Alumnus Films Documentary in Hong Kong During Gap Year
Alumnus Films Documentary in Hong Kong During Gap Year
During his time at Sage Hill, Trevor Klein ‘19 played varsity baseball for four years, worked on the editorial board of The Bolt, and was co-president of TEDx. He took a gap year before going to Pomona College. During this year, he spent time in Hong Kong and worked on a documentary about the protests there. Trevor recently transferred to Claremont McKenna College where he is majoring in Government and Philosophy and writes for the Claremont Independent.
How did you get started working on your documentary?
I started working on the documentary, “Days Before the Dawn,” because of my interest in the Hong Kong protests. I had no prior film experience. The Hongkongers’ pure struggle for freedom in the face of the largest authoritarian regime in the world resonated with me.
I noticed that much of the coverage of the Hong Kong protests in the West was focused on violent clips and attention-grabbing headlines. I wanted to make a video that focused on the history leading up to the protests. I ended up traveling to Hong Kong for a total of two months and conducting about 20 interviews of activists, scholars and government officials.
What is your proudest accomplishment since graduating from Sage Hill School?
My proudest accomplishment is the outpouring of support that my documentary received from Hongkongers the day after it was released on YouTube. It was challenging to establish connections and develop a reputation in Hong Kong. People were skeptical of me due to my youth and lack of professional journalistic experience. Once the documentary received so much support, it was clear that I had established myself.
What about your experience at Sage Hill prepared you for what you are doing now?
I first got interested in Hong Kong because of a Milton Friedman video Mr. Anderson showed my AP Economics class. I then went to Hong Kong on a Spring at Sage trip where I started to learn about local resistance to Chinese rule. It took me about a year after that trip to get really locked in on the situation in Hong Kong, but those two experiences sparked my initial interest.
What about your Sage Hill experience impacted the person you are today? This could be a favorite class, a person, a club, etc:
Konnie Krislock, Kelly Abbate, and everyone else I worked with at The Bolt helped nurture my journalistic skills that led me to work on this project. In addition, Mr. Parker taught me how to write in a way that is genuine and impactful. He influenced my storytelling style more than anyone else. Mr. Schumacher got me interested in Chinese history, which is very important to the situation in Hong Kong. Mr. Hatfield’s class strengthened my argumentative skills and taught me how to critique my own work.
If you could share one piece of advice to current Sage Hill students, what would it be?
You do not have to adhere to others' expectations in order to be successful. In high school, I was very focused on getting into a top college. You do not have to go to a prestigious college or accomplish any other sort of standardized goal to have a successful life. All you have to do is find what you care about and pursue it relentlessly. This sounds cliche, but it is true.
Finally, if you want to do anything in the public eye these days some people are going to be offended. They will come after you in comment sections and maybe even try to threaten you in more serious ways. You have to grow thick skin. I saw a great quote from an old teacher of mine the other day which I swear by: "Don’t take criticism from someone you wouldn’t take advice from. The inverse of that is also true.”
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