George Clooney is known as many things... actor, director, writer, producer, activist. Now, he’s also known as the co-founder of a public school program that’s been described as a “national model” by the U.S. Secretary of Education.
The goal is to train students early for so-called "below the line" Hollywood production jobs. Essentially, "below the line" is every job that isn’t an actor, writer, or director.
"There are so many young people who don’t even know these jobs exist. They are kind of legacy jobs. They don’t know about a visual effects supervisor, where they could make a lot of money," he said.Clooney worked with his producing partner Grant Heslov, his long-time agent CAA’s Bryan Lourd, and a group of celebrities including Don Cheadle, Mindy Kaling, and Kerry Washington on the project.
Teacher John Paul Green has noticed a change in his students. "There’s more of an energy, an engagement, because they’re working on things that are meaningful to them," Green said.