A Bierbaum pupil might become the next Steven Spielberg, thanks to the school’s PTO and Mothers’ Club.

The organizations combined forces — and bank accounts — to purchase a professional video-editing suite for school use, as well as a TV and DVD combo unit for each classroom.

The video-editing suite includes a Mac-intosh PowerPC dual-processor G5 with software, including Final Cut Pro, a standard video-editing program for Hollywood filmmakers used in the editing of such films as the “Lord of the Rings” and “Har-ry Potter” trilogies. Also included are an Apple 23-inch high-definition LCD cinema display, a Sony video-edit deck and two Canon digital-video camcorders.

Rick Stankoven, Bierbaum PTO’s treasurer and an Apple consultant, will help train interested Bierbaum staff on the equipment so that the staff and pupils can produce their own videos.

The video-editing suite complements the 33 video systems purchased by the PTO and Mothers’ Club and installed in all class-rooms last spring. Each system in-cludes a 36-inch Sony television, a Sony VHS/DVD combo player, PC conversion hardware and ceiling mounts. Mehlville School District’s maintenance department handled the installation of those systems and the electrical and cable connections.

The resulting videos can be shown in each classroom or via schoolwide broadcast.

The cost for all of this new hardware was nearly $42,000. Money raised by both organizations during the last two school years through various fund-raisers went toward the purchase.