A Day in the Life of a Teacher (1988)

This documentary follows one day in the life of an elementary school teacher on the job. Provides a behind-the-scenes look at the typical in-class and out of class activities. Commissioned by the Kansas City Missouri School District and telecast over cable. Circulated on VHS by the Kansas City, Missouri Public Library.
Notable technically for being the very first professional production to be shot in the Midwest using the then-new consumer camcorder format of S-VHS rather than the more obtrusive Betacam and U-Matic equipment packages. This allowed me to work alone with the least distraction to the classroom setting.

This was a "fly on the wall" approach and a harbinger of "reality TV" technique. A shameful attempt to replicate the Fredrick Wiseman documentary look, but clearly without its non-intrusive objective purity. The kids were just too well-behaved (but they did start acting "natural" by the end of the day).

Although intended to be a consumer video format, S-VHS was mostly ignored by the home market and was instead adopted a few years later by video professionals for industrial and broadcast use. Odd.

Screenings:

University Film and Video Association
Ithaca, New York, U S A
June 1990 (Film Festival).

ITVA (International Television Association) Chapter Video Festival
Award of Merit in Public Service/Public Relations Category
Kansas City, Missouri, U S A
December 1988 (Film Festival)

American Cablevision Annual Festival
American Cablevision community programming award
Kansas City, Missouri, U S A
May 1988 (Cable/Satellite)
North America PREMIERE