Annual showcase displays student films

Ten films by Cal State Long Beach students will be screened at the Fourth Annual Student Filmmakers Showcase on Oct. 28. The film showcase will then be presented on Nov. 9 at the Director's Guild of America in Hollywood

The CSULB showcase will start at 8 p.m. in the University Theatre and will last approximately two hours, with each film running just under 15 minutes.

"We want to give our students the same type of exposure that students from New York University, USC and USC enjoy," said Steve Hubbert, an instructional support technician at CSULB's radio, television and film department.

A selection of the 10 student films to be featured in the showcase are highlighted bellow.

"Full Circle," by Joe Miyano, which, after one year of script writing, went into production in the spring. Miyano's film is about a journey through a man's tragic karma and features an all-Asian cast, he said.

"I like playing around with the idea of reincarnation - spiritually, not religiously," Miyano said.

Senior film major Joel Elliott, who will present "Cut and Dried," describes his film as a docu-drama. "Cut and Dried" was shot a year ago in Long Beach at Deno's Barber Shop on Anaheim Street, Elliott said. "It is a rites-ofpassage film that entails a lot of truth of the barber shop."

"Choices," produced by Brian Maris, is a story showing how a small argument can turn into a fatal conflict on the street. It was filmed in the alleys and basketball courts around the city of Long Beach.

"When people see it, I hope they don't feel that I am glorifying violence, because I intended just the opposite," Maris said.

Craig Mayo's film "Why Not" is a sketch comedy. While most of Mayo's film was shot in Venice Beach, some scenes were filmed in his backyard. Mayo is currently working on a drama for the December film showcase.

Drew Johnson's "Separation" was filmed in two consecutive weekends in Newport Beach and Las Vegas. The drama deals with the separation of a father and son and is based on a true story.

"It was exciting to see it all done," Johnson said.

Other films to be featured at the showcase include "Learning To Dance," by Kirsten Bulmer; "Clown Fish," by Belinda Bauer; "White Rabbits," by Susan Everett; "Door to Door," by James Renn; and "Red Light, Green Light," by Mark Rollins.

The credits of one CSULB filmmaker, David Twohy, include "The Fugitive" and "Terminal Velocity."

Hubbert said he had classes with Twohy, who he said had appeared in one of his student film in 1975, and who occasionally returns to campus to give lectures, he added.

The College of Arts ticket office will be selling tickets for $6. The University Theatre will also sell tickets on the night of the event.

For more information, call (310) 985-7000.