New Nonprofit Aftercare Inspires Kids To Be Media Makers

DECATUR, Ga. - May 9, 2016 - PRLog -- A new chapter has begun at the Historic Houston House.  With press in many local blogs and print, The Märchen Sagen Academy for Visual Storytellers hopes to spread the word about what they are doing in Downtown Decatur.  Coming to the historic home, is a new nonprofit aftercare that will instruct kids ages 8-12 in the magic, art and science of producing videos and music.

The Märchen Sagen Academy is a hub for young creatives.  Through projects weekly, children will intuitively learn the fundamentals of video and audio production.  In the Houston House, kids will alternate between groups, called "Crews", and collaborate together attending production meeting style classes, learning by doing, the nuts and bolts of video production, stop-motion animation, filming, script writing, beat making, audio recording, video editing and artist development.  Using professional and consumer level equipment, the kids will be given guided free time to collaborate on projects and learn how to create engaging and impactful videos.

The tuition-based aftercare program provides the unrestricted funds needed to support their vision, inspiring children to be creative and not competitive, through their free outreach and lecture series.  Through the program, the Academy will provide insight and experience to young creatives, giving instruction in shooting techniques, video production and visualization.  Our elementary school course, "How To Make A PSA" was designed specifically for third graders and piloted, by request, at Clairemont Elementary in October 2015.

The team will be led by Arianna LaGon, a preschool teacher with over 20 years of early childhood development and leadership experience.  A wife and mother of three, Arianna is a teacher at Druid Hills United Methodist Preschool (DHUMP), and a pioneer of the Italian Language Immersion Pre-K Class there.  She will be joined by her husband, music and video producer, Couleen (Al) LaGon.  A writer with Sony/EMI music publishing, Couleen has a production company developing brand strategies and videos for fortune 500 companies, small businesses, nonprofits and musical artists alike.  Professional highlights from his career include an artist he developed being signed to Interscope Records by Jimmy Iovine and a production deal with Ceelo Green.  The Operations Manager is Toni Dixon, MBA.  Toni has over 12 years of nonprofit development and fundraising experience and is also the Director of Foundations for the Atlanta Mission.

In a warm, open and nurturing environment of excellence, the aftercare program will be in operation from 2:30pm to 6:30pm, Monday through Friday.  The Märchen Sagen family also intends to host community art shows, indie film viewings and other events throughout the year.

KEY INFO

WHAT: The Märchen Sagen Academy for Visual Storytellers-www.marchensagen.org

WHO: Couleen LaGon, Mentor/Director

WHEN: Opening in the Fall of 2016

WHERE: Go to marchensagen.org for registration information and to join the mailing list.  For additional inquiries or more information please contact Couleen LaGon at 678.698.5035 or at couleen@marchensagen.org.