Gifts at Work:
Transforming Undergrads into Filmmakers
Each summer, Hugh Gillis Hall hums with the movie-making activity of Spartan Film Studio’s latest summer film project. There are sets to build. Car crashes to orchestrate. Lighting to set up. Scenes to shoot.
With generous support from donors like entrepreneur and inventor Maurice Kanbar, the on-campus production company of the Department of TV-Radio-Film-Theatre launches students’ careers as writers, directors, producers and cinematographers.
Spartan Film Studios has turned out award-winning student feature films since 2007. Each film project means professional credit and unparalleled experience for the 70 students who make it happen each summer. Students go through the program and target specific skills they want to learn. By the time they graduate, they have a stronger resume and the knowledge to succeed in the industry.
In 2009, Jeremy Inman, ’09 Film, completed an award-winning screenplay that was inspired by his favorite comic books and video games. It is the story of a high school student who dresses as a shiny green superhero for birthday parties and battles a rival for the affection of the girl he loves.
Inman already has nine short films, two commercials, a documentary and four feature films under his belt. None of this would have happened without private funding for the summer film program. “Working on these projects is the only way you can learn,” he says. “You just have to go for it.”
Barnaby Dallas, ’99 MA Film, is the department’s coordinator of production and spearheads the program. “Anybody who sees these films is stunned by their quality,” says Dallas.
Thanks to private funding to support the program, the students are able to bring their dreams to the big screen. “Our students don’t sit around and wait for opportunities,” says Dallas “They make them.”
