Hannah Rogers attended the Oklahoma Summer Arts Institute for film and video three consecutive years, beginning in 2013. She describes her time at OSAI as magical. “We talk a lot about ‘Quartz Magic,’ and truthfully—although it’s a bit cheesy—I think the magic comes from everyone’s willingness to make the most of our time together, support each other on a journey of self-discovery, and emerge as a changed group of people.”

After graduating high school, she pursued her B.F.A. in Film Production at Oklahoma City University and now teaches Filmmaking at Jenks High School. She credits her experiences at OSAI with inspiring her to pursue a career in arts education. "I knew that, even if I didn’t get into it right away, I needed to be involved in arts education eventually—I couldn’t see myself doing anything else," Rogers said.

Although Rogers aged out of OSAI, it didn’t stop her from coming back to experience the magic. She served as a Film & Video Liaison during the summers of 2018- 2021, worked as the Documentary and Performance Videographer in 2022, and has served as the Staff Videographer for the past two years.

She explained that serving as a liaison significantly developed her teaching skills, which she never had the chance to practice in college since she never did student teaching. “Being a part of that growth, a part of that confidence-building process where students try, fail, learn, and try again, has been invaluable to me. Whenever students hit a snag, I could come in and say, ‘Well, here are some options of what we can do next. What do you think is best?’ I got to watch students go from hesitant and unsure of how to proceed to filmmakers who know how to problem-solve and make their own films.”

Now that Rogers is a full-time educator, having summers off has allowed her to serve as the OSAI Staff Videographer every year. She is taking the skills that she gained as an OSAI student and investing them back into the program.

Hannah has been the film teacher at Jenks High School for the past two years. In 2024, Rogers attended an Oklahoma Fall Arts Institute workshop, Filmmaking: A Foundation for Learning, to hone her skills as an educator. “OFAI was truly a dream—[I] never wanted to leave!” The experience allowed her to reconnect with Bryan Cardinale-Powell, her undergraduate professor, and collaborate with passionate educators from across the state. The workshop not only sparked new ideas for teaching but also gave her the rare opportunity to create her own art, leaving her rejuvenated and ready to bring fresh energy and inspiration back to her classroom.

When asked about her current projects, Rogers shared that she is serving as a judge for the Okie Women’s Film Festival, founded by fellow filmmaker and educator Lily Tucker. The festival is set to take place on March 29th at Rodeo Cinema on Film Row.