STORY AND PHOTO BY JONAS CORLISS
The Cypress Film Club conducted its first film festival after a five-year break, which featured student-created short films on Tuesday, April 30 inside CCPLX-216.
The festival featured 18 short films by students in the film program.
According to Jeremiah Thompson, a film club advisor and film program professor, the event was completely organized by the students in the club and was free for anyone in the community to attend.
The doors for the show opened at 6:30 p.m. and the show started at 7 p.m. Due to technical delays, the start of the films was pushed back. Actors, writers, crew, friends, family, and interested students were present for the show.
The club provided free popcorn to those in attendance and sold other food and drinks for $1, which was directed back to the club for club use.
Davin Nguyen, the elected president of the film club who directed the festival said, “I’m super happy with the turnout and with how the show went.”
The night was cut into four different parts. The “super-short” films segment featured short films ranging from one to five minutes in length focusing on the visual aspects of storytelling and were less complex narratively.
Film stories ranged from driving from a giant monster to a paranormal abduction, and a killer dating scheme.
The next segment was for short films, ranging between 15 and 20 minutes. Since these films had more run time, they focused on storytelling and dialogue. Some films included a student becoming obsessed with finding out why manhole covers are round, a girl struggling due to her ability to teleport, and a woman struggling to write a screenplay that is due the next morning.
The final segment featured three films that showcased more mature themes. Nguyen stated that they needed approval from Kellori Dower, the Dean of Visual and Performing Arts. She said that they didn’t want to censor art so they got through without any changes.
The films featured a student with ADHD going through their day with and without Adderall, a woman getting revenge on her partner who constantly abused her, and a group of friends getting high at a party, getting kidnapped, and killing their captors.
After the films, awards were given to best actors, actresses, cinematography, editing, “super-short” film, and short film. A selected panel voted on these awards, while two fan-voted awards were given to favorite “super-short” and short film.
The festival was described as a major success by Nugyen and Thompson. “I’ve had students come up to me and tell me that they are interested in submitting work in the future,” stated Thompson.
Both talked about how important it is that students share their work with others. “This is the first time in five years that students have been able to really share their work,” described Nguyen.
With this being the first festival in a while and more festivals coming in the future, it is certain to continue improving and helping students express their ideas.