by WRIGLEY ZBYSZEWSKI
EDITOR IN CHIEF
Whether she’s on the Chadwick football sidelines capturing a touchdown or producing her own content, senior Elsa Dermenjian has seen and filmed just about everything. Camera in hand, Dermenjian has dedicated her past six years at Chadwick to all forms of film, photography, and cinematography.
“I joined Wick Media in freshman year simply because the description of the course sounded cool,” Dermenjian said. “And now I just take it a lot more seriously. It genuinely is a lot of work, but I really do enjoy it. It’s something I plan on continuing in college.”
Dermenjian’s passion has evolved from a hobby into real-life experiences, as she began creating her own videos and films. While her projects started on a smaller scale, she has now created five music videos and 10 short films, all self-motivated and self-produced.
Dermenjian is particularly proud of her music videos, The Color Violet and Barbie, a video she produced for Chadwick’s annual Winter Formal music video competition. The videos are available for public viewing on her self-titled YouTube account.
“I think this passion is something people don’t realize takes a lot of work and a lot of hours,” Dermenjian said. “I try to remind myself that it’s a serious hobby with a lot of work, but the commitment is worth it.”
“…because it’s something I genuinely love.”
Weekends or school nights, holidays or vacations, Dermenjian never passes on an opportunity to bring creative scenes to life. Even if it means spending her night filming a self-produced music video on the beach or working with local businesses to shoot on their property, she’s willing to go the extra mile to bring her artistic vision to life on screen.
When she’s not working on her own projects, Dermenjian has other responsibilities and commitments as well. She served as the co-captain of the Chadwick varsity girls’ volleyball team, and is staying on top of her rigorous class load while producing highlight videos for student-athletes.
Dermenjian’s reputation as a dedicated and talented videographer is well-known on campus, especially in the Wick Media and WickTV spaces.
“Elsa was a junior last year when I came to Chadwick, and so fresh out of her sophomore year she was already the Lead Editor and essentially Executive Producer of WickTV,” said Media Arts teacher Beny Levy.
“That’s a lot for somebody to be doing in their junior year, and she’s pretty much doing the same thing and more this year with incredible success.”
As the Chief of Staff and Lead Editor of WickMedia, Dermenjian has paved the way for future photographers, cinematographers, and media lovers, all due to her work in promoting and bolstering the media programs at Chadwick.
Dermenjian has co-produced and edited more than 13 episodes of WickTV, which was one of the campaigns she helped create three years ago alongside alum Hayden Handler (Class of 2023). Now, the monthly videos are a highly anticipated release among students in the Upper School, with games, interviews, and challenges all produced and conducted on campus with Chadwick students and faculty members.
Beyond the pressure of executing these episodes of WickTV for mass consumption, Dermenjian is also responsible for leading Wick Media meetings and organizing schedules to ensure all episodes, photos for other school programs, and school projects are produced on time.
“If anything is coming out of Wick Media, Elsa is responsible for it,” Levy said. “Every episode of WickTV I’ve worked on in the past year and a half or so, she’s edited it. It’s a lot of responsibility and a lot of work.”
In describing Dermenjian with only three words, Levy chose “dynamic,” “fun,” and “dedicated.”
“Without Elsa, we don’t have Wick Media, we don’t have WickTV, and most of all, Media Arts doesn’t have a role model we can learn from,” said senior Jack Malone, who is the Director of Operations for Wick Media.
Added Levy: “She leads by example, she helps other people, and when we needed someone to be in charge of Wick Media this year, she applied… but she applied humbly.
“She stepped up instead of insisting the job had to be hers, and that was really cool because she’s ridiculously qualified for the job, but didn’t assume it would be hers. That’s someone we want to be leading.”
The Mainsheet 