship, even the most modest resources can launch stories onto the world stage.”
