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| MONTHLY NEWSLETTER
SEPTEMBER 2020
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A Celebration of ARTS by George!A Celebration of ARTS by George! streamed live on social media and GMU-TV on September 26. The event took a look back at the tremendous success of ARTS by George! over the past 14 years. Since 2006, ARTS by George! has ensured more than $1 million in scholarship and program support for Mason’s College of Visual and Performing Arts. We heard from CVPA alumni scholarship recipients now working in creative industries around the world (including Jordon Jones, now working at PBS), saw content from performances and exhibitions, and met current student artists like Film major Jesse Benitez. The evening culminated with a call to support the arts at Mason and announcement of the 15th annual ARTS by George! headliner, Kristin Chenoweth, set to perform in September 2021 at the Center for the Arts. The annual ARTS by George! benefit raises support for student scholarships in CVPA, including film.
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Going Global: Film at Mason and the Durban International Film Festival + KwaZulu-Natal University
Film at Mason participated in the Durban International Film Festival in collaboration with KwaZulu-Natal University. Students, faculty and staff from both universities collaborated on a number of events and panels, sharing ideas, documentary, animated, and fiction films, and commitments to collaborative arts and social justice.
Students who participated on the Zoom conversation included Jesse Benitez, creator of the experimental observational short documentary, "nightlife," Matthew Vargas, who made the short fiction film "Clementine," Rhyan Elliott, the filmmaker behind "Endings," and new Film at Mason graduate Alaa Zabara, whose senior project "Selahy," is on its way to film festivals.
Read the full article here.
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A Successful Welcome Back Social and Best of Film at Mason
This year’s Welcome Back Social and Best of Film were held virtually on Friday, September 4.
Film at Mason faculty, staff, students, and community members learned about campus resources, participated in breakout rooms and activities, and enjoyed some of our student and alumni films from the past year. We thank everyone who participated and enjoyed hearing our students talk about their films and what to expect this semester.
Congratulations to our Kahoot! winners.
First Place: Nick
Second Place: John
Third Place: Holden
Runners-up
Rudy
Lucy
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Faculty and Alumni Achievements
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Congratulations to Film alum Erblin Nushi and Professor Lisa Thrasher. Their queer narrative feature film, "I Love You More," has made it to the second round of the Sundance Development Track. Joland Novaj pictured to the left is the lead actor in the film.
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In addition, Erblin’s other new film, a short feminist piece titled “VLORA,” premiered at DC Shorts International Film Festival on September 10th. The film won “Best Local Short” and the Audience Award.
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Professor Nikyatu Jusu’s Suicide by Sunlight won Audience Award at the Black Femme Supremacy Film Festival.
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Professor Hans Charles is the cinematographer for Melissa Haizlip's documentary film, Mr. Soul!
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10/8 Pier Kids Discussion with Writer/Director Elegance Bratton and host Effie Brown
To learn how to screen the film and read more about the event, visit our site here.
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10/19 Chico Colvard and Black Memorabilia
To learn how to screen the film and read more about the event, visit our site here.
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10/26 Melissa Haizlip and Professor Hans Charles with Mr. SOUL!
To learn how to screen the film and read more about the event, visit our site here.
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Production Manager Abbesi (Abby) Akhamie was selected to participate in the For Film’s Sake’s Attagirl feature residency program for female-identifying writer/directors.
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Hispanic Heritage Month and Filmmaker Fridays
As Mason Patriots, we're lucky to be part of a diverse, global and multicultural community. We can all work together to enrich our educational environment, promote mutual respect and civility, and embrace being global citizens. We can take advantage of the technologies that grant access to a wide range of art and experience: educate yourself and become active in struggles for justice.
Sep. 15 - Oct. 15 is National Hispanic Heritage Month, where we recognize the contributions and the important presence of Hispanic and Latin Americans in the U.S.
Follow us on social media for a new filmmaker spotlight every Friday. See our recent suggestions, below.
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Janicza Bravo is a Panamanian-American director with a bleak quirky storytelling style complimented with her theater background. Her Sundance-winning short, Gregory Go Boom, paved the way for her first feature, Lemon, starring long-time collaborator, Michael Cera. Her upcoming feature Zola premiered at Sundance and takes viewers on a weekend odyssey with two dancers who run into more unexpected trouble than carefree fun.
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Cecilia Aldarondo is a Puerto Rican award-winning documentary director-producer whose work has been supported by the Sundance Institute, Firelight Media, Field of Vision, IFP, the Jerome Foundation, and many others.
Her debut feature documentary Memories of a Penitent Heart had its World Premiere at the 2016 Tribeca Film Festival and her lastest feature Landfall recently screened at Blackstarfest. She is a 2017 Women at Sundance Fellow and was named by Filmmaker Magazine as one of 2015’s 25 New Faces of Independent Film.
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Film Opportunities and Resources
Open Submissions
Apply to Wavelength Productions' WVE Grant, a program dedicated to helping first-time female and non-binary filmmakers of color tell their own stories. Submission deadline: December 1, 2020.
Apply to Leica Women Foto Project Award 2020. Winner receives $10,000 and a Leica Q2 to support a personal project expressed through the female perspective. Submission deadline: October 8, 2020.
The Richmond Virginia Environmental Film Festival (RVAEFF) 2021 Virginia Environmental Film Contest is now open. Residents with films based on environmental topics pertaining to Virginia are encouraged to apply. Submission deadline: December 31, 2020.
Learning Opportunities & Resources
Get the free and new Making a New Reality Toolkit with more than 75 resources for making personal, institutional, and systemic change.
Reel Teal Film Festival is a student-run film festival presented by members of the Flicker Film Society at the University of North Carolina Wilmington. Submissions are open and FREE. Submission deadline: December 1, 2020.
Watch award-winning filmmaker Mary Evangelista’s “Ina Nyo” a short film FTW describes as “redefining today’s expectations of queer and intimate storytelling.” Learn more about the film and filmmaker here.
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We want to hear from you! If you have news you would like to contribute, please send it to film@gmu.edu. We are looking for regional film events and updates from Film at Mason alumni. Keep up-to-date on all the current Film at Mason news at film.gmu.edu.
Film and Video Studies
College of Visual and Performing Arts
4400 University Dr. MSN 5D8
Fairfax, VA 22030
703-993-3287 | film@gmu.edu
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