Written by Bri LaMere. Photos by Shanti Hastings-Kimball
As one of the top exemplary college towns in the United States, Athens, Georgia is a prime location for emerging professionals to make connections. The Fifth Annual Backlight Student Film Festival took place at the University of Georgia on Mar. 28 and Mar. 29. The screening and red carpet took place around the campus of the college where the festival’s creators; Rayna Sklar, Aleesa de Castro, and Cate de Castro graduated from. With an acceptance rate of just 12%, Backlight creates a showcase of depth and student excellence.
The Backlight Film Festival is a big opportunity for filmmakers around Georgia, but also offers a window into the industry for other creatives. Its founders and sponsors work tirelessly to make it better each year. Screening and red carpet locations update by year which ensures a fresh experience by year. It’s accessible to anyone who comes in off the street as well as professionals in the industry. The event is both unique and crucial for film lovers in any field to enjoy. It strengthens the community of connections to be made about films and how their message makes a change.
The historic Morton Theater welcomed students, actors, filmmakers, and film lovers on Saturday. Rows of the theater were filled; it resembled opening day for a highly anticipated movie. A panel that featured emerging Atlanta-based filmmakers Akshay Bhatia and Rocco Shapiro offered inspirational insight into where creatives go after college. Both Shapiro and Bhatia are accredited filmmakers, yet the paths that led them to success are quite different. Bhatia left college early and got into creating and collaborative work while Shapiro graduated from SCAD. Both continue to write, direct, and edit in Atlanta. Their experiences culminated in a common discovery: Put yourself out there, no matter how weird the job. Show up with enthusiasm for all professional experiences. And a common phrase echoed by professors at SCAD was at the forefront, “Always say yes.”
A symphony of mid and short-length student films commenced. From profound thesis projects to masterful acting, the visuals of each film make them well worth multiple watches.
Selected work by SCAD students include “They Were Buying Us Drinks” by Juan S. De Lima and “Pessulus” by Jaden D. Sweeney, won awards at the ceremony following Sunday’s red carpet.
De Lima’s short film follows Ellie, a young adult, who patches together a blurry night spent out with friends through videos and hangover clarity. It leaves her feeling more alone than reassured about who her friends are and what their intentions were the night before. Camcorder-filmed memories add a camp vibe to the scenes that adds extra viewer disorientation in the same way our drunk best friend’s stories on Snapchat do with jumps and glitches. “They Were Buying Us Drinks” won the Best Editing award.
Back at the deepest roots of human language, the Latin word “Pessulus” refers to the latch or bolt on a door. Sweeney’s film starts with a familiar scene: a sunny day on an empty beach. A snoozing mom and her kids play under an umbrella. Sibling rivalry takes a turn for the worse and causes an accident that haunts the family for years. An otherworldly force threatens the conscience of a now grown Evangelio, played by Alfred Torres, who has to face telling his mom the truth under an increasing takeover of his sanity. “Pessulus” won numerous awards, including best mid-length, best director, and best sound editing. Torres, who earned his master’s in acting from SCAD, was selected as best actor.
Other notable selected works were: “Duck, Duck” by Aidan Ventimiglia, “Blume” by Cody Bende, and “The Big Lift” by Shagnik Nandi.
Every second counts in the summer before college. For attached siblings of recent graduates, all we want is one more day of our childhood built-in friendship. Ventimiglia won best screenplay and best original score with his film “Duck Duck”. The intense craftsmanship involved in animation culminated with over two years of work poured into the film by Ventimiglia. It was the first animated film to be selected for the mid-length category at Backlight.
“Blume” is set in a post-apocalyptic world where a man sets out to fulfill a woman’s dying wish of spreading her ashes. It won the Peabody Student Collective Award, which means it has an impactful and relevant message to the world today. Bende filmed around the Blue Ridge mountains in west Georgia. A majority of American viewers easily relate it to the global environmental dilemma as the narrator speaks in French, primarily correlated with Europe.. The Pyrenees-esque backdrop is stunning to look at, and a slow yet impactful pace drives home the feeling of Earth suffocating on its last breath.
Nandi’s “The Big Lift” created a heartbeat-skipping short film that makes the heart jump harder than most thrillers. It critiques the underrepresented reality of male body dysmorphia. A repetitive and obsessive habit of lifting creates a cycle for the main character, overpowering his life increasingly over the course of the film.
The red carpet, at the Athens Cine bar and theater, provided more insight and connection into the work of everyone involved in the films. Backlight Student Film Fest is an event to mark your calendars for every year.
