Just a Drill Movie

When we send our children to school today, we want them to be safe. Since the endless attacks on our schools across the world continue to happen, schools have taken measures to protect our children to the best of their ability. Active gun shooter drills are as common as a fire drill in many parts of North America. Despite many of us parents never experiencing a drill, our children are trained and aware of what to do when an active shooter is on the premise. Children as young as three and four know to get under their desks, stay silent and listen to teacher’s instructions. But to parents really know how it feels to be present for one of these “drills?” The award winning short “Just a Drill” movie takes us into a high school experiencing an active shooter drill… or so we think.

Mom and Film Maker Megan Jordan teamed up with an all-female crew to make this riveting and raw short film that will stay in our minds forever.

Just a Drill Synopsis

An overworked teacher is participating in an active shooter drill at the local high school. The underfunded school has asked student volunteers to be the students in a class room setting during the drill. The two female students and the teacher are just looking for this drill to be over. The three of them have their trusty guidebooks with them as they silently read, waiting for this to be over.

Suddenly, our complaisant teacher is not so convinced that the drill is a drill anymore. The terrifying noises coming from outside of the classroom suggest they are indeed in trouble. Chaos erupts and a teacher who spent her life teaching in an underfunded school must decide to be a hero or protect the students she already has in her class. Both have dire consequences based on the unknown. What would you do?

Conversations about What Teachers Go Through

Just a Drill really hits home that teachers make these decisions across North America often. They have experienced active shooters on campus and have to make decisions for their classes that no teacher should have to make. Whether it is not opening the door to a possible shooter when a student is outside the classroom in need or it is letting a student in need in but putting the whole class at risk, this movie raises a lot of important questions and conversations that communities around the world need to answer.

Family Conversations: Just a Drill

Our children collectively are learning how to react when an active shooter comes into their schools. Our children will graduate high school going through monthly drills on how to defend themselves and their classrooms against a shooter. Though our priority is for our children to feel safe, we have to examine why our teachers and students and principals across the country and across the world have to make decisions that will haunt them for the rest of their lives, no matter what they chose.

The Brilliance of Megan Jordan

As a working Mom, Megan Jordan got into the minds of the characters, making sure to highlight the difficult situation so many children and teachers face each and every drill. The reality that an active shooter is possible will really hit home for many parents.

This movie will be riveting to you, it may scare you, it’s meant to.

As parents, we have to be in constant conversation over the state of our schools and what we expect from teachers. We also have to ask ourselves why our children are growing up in a world where they have to have regular active shooting drills. The way to continue draw conclusions for the sake of our children is to keep in conversation with our families and communities about the prospect of an active shooter.

This award winning short is something all parents and teachers have to see. It’s moving, frightening and the topic is on the hearts and minds of everyone across North America.