Houston-based filmmaking summer camp aims to change kids' relationships with technology and iPads

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Do you have a future Oscar-award-winning filmmaker in your family? One Houston-based organization is helping shape kids' relationship with technology by teaching them the skills they need to make a movie of their own.

Creator Camp was founded in Katy, Texas in 2021 and has been growing ever since.

"We started in 2021 and we started in Katy, because we're all from Katy," Creator Camp co-founder Jacky Chao said. "At first, it was just us teaching the classes ourselves, just to test it out. That summer was really successful, so we slowly grew to different cities."

"We have a background in filmmaking. We met in high school in the filmmaking club," co-founder Robbie Davidson said. "We noticed a growing issue right now with a bunch of iPad kids -- kids glued to their screens. So we thought, 'What if we can change kids' relationships with technology from consumption to creation?'"

Creator Camp's "Hollywood Filmmakers Camp" runs throughout the summer at locations across the Houston area -- including Katy, The Woodlands, Cypress, Memorial, and Montrose.

During the three-day camp, kids ages 7 to 13 participate in hands-on workshops and learn the basics of filmmaking. Then, they set out to make their own short film on an iPad!

"Students on day one will learn all the basics of filmmaking from editing to green screen to conception through storyboarding," Davidson said. "Then on day two, they jump right into it. They make their own stories. They make their own movies. And we're there to guide them through the whole process."

Day three might be the most exciting. All of the students get to present their film projects at "The Creator Camp Oscars."

"Each of them get a small little Oscar, just like the ones you see on TV in the Oscars ceremony," Davidson said. "We have a whole red carpet lined out. They get to walk it, come up on stage. It's a great experience."

In addition to filmmaking, Creator Camp also offers Lego and clay animators, YouTube creators, Roblox game masters, Minecraft modders and coders, music and beats producers, Minecraft redstone engineers, and 3D game developers camps.

To sign your child up for a camp this summer, visit creatorcamp.org. Enrollment is open now.

Three-day camps start at $240 and two-day camps start at $160. Creator Camp is also offering a 2024 Texas summer pass that allows for unlimited camp access, starting at $1,200.