蘑菇短视频

Christopher Childers never cared much for theme parks, pools or playgrounds as a kid. Instead, his eyes grew big inside the movie rental store. He remembers begging his mom for a movie he wanted to rent and taking it to his small 13-inch TV with a built-in VCR in his bedroom.

He鈥檇 put his prized VHS tape in, sit down and marvel at the story crafted together by writers, directors and actors thousands of miles away. In those moments, Childers entered a world that wasn鈥檛 his own.

Now, he鈥檚 creating them.

The 蘑菇短视频 alumnus tells stories like the ones he fixated on as the director of video operations at Christ School, an all-boys boarding and day school in Arden.

鈥淚 absolutely love it here,鈥� Childers said. 鈥淚 love the people, I love the work and I love capturing moments and memories and telling the story of all our students, all the teachers and the great legacy this school has.

鈥淚t's an absolute pleasure and passion of mine to tell those stories, but it's also really special to get to interact with these young guys as they're growing up and becoming young men, and they're learning life lessons and trying to navigate the world.鈥�

As director of video operations, Childers' job is to tell stories. He highlights some of the best about Christ School through his camera lens, whether that鈥檚 the school鈥檚 programs of distinction or its athletic teams.

That takes countless hours of shooting and editing, but it鈥檚 all been totally worth it for the 2019 film and television production alumnus. However, Childers almost didn鈥檛 join the staff at Christ School in 2021.

Childers and his wife were seeking to come back home to Western North Carolina after he had spent over a year as a news photographer at a television station in Virginia. Childers鈥� wife showed him the open video position at Christ School, but he wasn鈥檛 too thrilled about it.

Childers鈥� first job out of college, one that he didn鈥檛 enjoy a lot, was at a school system in Virginia.  He didn鈥檛 think working in education was his calling, but Western North Carolina was calling him home 鈥� almost quite literally.

鈥淚 know it's crazy to say, but literally every single day, I saw the clock at 8:28 a.m., 8:28 p.m. every day for a week,鈥� Childers said. 鈥淚 was like, 'Alright. I get it.鈥欌��

Since then, Childers has made several feature videos on the students, hype videos on the sports squads and campaign videos.

But one video stands above them all in his mind: 鈥淎 Legacy in Motion.鈥� The short documentary is on the Christ School basketball team defending its state championship during the 2023-24 season.

The project was a culmination of months of filming, interviewing and editing from Childers and his team, which included fellow 蘑菇短视频alumnus Aidan McGinnis and current Catamount Chancelor Mayfield.

Ultimately, 鈥淎 Legacy in Motion鈥� earned three Telly Awards, which honors some of the best work in video, won best documentary for two film festivals and was a finalist for documentary at three other film festivals.

鈥淪ometimes I still look at the Tellys, and I'm like, 'Dude, that's crazy,鈥欌�� Childers said. 鈥淭his is definitely the project I'm most proud of in my career. I love how the documentary turned out. I loved working with the coaches, with the boys, with the editor, with Aidan.

鈥淚t's just kind of a really special project that shows all the hard work and everything for everyone else, but more personally, it shows how much I've grown as a filmmaker, video content creator and in my time.鈥�

For Childers, that journey of growth started at WCU. Childers almost always knew he was going to be a Catamount, coming from a family full of them, but he didn鈥檛 know he鈥檇 be working in video until he attended a major fair on campus as an undeclared student.

Childers stopped at a few booths. None of them piqued his interest until one caught his eye: film and television production.

鈥淚 was like, 鈥極h, right. That鈥檚 a job people do,鈥欌�� he said.

Having always been amazed by movies and their storytelling, film and television production seemed like a natural fit for Childers. The following years were pivotal for Childers as a person, as he learned the ropes of video and met several important folks at WCU, including his wife.

鈥淚 don't think you can put words into how much we Western helped shape me as a videographer, but more importantly, as a person,鈥� Childers said. 鈥淚 really found a lot of my way at Western, with the help of great advisors, great people, mentors, friends. It's a special place, man.鈥�

Visual storytelling had always been a passion of Childers鈥�, whether it鈥檚 been behind the lens or in front of the television screen. Childers looks back at the kid who鈥檇 beg his mom for the latest rental movie. He remembers the joy it brought him.

As he shoots and edits, he keeps that boy in mind, looking to take his viewers on a journey that completely holds their gaze.

 鈥淚 care a lot about my work. I always put my all into it, and my hope is always that people are going to watch it, enjoy it, take it in,鈥� Childers said, 鈥渁nd if nothing else, I hope it鈥檒l give them a smile, make them excited.鈥�