Three Days, Thousands of Students, Endless Creativity
Over three days, thousands of students filled Hall A and multiple conference rooms at the Georgia World Congress Center for a wide range of SkillsUSA competitions (see the full list here). Events covered masonry, culinary arts, welding, plumbing, graphic arts, heavy construction equipment, and aeronautic maintenance. In addition to cars and earth movers, a jet engine even sat on the competition floor. Students interested in film and television careers submitted short films and scripts, produced live news broadcasts, and participated in a post‑production sprint among other media-centered contests.
For the second year in a row, the Georgia Film Academy (GFA) and Chapman/Leonard collaborated to support the Industry Speaker Series. Building on the successes of the 2024 and 2025 sessions, we expanded the experience beyond camera movement (using Chapman/Leonard dollies) and broadcasting to showcase a broader range of GFA’s offerings.
From Set Walls to Movie Magic: Inside GFA’s Art Department Demo
One question was present early on: How can we best showcase our Art Department classes? In these courses, students learn set construction, drafting, and set decoration techniques. Although we don’t often have the space to bring in full set walls, this year we made it happen. With set walls, fake stone work, and aged “brick” on-site we were able to how show flats are built and assembled and reveal movie-magic tricks such as transforming PVC into what looks like rusted iron pipe or insulation foam into concrete..
Bringing a corner set also allowed us to highlight our lighting classes more effectively. Instructor Jim McKinney staffed a full lighting station where students could interact with equipment, experiment with subtle adjustments, and see how small changes dramatically shape a scene. This station also featured a Chapman/Leonard skatewheel dolly, giving students hands‑on access to the same professional camera‑movement tools they cold also use at there high schools.
Behind the Screens: Editing and Post-Production
We also showcased our Post‑production classes. Students talked with instructors Bryan Castle, Jr. and Casey Richards as they demonstrated picture and sound editing workflows. The GFA Post-production Pathway offers training in AVID Media Composer and Pro Tools both on-site (Trilith) and virtually. For the virtual training, students are able to remote into the GFA computers which significantly helps limit the resources needed.
Professional Camera Movement, Mobile Live Production,
Returning this year was our ongoing collaboration with Chapman/Leonard. To demonstrate the storytelling power of camera movement, Chapman/Leonard provided a PeeWee 3 dolly and circle track. Students had a rare opportunity to ride on, push, and operate the same equipment used every day on professional film and television sets.
The final station was our Live Events and Broadcasting demo. Designed to replicate a compact mobile production studio, the setup allowed students to operate the same software and equipment used in GFA’s Live Production, Streaming, and Esports pathway. As with the other experiences, this station was hands-on with students participating as competitors, on‑air talent, and control‑room operators using esports as a real‑time production example.
As the SkillsUSA State Leadership and Skills Conference continues to grow—2026 attendance was estimated at more than 10,000. GFA looks forward to expanding its support with even more interactive elements in the years ahead.
More Than Major Events – Workshops, and Small Groups, Too!
While we love being able to meet with hundreds of students in a single day, we’re also able to work with small groups, classes, and schools for workshops and field trips. If you are interested in coming to one of our hubs, or scheduling an experience for your students, reach out!
