Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — National Marine Sanctuary of American Samoa and local production company, Fale Film, co-hosted a 2-day Student Filmmaking Workshop on February 28- 29, 2020, with support from American Samoa Department of Education and the Finafinau student sustainability group.

It was sponsored by Bluesky Communications, Ruby Red Cafe, and Samu's Ice Cream Shop.

The goal of the workshop was to provide Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math (STEAM) skill sets training opportunities for students to create films that share their sanctuary stories. Students from each high school were invited to participate, and altogether there were 30 students in attendance.

A field trip to Fagatele Bay was included as part of the workshop to give students an immersive first-hand experience of the sanctuary and a chance to film their stories on-site. For the majority of the student participants, this was their first visit to Fagatele Bay.

LTJG Brian Caldwell provided a safety briefing for the students and chaperones before the field trip, and NMSAS visitor center coordinator Iosefa Siatu`u provided an interpretive tour during the hike, sharing local legends and information on the sanctuary’s marine resources. In addition, NMSAS and Fale Film have organized a Student Film Competition to incentivize students to share their sanctuary stories through mini-films.