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| MONTHLY NEWSLETTER
SEPTEMBER 2025
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Ice Cream Social and
Production Fair Recap
Thank you to everyone who joined us for our Ice Cream Social and Production Fair. Film Crew sign-ups are posted in the Jason Cortez Creativity Lab (Room 3019) in the deLaski Performing Arts Building. Be sure to check those lists throughout the semester to find crew for your projects. If you have questions about how to access the Cortez Lab, email us at film@gmu.edu.
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Best of Film at Mason
Thank you to all who came out to support our students and alumni at the first screening of our Best of Film at Mason showcase on George Mason’s Fairfax Campus.
Best of Film at Mason is a showcase of recent notable and award-winning films. This year's program includes student and alumni work in documentary filmmaking, fiction film directing, and senior thesis films. The screenings are followed by a Q&A with the filmmakers.
Congratulations to the directors of the films selected:
Kaju Katli – Sujay Khona
GHOSTED – Chloe Salman
Anonymous Voices – Marco Duran
When the Rain Stopped – Meghan Colovos
Grit – Chrys Sotos
Scarecrow – Jax Azad
The Lovely Inconvenience of Having Too Many Pants Pockets – Kai Morales
A Mourning in Chinatown – Ali Ali
Dust Bunny – Natalia Melnikova
The Lick – James Bah
Breakfast for Dinner – Dominique Dargan
Pas de Deux – Madison Koren
If you missed the first screening of the Best of Film at Mason showcase or would like to see it again, we have two additional screenings coming up:
Best of Film at Mason Showcase at
Washington West Film Festival October 11, 2025 | 11:30AM
LOOK Dine-In Cinema, Reston - 11940 Market St, Reston, VA 20190
Best of Film at Mason Showcase at
Mason Exhibitions Arlington October 23, 2025 | 4PM
Mason Exhibitions Arlington
3601 Fairfax Dr, Arlington, VA 22201
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Visiting Filmmakers Series
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Visiting Filmmakers Series presents a Masterclass
with Heather Lanza, co-producer, The Wild Robot
On September 9th, Heather Lanza, co-producer of The Wild Robot, joined us virtually from Los Angeles for a Masterclass. The event was hosted by Professor Mel Jones. Heather shared valuable insights from her career and discussed topics such as her experience in animation production, the role of a producer, and leadership in production management.
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Visiting Filmmakers Series and Alumni Reunion Weekend: Mohammed Saffouri with Touchline
On September 18th, FAVS alum Mohammed Saffouri joined us for a screening of his film Touchline. Following the screening, Mohammed took part in an engaging conversation with our host, Roudah Chaker, and the audience. They discussed various topics, including the experience of filming in Jordan, the importance of capturing family stories, and more.
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| Upcoming Visiting Filmmakers Series Events:
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Visiting Filmmakers Series: Daniel Junge with I Was Born This Way
Monday, November 10, 2025 | Johnson Center Cinema
Monday, November 10
1:30 pm - Class visit: FAVS 375 Fiction Film Directing
AB 1007 | *Limited seats available
5:00 pm - Visiting Filmmakers Series: Daniel Junge with I Was Born This Way
A film screening followed by a Q&A discussion with Daniel Junge
JC Cinema | Free and open to the public
Tuesday, November 11
10:30 am - Masterclass with Daniel Junge
Location: TBD | Free and open to all George Mason students and alumni.
*Limited seats available
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ARTS by George 2025
On Saturday, September 27th, alum Madison Koren (‘25) and student Sujay Khona represented Film and Video Studies at ARTS by George, the annual benefit event that supports scholarships for George Mason University’s College of Visual and Performing Arts students. Madison's film Pas de Deux and Sujay's film Kaju Katli screened at the event.
Thank you to all who stopped by to support us.
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Coca-Cola Refreshing Films Contest
The 2026 Coca Cola Refreshing Films Contest is live! Students and recent graduates can apply for their chance to receive $22K to produce a 60-second Branded spot. This program is an opportunity for students to create branded content for the big screen.
Deadline: October 10
Learn more here: https://cokeurl.com/RefreshingFilmsRules
Visit the event calendar to register for information and pitch sessions and to see deadlines.
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The Adrenaline Film Project
The Adrenaline Film Project, a 72-hour filmmaking competition event, will take place in Charlottesville from November 13 to 16.
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DC 48 Hour Film Project:
Horror/Sci-Fi Film Competition
The 48 Hour Film Project is a weekend film competition where teams write, shoot, and edit a short horror or sci-fi film in just 48 hours. All completed films will screen at the AFI Silver Theatre in Silver Spring, MD, in the weeks following the competition. The winning film advances to Filmapalooza 2026 in Portugal, where it competes against the best 48 Hour films from around the world. Top films from Filmapalooza are then selected to screen at the Cannes Film Festival Short Film Corner, offering an extraordinary opportunity for international exposure.Competition Date: October 17–19, 2025
Location: Washington, DC area
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Internship Spotlight: Kalei Marantan
Kalei Marantan interned with FOX 5 WTTG as a Newscasting Intern.
Read more about her experience here.
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Video: Kalei Marantan on DMV Zone with Homa Bash FOX 5 WTTG.
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Internship Spotlight:
Christopher Bartolotto
Christopher Bartolotto interned with Prince William County Parks and Recreation as a Filming and Editing Intern.
Read more about his experience here.
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Staff and Alumni Spotlight
Cory Mason’s first feature-length production, Take from Me, premiered on August 26th on Amazon and Fandango. Cory produced the film, shot entirely in Northern Virginia with a crew including five FAVS and George Mason alumni: Maya El-Hage (2nd Assistant Camera and Swing Grip), Nick Johnson (Key PA), Ian Leach (BTS), Derek Patterson (PA), Nathan Taylor, and Valeria Verastegui (Equipment Support/Donors).
In 2022, Cory and local filmmaker Westley Eldredge, the film's director, began pre-production on Take from Me - previously titled "Love Dogs." The film’s production began in 2023, and after completion it earned awards and acclaim from film festivals and critics, including Best Picture from Red Rose Film Festival, Best Actor from Romford Horror Film Festival, and Audience Award from Alexandria Film Festival. Bayview Entertainment picked up the film for distribution in 2024.
For more information visit: takefrommefilm.com.
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Faculty Acknowledgment
Professor G Chesler was interviewed by Ellise Fuchs while in Torino, Italy to present their film Connection | Isolation at the Divine Queer Film Festival this past spring. The interview is now published on Popmatters.com; they discuss the documentary's aesthetic choices, the decision to include reenactments, the ongoing relevance of seeing the COVID-19 pandemic through a trans lens, and the new work of distributing the film, so that more viewers can see it. See Below.Professor Chesler has been awarded a Robert K Purks Faculty Enrichment Endowment Grant to develop audience engagement tools for Connection | Isolation.
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Alumni Accomplishments
Andrew Shaffer (‘25) recently published a book called The Child Within, which is available for purchase on Amazon. The story follows David, who is a stressed guy in his early 20s who overthinks about a lot of things about his future, but when he has an interaction with his younger self, he learns to not worry so much and to try and to have the same mindset from when he was a kid and take things day by day.
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Autumn Boxley’s film Flash Sale will premiere on October 16th at NewsFest 2025, at Nitehawk Cinema Prospect Park in Brooklyn, NY. In-person and virtual streaming options will be available.
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Film Opportunities and Resources
Festival Submissions:
Jobs Opportunity:
- Audiovisual Production Specialist, National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute Washington, DC | Apply here
Contest:
- ReelShort, a vertical streaming platform dedicated to short-form storytelling, is hosting a Global Filmmaking Contest.
The contest features a $50,000 grand prize, with additional cash awards for runners-up and the top 10 student submissions will each be awarded an $8,000 prize. Winning projects will also have the chance to be featured on ReelShort, where they’ll reach millions of global viewers.
For more information visit: https://www.reelshort.com/campaign/movie-making-contest
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Did you miss our last newsletter?
Check out the archives 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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