Kourosb Ahari
Congratulations to Kourosh Ahari! He’ll be walking the red carpet at the most famous film festival in the world in Cannes this year.
His short film Malaise (2014, 8 mins) has been selected for the festival’s pretigious Short Film Corner.
Malaise examines a catastrophic scenario in which a Spanish flu plagues the world and humanity. It explores just how far a man will go for his last reason for living.
Click below on the arrow to watch the film.
BELL JAR filmmaker Joshua Pausanos
KQED describes RTVF major Joshua Pausanos‘s film Bell Jar in its feature piece “Film School Shorts” (here’s a link to the full interview with Joshua which is well worth reading).
Bell Jar is a mysterious character piece that manages to tell its story without dialogue, reminding viewers that, above all, film is a visual medium. Directed by Josh Pausanos of San Jose State University, the film is inspired by Slyvia Plath’s seminal novel The Bell Jar.
In his interview with KQED, Pausanao observed,
At first when I started going to SJSU, I was worried that because I wasn’t going to a “film school,” I wasn’t going to become a successful filmmaker or get into the industry, but as graduation approaches I find myself thinking, “What exactly makes a ‘film school’ a ‘film school’?” Since starting at State, I’ve helped out on dozens of shorts, directed many shorts, made money working on professional productions,and have already made the transition into working on larger indie feature films. My teachers and classmates are all avid filmmakers with their own accomplishments and many projects on the way. All of this makes me question, “What would I have missed if I went to somewhere like USC or NYU?” To me, it doesn’t matter which school or how much money is involved; it matters what kind of community you surround yourself in and how much drive you have. That’s what I learned going to San Jose State.
Keep reading here for an insightful and interesting look at this budding filmmaker’s process and work.
Thank you, Josh Pausoanos, on behalf of SJSU and its RTVF program. We’re proud of you!
Park Arcadia
From TRFT Chair David Kahn‘s desk:
RTVF‘s student-written and -directed film Park Arcadia received Honorable Mention in the narrative film production category at the Broadcast Education Association (BEA) Festival of Media Arts.
More information about Park Arcadia can be found at the following links: https://vimeo.com/69930287 and http://www.parkarcadiafilm.com/
Congratulations to Darren H. Rae, Shaan Aslam, and all involved with this project!
Link to the original story here.
A crew member works on a puppet for the animated short “Behind My Behind” (courtesy of Animation/Illustration)
SJSU will have a big showing at the 25th Cinequest Film Festival beginning Feb. 24 in downtown San Jose. The movies are spectacular yet admission is affordable at $6 for students and $8-11 for everyone else.
Associate Professor David Chai and 43 current and former students created “Behind My Behind,” the story of a disheartened writer who reunites with his love for creativity in a secret world he finds in his couch.
Radio-TV-Film majors produced two more entries. “Bell Jar” examines the pressure that comes with trying to be perfect. “9th Hole” is a comical look at fathers protecting their daughters on prom night.
Screenwriting Professor Scott Sublett writes:
Once again, San Jose State students have achieved national recognition for screenwriting excellence.
Lauren Serpa, who received her BA in RTVF from San Jose State and is currently an SJSU MFA Creative Writing student, won second place at the Broadcast Education Association Festival of Media Arts in the feature-length screenplay category for Where We Start.
The BEA is the nation’s largest organization of RTVF programs and their Festival of Media Arts is the nation’s most important student film competition.
In the same category, recent RTVF grad Risha Rose received an Honorable Mention for her screenplay Dance With Me.
In the Short Screenplay category, two SJSU students received Honorable Mentions: Rachel Compton for Prosopagnosia and Kevin Briot for When a Giant Falls.
Congratulations to the faculty in RTVF, Theatre Arts, and English who mentored these exceptional students who have brought us glory, and of course to the students themselves!