Student Profile: Campus Movie Fest

Three short films involving UCF Theatre students were recognized by the 2013 Campus Movie Fest this spring. Purple Hearts, Broken, and Ryder's Block all won awards. Campus Movie Fest is an international event that comes to UCF every year, open to all aspiring student filmmakers on campus. Participants are given all the equipment needed, one week to complete an entire film, and a five minute time limit for the final product. The films are then judged, the top 16 are shown at an award ceremony, and the winners are invited to Hollywood to compete against the winners from other campuses. Three films that were made by Theatre UCF students were in the top 16.

Luis Traps, a transfer student in the BFA Acting program, made a film called Purple Hearts inspired by those he knew who were affected by Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome. "A story that stuck out was one acquaintance that I knew of that would come home at night and he would dig a hole in his backyard to sleep in. He was in the Iraq war. It affected him tremendously." This moving piece featured Christopher Niess, Theatre Department Chair. Luis had been involved in making films before, but this was his first time doing one of his own. His film was included in the Top 16 and his film was shown at the award ceremony.

Taylor Frost directed a film titled Broken. Taylor, a BFA Acting senior, has been in multiple short films but this is his first directing project. He was really interested in how things look in slow motion and wanted to tell this story using that effect. "Who hasn't ever wanted to just break plates and dishes just for fun? It was a blast. Sure, there was a huge mess. Worth it." The mess paid off. Broken won the award for Best Drama.

Danielle Engelman and Lucas Perez, a junior in the BFA Acting program, starred in Ryder's Block. Shooting this film was difficult because the director wanted to take advantage of "the golden hour," the warm and diffused light that occurs one hour before sunset. "We were literally racing for sunlight," Danielle, a first year transfer in the BFA Musical Theatre program, says. With only one week to make the film, they really only had one chance to get each shot. It turned out beautifully however. Danielle won Best Actress and Ryder's Block won Best Picture.

They are three very different films but all were honored by Campus Movie Fest. Having three made by Theatre UCF students in the top sixteen is a great example of their diverse talent. Luis says "It's a wonderful experience."  They all faced challenges but in the end it was well worth it.

To watch Purple Hearts go to http://www.campusmoviefest.com/movies/19907-purple-hearts
To watch Broken go to http://www.campusmoviefest.com/movies/20037-broken
To watch Ryder's Block go to http://www.campusmoviefest.com/movies/19631-ryder-s-block

By: Elle Sullivan