High schooler’s film ranks among nation’s best

“It’s been the most difficult adult year I’ve ever had,” Sioux Falls musician Jeremy Hegg begins his interview.

“The arts sector has raised the red flag and said hey we’re not going to make it through this,” continues Jim Speirs, executive director of Arts South Dakota.

Live music plays in the background, as scenes from R Wine Bar unfold and the title of the short documentary appears:

“America’s Creative Economy: The Impact of COVID-19.”

The notes of a violin then come into the scene, played by Magda Modzelewska of the South Dakota Symphony Orchestra,

“There was a lot of feedback going on in these times about who was essential and who was not and how artists are not essential,” she said.

What unfolds from there is an candid, six-minute look at the way the pandemic has profoundly affected the arts scene locally and nationally.

Video of Levitt at the Falls, filled with music and dancing in 2019, fades to an empty park and vacant shell in 2020.

“Cancellations have taken place at virtually every single arts organization in this country,” says Randy Cohen, vice president of research at Americans for the Arts.

“Artists and creative workers are among the most severely affected by the pandemic.”

It’s the type of video that makes you stop and watch. The type you remember. The type you’re likely to share with someone else.

And it’s produced by a Sioux Falls high school student – whose work has won him national recognition.

“The arts have always been a part of my life,” said Sean Baker, whose documentary on America’s creative economy is a finalist in an international C-SPAN education competition.

It was probably a clue when an elementary-age Baker made a short film while his parents shopped for a car.

“I grabbed the iPad and made something, and they liked it,” he said.

He left the Subaru dealership with a $40 payday on a path to his career.

“I’ve always had it set that I wanted to do something in film,” said Baker, who is 16 and a sophomore at Lincoln High School.

He’s already well on his way, and his latest project illustrates just how far his career could take him.

Baker is among the top 15 finalists in C-SPAN StudentCam short documentary competition that drew more than 7,000 entries from across the country.

His documentary is in response to a prompt asking for a video that explores “the issue you most want the president and new Congress to address in 2021,” he said.

“The arts are at a disadvantage during the pandemic, so this would be a good thing for the president and Congress to address, and if I can bring light to it, that would be good.”

Baker comes by his passion for the arts by birth. His father, Phil Baker, is a well-known children’s entertainer, which produced what he calls a “pretty great” childhood.

“He’s kind of a celebrity among my age group because they all went to his concerts,” he said.

Watching his father also showed Baker the importance of supporting musicians and other artists.

“It’s an important topic to advocate because the arts aren’t as talked about as other sectors of business and society.”

He set out to gather as much information on the topic from his interviews as he could “so I knew what to do in the editing room,” he said. “I just went through the interviews and took parts and told the story.”

His most important takeaway was that “it’s important we do focus on the musicians during this time because the arts act as an incentive to rebound from the pandemic. If we put our support toward the arts now, they support us back, emotionally and economically, but more emotionally. They foster creativity. They build bridges. You can’t live a meaningful life without the arts.”

Voting for the fan favorite, who will earn $500, goes until Sunday and can be done here. The judge’s winner will receive $5,000 plus $750 for his or her school, and other cash prizes also will be awarded. All winners will be announced March 10.

“You hope to get into the top ones, but for me it wasn’t as much about winning as it became more of a personal project for me,” Baker said. “I really found myself getting passionately into it and a story I found myself wanting to tell.”

He’s not done with it, either. The next step is to turn the video into up to a 30-minute documentary.

“My favorite part of filmmaking is throwing a viewer into a world that I create, if only for a short time,” Baker said in this blog post for the Americans for the Arts. 

“They can look through my eyes and into my heart at an issue, understand my point of view and make their own conclusions. That’s very powerful and special to me. If there’s any way my documentary can become a voice for this issue, then I’m up to the challenge.”

His next challenge includes a documentary in partnership with the Sioux Falls Jazz & Blues Society.

He also works with other area businesses and nonprofits on projects. Filmmaking is his summer job, his after-school hobby and clearly his future career choice.

“This is my thing,” he said. “It’s definitely my passion, my hobby, I guess my life.”