Laguna Beach is known for its glistening blue water and beautiful beaches. But, those beaches are in harm of overfishing, tourism, pollution, and so many other ocean-destroying threats. The Laguna Beach High School English department has incorporated these problems into an English unit called FLOW, which stands for Fire, Land, Ocean, and Water. The FLOW unit allows students to advocate for our town’s beaches through a film, a way to tell a story. Students got into groups of three to five and made a film, with the top twelve films showcased at the Rivian Theatre on Wednesday, March 26th, and set to be screened at the 2025 Coast Film Festival. Additionally, students got the Civics Seal of Engagement for their efforts. Allowing students to explore storytelling and filmmaking, the FLOW project was insightful in helping students explore the dangerous possibilities that could harm our beloved beaches.
The first film was “The Change,” created by Elijah Broering, Ethan Wax, Cruz Sewell, and Zayd Kavur. They first thanked the audience for this opportunity to showcase the beauties of Laguna Beach. The point of their film, regarding tourism, was not to discriminate against tourism because it allows Laguna to thrive, but if the beaches continue to become trashed, then there will be no beaches to enjoy. Broering ended their thank you by saying, “Laguna Beach isn’t just a tourist town, but one big ecosystem.”
“Waves of Change” by Ava Guziak, Genevieve Dechary, Piper Wald, and Daniela Suh focused on the ocean’s impact on mental health. In their film, they have two dogs, leading the mentally exhausted character to the beach. Their film is about how the ocean can impact one’s mentality and attitude, demonstrating it has healing powers.
“All Are Affected” by Inara Herring and Lily Alvarado speaks about how making their film was an incredible experience. They started by thanking the Pacific Marine Animal Shelter and the Crystal Cove State Park; both organizations greatly helped them throughout their film. The film is about trash and spreading awareness of the effects of trash on many species on the coast.
The murder mystery “Who Killed Coral Ryf,” created by Rita Capano, Joe Joe Lieber, Eliana Merrit, and Estella Newton, brings a new take to the filmmaking project. Through their mystery, they hope to inspire people to make changes to protect the gorgeous coral reefs of Laguna Beach. Merrit ends the team’s thank you toast by saying, “A story can inspire someone to make changes in their own life.”
“Wake Up,” a film by Eden Shonfeld, Mimi Spangler, Mila Welch, and Brooke Schneider, showcases the importance of reducing chemical pollution in the ocean. Shonfeild states that “beauty can’t only live in the past,” inspiring change in the Laguna Beach community.
“Make Waves,” created by Jonah Goldstein, Jasper Ramsay, Jaxon Hinrichs, and Tyler Tafreshi, inspires watchers to protect our local beaches. Ramsay says, “Having grown up near the sea, we all have a special connection to it.” Their film is about how the tides and coastal communities are changing and surf spots are being destroyed, motivating watchers to take action.
“Be the Change,” a film by Lucas Furar, Tai Contreras, Kane Celli, and Grant Watson, is all about pollution in Laguna and how it doesn’t take a lot to become the change. Every piece of plastic has a long-lasting effect, but one little change can make a significant difference in our community, and that’s the theme of their film.
The film “Save our Seas from Acidification” by Kate Jeffers, Ariana Nikkah, Ella Viloria, and Zoe Tran focuses on something overlooked in climate change, acidification, and its daily effects on the ecosystem.
“The Beauty of the Preserved” by Logan d’Allmen, Brandon Jorgenson, and Tom Schmidt is all about marine preservation, the beauty of the preserve, and highlighting how important it is to preserve the sea.
“Tides of Tomorrow,” created by Reef Applebaum, Kaia Gamber, Dylan Lee, and Jessie Harrison, shows how climate change harms the ocean and marine life. All of the members of the film went diving and got shots on a GoPro, showing the beauty of the sea and what will happen if we don’t change. Applebaum exclaims, “It’s a story about why we need to care.”
“There is Hope,” a film by Oliver Brenard, Coda Christopherson, and Nikki Cohen, shows how the ocean is the pillar of our community, yet it is suffering from plastic and climate change. They hope their film will be the voice of change in Laguna Beach.
Finally, the last film shown was “Sustinable Torusim,” created by Ezequiel Celestino, Alexander Romero, Lane Yang, and Haruka Yanagisawa. Their film covers the topic of preservation vs tourism. This topic is highly relevant in our daily lives in a beach community. They hope their film conveys the importance of local sustainable tourism.
At the end of the screenings, a panel from the Coast Film Festival, including Ben Warner, Enich Harris, Christine Fugate, Greg MacGillivray, Wyatt Shipp, and Carrisa Rice, gave their opinions on each of the 12 films through a series of awards. The first award was given to “Who Killed Coral Ryf” for their excellent editing of various unique clips. “All are Affected” won the best sound design. The best Cinaphotagrpahy was given to “Waves of Change.” Finally, the overall best film was given to “Tides of Tomorrow.” Reef Applebaum, the producer of “Tides of Tomorrow,” says that “[his] favorite part was collaborating with [his] team, and they were what truly inspired [him] to create this film.” All the films were well written, told, and displayed, but these four films stood out the most to the Coast Film Festival panel.
Proudly announcing each film group and introducing the concept of FLOW and this project to the audience, Sarah Benson, Jun Shen, and Shelley Juhl-O’Brien are the teachers behind the FLOW program. Benson, the ninth-grade English teacher and the leader of the FLOW program, has put so much effort into developing and cultivating this program along with Shen, the MUN and AER teacher, and Juhl-O’Brien, the art and yearbook teacher, and their hard work was matched by every student who participated in this project. After each film was showcased, each teacher spoke about the importance of getting students involved in the community and teaching them how to use materials learned in the classroom in the real world. Shen tells the audience, “I love films. It’s the most versatile form of storytelling,” and continues to explain how he hopes these students’ storytelling doesn’t end here. In the future, he hopes to see all of these students continue to inspire change in the world, and he notes that “this is the beginning of their voice into the new world.” With hope for the students, these teachers pass on their knowledge and teach each student to use their education and voice to transform the world into a better place.
It is through the dedication of the teachers and the voices of the future generation that change can be inspired. Laguna Beach High School sparks a passion for the environment in the students through the FLOW program. Students stepped up to address problems in the community and educate those around them, and their films reflect their hard work. In the future, storytelling through cinema will reach people everywhere and transform their mindsets to be more conscious of the environment. This project is only one opportunity for students to use their voices, but it creates the path for every student to continue to tell their stories and create change in the world.
