LAMONT -- A group of students is showing the benefits of a healthy lifestyle through animation.

Several dozen students at Mountain View Middle School are getting a lesson in some advanced art that many students don't usually get in their art class.

"This is something a little bit different," teacher Lynda Bass said. "They all wanted to try it and when this opportunity came down the pike I thought, good idea."

The students have been creating public service announcements promoting healthy habits like staying away from drugs and alcohol, eating healthy foods and a campaign against bullying.

"They see media all around on a daily basis," Bruce Royer, the founder of Royer Studios in Los Angeles, said. "I want them to understand how that works and to be able to tell their stories using visual storytelling versus writing out scripts."

Royer has been helping the students with their fledgling animation skills. He has worked with schools across the state, trying to help students gain an interest in media arts.

"From the beginning they have to do the same thing over and over, and for junior high kids that's difficult," Bass said. "But when they start to see the results, it helps."

The Lamont School District was able to secure funding for the animation project through the Kern County Superintendent of Schools office. Royer says the lesson is paying off.

"Most of the students had not done any animation whatsoever, but now they understand what they're doing, they can work collaboratively as a team," he said. "They learn that learning can be fun, that they can be part of a project and have a final product that they can be proud of."