There’s no doubt that the students at our school are creative. Some of the most creative, however, have chosen to blend pictures and the written word via short films. The time and effort put into these films–every script written and every shot taken–deserve recognition. Luckily, filmmakers in our school and beyond have a chance to receive accolades in the Arlington Student Film Festival.
On April 30, students from all over APS will crowd the Wakefield High School auditorium. The festival itself is broadcasted by students from the Arlington Career Center. The ceremony resembles the Oscars, with the results of each category dramatically revealed. Four judges grade each film on a rubric and leave personalized comments. Winners of each category, which can range from broadcast news journalism to arthouse/experimental, are given a ribbon and trophy and can make a short speech.
Many students at our school have taken a crack at this relatively new medium. Natalie Piersall, a senior at our school, has created a film called All The Lasts. It follows a group of senior girls progressing through their final year of high school. She was inspired by her own personal experience as a senior, and the cast consists of her close friends.
“It’s mostly just the fact that these four girls…they care about each other so much, but they know that eventually they’re gonna be in different parts of the world,” Piersall said.
Meanwhile, senior Alejandro Ortega has taken a different approach to his film. Titled Hunter and the Hunted, Ortega delivers an action-packed fight sequence with tons of stage combat.
“Making it was like one of the funnest things me and my friend have done in a while, and I feel like that just cemented my love for… filmmaking,” Ortega said.
Two sophomores, Maddy Mangi and Kate Schwartzbeck, are submitting a horror murder mystery. The protagonists are two girls, played by themselves, who must solve a cold missing person case.
“The last film that we made that did pretty well was also a horror film, so we were kind of going off of that,” Schwartzbeck said.
The two of them take the Film Study class with Rachel Sadauskas, a class for especially dedicated cinephiles. This elective teaches valuable skills about work ethic.
“I think going through that [film making] process is really good for anybody, just because you have to think about how you’re going to tell a story…it’s really a lot of brain work and it also taps into creativity,” Sadauskas said.
While it might seem challenging to make a short film, they can be a powerful method of self expression for some people. To experience the wide range of films our students have to offer, a google sheet with all ASFF entries should be on their website shortly.
