Photo and art teacher Brayden Hall displays one of his own high school art projects in his classroom. The blue paper mache sculpture in Room 85, in fact, has shaped his teaching philosophy. Hall says he remembers working endlessly on the weekends, cutting various images from magazines. But when he was handed back his work, Hall was surprised he earned only a C+. 

¨I remember asking the teacher if it was okay for me to have a basic background because my design was so complex. She said yes,” Hall said. “Fast forward to me turning it in. I got a C+ because the background was too basic.”

Hall says that wasn’t the only time he experienced disappointment. “My art classes in high school and middle school were not good. My art teachers were very hard on me to the point where one of them didn’t believe that I had painted the painting I turned in,¨ said Hall, who was hired to teach photo at FUHS in 2023. ¨Those experiences with teachers really turned me off of drawing and painting, even though I loved doing it.¨ 

Feeling suffocated, Hall looked outside art classes for a different form of self-expression—making YouTube skits with his best friend beginning in 2009. He says doing skits allowed him to explore the creative side of filmmaking as he acted, directed and edited the videos. One major influence on Hall’s work, especially during his childhood, was Adult Swim’s Tim and Eric’s Awesome Show, Great Job!, a sketch comedy known for its unconventional humor.

“I started doing skit comedy with my friend and that weird, quirky humor was what inspired me the most to start filmmaking,” Hall said. 

With his love of art revived, Hall would go on to graduate in 2016 from San Francisco State University earning his degree in film with a specialization in post production editing.

Now Hall will have the chance to bring his joy and his skills for filmmaking to the FUHS campus. Some schools in the District already offer broadcast or film classes, and Hall is excited to give students hands-on film production experience, covering everything from directing to editing to critiquing. The class provides an opportunity for students interested in pursuing a career in film to learn industry skills in an academic setting.

“Film is such a universal art form where we are all either looking at [it through media] or consuming it in some sense,” Hall said. “It’s such a cool thing to be part of learning how it’s made and how to create it.” 

School officials hope to invest in state-of-the-art equipment for the class, including MacBooks, Sony cameras and lighting gear. These resources will allow students to work with industry-standard tools as they create their projects. To ensure students are prepared for the class, the school has set a prerequisite of taking an introduction to photography course to demonstrate basic understanding of a camera before diving into film production.

Hall is grateful for the plans to invest in the class, but he emphasizes that equipment can take you only so far. “I always think that the quality of how it looks is not as important as the content,” said Hall, whose first films were created with a camcorder. “As a kid, it was okay that it looked bad, as long as the content was good. That’s what matters most.” 

Hall also hopes his film students will have a chance to collaborate with the theater program and ASB students. The students in his Future Filmmakers of America club are also excited about what a film class might mean for the school. Vice president Paisley Polder expressed how long the school has needed this type of course.

“It’s something I’ve wanted for Fullerton for so long because I went to Troy freshman year and they have a huge film program,” Polder said. “At every assembly, [Troy] would present student films. It was a tradition because everybody got so excited about the films. I think that’s something we can bring to this campus. And I think that combining those three art programs is such a powerful move.” 

Hall says film is a part of every job in today’s world. “If you work at a fast food place, you can make videos for them on Instagram,” Hall said. “It’s become everything. I can’t think of a job that it’s not part of. Learning these skills will help you with anything you want to do down the line.”

Until the class officially launches, students interested in filmmaking are encouraged to join the Future Filmmakers of America club which meets every other Thursday in Room 85.

As he plans for his new film class, Hall will keep his so-called C+ blue paper mache piece around as a reminder.

¨Today it’s an important example because I never really talked to the teacher about how I felt. If I had had a conversation, maybe the situation would have changed. Instead, I had that resentment build up,¨ Hall said. ¨So I use that project now for students to see that they can be comfortable talking to me if they feel wronged. Because art is a tough subject to grade sometimes.¨

¨You know in a weird way my teachers inspired me. I became a teacher because I wanted to be what my teachers weren’t,¨ Hall said. ¨Students deserve a positive experience with art.¨

Tribune staff member David Padgett contributed to this story.