Katia and Thaniel Wenger don't need much coaching from director Max Zug as they put the finishing touches on their "Really Big Field Trip" film.

They are used to taking direction from Max, the owner of MaxFilms Inc. of Ephrata. Plus, they love and respect "Uncle Max" so much, they do exactly what he asks.

Zug tells them to stand back to back in the middle of a big, blue circular platform on wheels. The brother and sister strike a pose: Thaniel, 9, with his arms folded and a no-nonsense look on his face; Katia, 12, with her hands on her hips and a perpetual smile.

They meld into each other and stand like statues as Zug crouches beside the wheel, manually moving it around in increments.

Zug and the children are creating the opening scene to their documentary of Turkey.

"Next frame … Next frame," Zug tells assistant director Jon Haile, who is filming each movement of the wheel backward from 5 o'clock to 4:30 to 4 to 3:30.

When Katia and Thaniel are back where they started, Zug and the kids watch the monitor as the camera consolidates all the frames in 1 second.

The children spin like they are on a merry-go-round on caffeine. Then Katia and Thaniel spin individually — on film.

"We're about to take you on a really big field trip. Why don't you come along for the ride?" Katia says as she spins.

The playful opening is one of many childlike "spins" the directors are adding to the film that will premier Saturday at Penn Cinema, Lititz.

Last year in April, Zug accompanied the children and their parents, Timm and Kristina Wenger of Lancaster on a 10-day tour of Turkey — what the Wengers call their "Really Big Field Trip."

Zug's goal was to make a film about Turkey through the children's eyes so American children could understand this very different country and culture.

"I was there being a kid with them for 11 days. I just happened to have a camera in my hands," Zug said.

The trip was financed by Lancaster contributors and by a group of Turkish businesspeople, Bosphorus-Atlantic Association of Cultural Cooperation and Friendship. Their goal, like the Wengers, is to encourage intercultural understanding.

The group made sure the Wengers traveled to the main cities of Turkey: Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir and Ephesus for starters.

The children visited mosques and schools, museums and the countryside, where they saw cell-phone toting shepherds. They even visited parts of Ephesus that are recorded in the Bible.

They ate lamb — lots of it — and drank tea — lots of it. Ask Thaniel how many sugar cubes can fit in one tiny cup of tea.

They visited the Grand Bazaar where they were wooed by the seller of flying carpets — well, at least they looked like they could have been. Thaniel was pampered in a Turkish spa until he was practically a "raisinette."

And they made friends and fans. So many girls wanted a picture with Katia that her dad dubbed her "the Hollywood star." Her friends' names still spin in Katia's memory and on the movie screen.

The secret to not knowing Turkish?

"Just keep nodding if you don't understand," Katia said.

Thaniel and Katia are used to performing. For the past four years, they have helped their parents perform plays and tell stories about other cultures at public programs all around Lancaster County.

Kids and Cultures, the non-profit organization the Wengers have created, annually offers summer camps and programs in libraries and schools, but with the documentary, they are taking their education to a whole new level.

Thaniel and Katia got an education of their own in the process — not just about Turkey — but about filmmaking.

Seems they are naturals for the acting job — Zug calls them "one-take wonders."

"Their energy was pretty inspiring" even through 16-hour days, Zug said. "They took direction very, very well."

His direction, however, came out of his own creativity and instinct. The final arrangements for him to go on the trip were made too late to formulate a script or even an outline, so they all worked to the direction of Zug's spontaneity.

"We literally never planned anything," Zug said. But that didn't stop him from catching the Muslim call to prayer on audio so that editor Brad Bass could slide it into the sound track.

Editing eight to nine hours of raw footage into a 30-minute film, writing and recording a 30-page script, laying in the audio, animated factoids and playful spinning segments takes a while.

Zug's staff worked on the documentary between paying assignments (usually advertisements for local companies). MaxFilms is donating the $80,000 of time, staff and equipment to make the film.

Though Zug wasn't initially enthusiastic about being part of the project, he said, he is now sensing that this documentary will be the first of many.

"In our minds, we'll have a good cut to go find funding for the next one," Zug said.

The Wengers will send a copy of the documentary to embassies from other countries, suggesting that Kids and Cultures and MaxFilms could do a similar project for their country.

In the immediate future, the documentary will be available for purchase on DVD, and the Wengers will ask public television stations to air the film.

The film is not just a really big field trip, but it's the biggest step Kids and Cultures has taken to help children develop positive impressions of other countries and cultures before they encounter negative impressions in the media, Timm Wenger said.

"You know," Katia says in the film, "the kids in Turkey are a whole lot like us. They like ice cream …

"Cookies, " Thaniel adds.

"Watching TV. Listening to music.

"And hanging out with friends.

"Including new friends like us," Katia says.

"That's pretty cool," Thaniel says.

The details

• "Really Big Field Trip: Turkey" — Half-hour documentary through the eyes of Katia and Thaniel Wenger

• Saturday at noon

• Penn Cinema, Lititz

• Cost: $5. Purchase tickets at the theater or call ahead at 626-7720 to order tickets.

• The event will include comments by Katia and Thaniel, giveaways (including DVDs, maps and Turkish Delight), Turkish music and an opportunity to pre-order the DVD with a $5 discount. The DVD will contain bonus features and related educational materials for teachers and parents.

Cultural camp planned

Kids and Cultures World Day Camp will be held June 16 to 20 for children who have completed grades 1 to 5. The camp will be held at Franklin & Marshall College with two identical and overlapping sessions: from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

International guests help campers experience a bit of their culture through games, folktales, crafts, language, music and, of course, snacks.

The destinations this year are Venezuela with Lancaster City Councilman Jose Urdaneta; Hawaii with Ronni Sakamoto; Italy with staff of La Dolce Vita Courthouse Bakery; South Africa with John Protopapas; and Burma (Myanmar) with refugees placed by Church World Service in Lancaster.

Each day also features a bonus activity, including Beijing & Beyond, Hula Happiness, Taeguk Taekwondo, Hunger Awareness and French 101. Also, each day, the campers add to personal scrapbooks to remember and share their experiences. For more information, visit www.KidsAndCultures.com or call 290-6948.

E-mail: lespenshade@lnpnews.com