Mitchell Kase graduated from Plainview-Old Bethpage JFK High School last week, but will be leaving behind a legacy - in the form of film.

It started in eighth grade when Mitchell was offered the idea to do a film for a mystery project by his teacher, an offer he quickly accepted. That followed with a documentary entitled Vampire in Plainview and a parody of A Christmas Carol. Also in eighth grade, Mitchell participated in a Time Capsule project for which he asked two people to write letters to him as if he just graduated from high school. One of the people Mitchell chose was his dad.

Once in high school Mitchell began to take his film career more seriously. His interest in making documentaries skyrocketed and he won first place in Newsday's History Fair with a documentary he made on the history of aviation on Long Island. For this project, Mitchell went to different airfields on Long Island and interviewed pilots and engineers. "It was very interesting," said Mitchell. "I realized that I was into learning about history and why things happen. I liked the real-life stories, not just a Hollywood drama where everything looks flashy. I am interested in the real nuts and bolts about how everything looks."

Mitchell started making short Spanish movies for class and entered a Spanish contest and received honorable mention for a trailer he produced. Along with another friend, Mitchell participated in the Long Island Science and Engineering Fair and submitted a film on breast cancer. The two brought a Breast Cancer Education Specialist into the high school and she presented a seminar to the tenth-graders, who were surveyed before and after to see how much they learned from the information. From there, they went to Detroit to the International Fair. "Although we did not win anything, the experience in Detroit was good enough," said Mitchell.

Another project that Mitchell worked on during his junior year was for his Advanced Placement American History class and was entitled the Tuskegee Airmen. For the documentary, which featured black pilots that fought during WWII, he interviewed two pilots and brought them into the school and they spoke to the Tolerance Club. Mitchell entered the documentary into the C.W. Post High School Video Contest this year and won first place. He also won an honorable mention at the same contest last year for his work on his comedy/suspense film entitled That Urban Feeling.

During his senior year, Mitchell produced many films and received a special honor at graduation for all of his hard work and dedication. "I have made a wide variety of every type of genre," said Mitchell. "I made horror flicks in Spanish and documentaries and comedies. I also made a music video for a senior show. I am not set on one type of genre and I am open to everything. I try and stay away from violence because I want my films to be entertaining, but also I want my audience to learn something from them."

During another senior year project, Mitchell worked very closely with his two friends Noah Drucker and Mike Furman and they made a Survivor-type show for school. "We collaborated and all helped each other," said Mitchell. "When we teamed up, it was just the greatest thing. I was working by myself and it was really difficult. The three of us worked very well together and built up a good reputation by the end of the year."

Mitchell uses his own Sony Digital-8 camcorder and computer to film and edit his movies. "I was saving up for many years for my equipment and knew there would be something that I would love and want to spend my money on," said Mitchell.

In addition to his film credits, Mitchell was involved in SADD, Moot Court and ASPIRE, a peer drug education program throughout high school. He also made many commercials for the various clubs to help promote them to students. "Besides having a love for the clubs, I wanted them to be known throughout the school to get more students involved," said Mitchell. "In addition to making films for entertainment, if I make documentaries, they teach students. A lot of teachers now are going to use my videos in class as teaching devices and that is really nice and a great honor."

In the fall, Mitchell will be attending Hampshire College in Amherst, an arts school that focuses on film. He plans to continue his film career after college and would like to eventually study in California.

Unfortunately Mitchell's father passed away two years ago and was not able to see all of the great accomplishments that his son has made. When Mitchell graduated from high school last week, he was presented the letter from his time capsule that was written by his father when Mitchell was in eighth grade. "I read the letter graduation day and my dad had mentioned some very specific accomplishments that I did in high school that somehow he knew I would do," said Mitchell. "He mentioned my films in high school and wished me luck as a young Spielberg and a filmmaker. Who knew this would be my true passion in life? Now I know this is my destiny."