News

Student Filmmakers Host the 8th Annual Léman Film Festival

February 02, 2024

Students, families, faculty, and staff hit the red carpet on Wednesday, January 31st for the 8th Annual Léman Film Festival. This year, 28 student filmmakers submitted movies to the festival, 25 of which were passed on to a panel of judges for award consideration. Ultimately, 11 films were awarded for their excellence in nine categories, including a new “Special Jury Prize” category which was added this year.

Students in our filmmaking program hone their skills in several areas of film production, including directing, editing, sound design, and more, throughout the year. The Film Festival serves as a platform for our community to celebrate a semester of hard work, which culminates in a variety of collaborative original films that feature screenplays, scripts, and music crafted entirely by the students themselves. While each submission is the result of weeks of learning, students had only 72 hours to conceptualize, film, and edit their work – a true feat for any filmmaker, no matter their experience.

This beloved tradition also invites several professionals to serve on the festival’s judging panel, giving students the opportunity to have their work seen and critiqued by leaders in the movie and television industries. This year’s panel included producer and filmmaker Cheryl Beading, director and documentarian Randall Dottin, film and television director Maren Lavelle, actor and filmmaker Kurt Leitner, and film and television director/producer Jeff Santoro.

Congratulations to all of the filmmakers! You can enjoy all of the submissions to this year's festival here.

 

The categories featured in this year’s festival can be seen below, with the winners in bold:

Best Concept:

“Another Time” – Zenyao L. ‘26, Lincoln L. ‘27, Alex L-S ‘26

“Let Me Know” – Filippa L. ‘25, Freya M. ‘25

“Passage of Stars” – Camila P. ‘25

 

Best Writing:

“Running out of Time” – Zoe R. ‘24, Maya B-R ‘24, Renata B-G ‘24, Wolfgang S. ‘24

“Shadows” – Fiebe S. ‘25, Fernanda S. ‘25, Sofia Anna Z. ‘25 , Kalista K. ‘25

“Shattered” – Lucas P. ‘26, Michael D. ‘26, Hudson S. ‘26, Elsa L. ‘26

 

Best Sound Design:

“Another Time” – Zenyao L. ‘26, Lincoln L. ‘27, Alex L-S ‘26

“Decade Drift” – Genevieve S. ‘26

“Echoes of the Clock” – Valeriya O. ‘26, Peter W. ‘24, Tamara N. ‘26, Megan C. ‘26

 

Best Original Score:

“Echoes of the Clock” – Valeriya O. ‘26, Peter W. ‘24, Tamara N. ‘26, Megan C. ‘26

“Shattered” – Lucas P. ‘26, Michael D. ‘26, Hudson S. ‘26, Elsa L. ‘26

“The Choice” – Lev F. ‘25, Gianna G. ‘25

 

Best Editing:

“Echoes of the Clock” – Valeriya O. ‘26, Peter W. ‘24, Tamara N. ‘26, Megan C. ‘26

“Let Me Know” – Filippa L. ‘25, Freya M. ‘25

“Shadows” – Fiebe S. ‘25, Fernanda S. ‘25, Sofia Anna Z. ‘25 , Kalista K. ‘25

 

Best Cinematography:

“Shadows” – Fiebe S. ‘25, Fernanda S. ‘25, Sofia Anna Z. ‘25 , Kalista K. ‘25

“The Final Hours” – Isabel K. ‘25,  Lev F. ‘25

“The Regrets of Time” – Samirah H. ‘26, Janai S. ‘26, Amy D. ‘26, Ruby Stanzak

 

Best Performance:

“Aggravating and Pretentious” – Caelyn O. ‘25, Dylan R-T ‘26, Alessandro S. ‘27, J.C. E. ‘26, Samia P. ‘26, Ace C-N ‘26, Lina Y. ‘24

“The Keys” – Liz V. ‘26, Hana R. ‘26, Zeinab O. ‘26, Maddox S. ‘26

“Time” – Kareem M. ‘25, Rayelle M. ‘25, Luke H. ‘25, Orwayn G. ‘24

 

Best Direction:

“Do you Want a Burger?” – Esther G. ‘24, Vanessa G. ‘24, Leo H. ‘24, Julian M. ‘24

“The Choice” – Lev F. ‘25, Gianna G. ‘25

“The Final Hours” – Isabel K. ‘25,  Lev F. ‘25

 

Best Picture:

“Shadows” – Fiebe S. ‘25, Fernanda S. ‘25, Sofia Anna Z. ‘25 , Kalista K. ‘25

“Shattered” – Lucas P. ‘26, Michael D. ‘26, Hudson S. ‘26, Elsa L. ‘26

“The Choice” – Lev F. ‘25, Gianna G. ‘25

 

Special Jury Prize:

“The Keys” – Liz V. ‘26, Hana R. ‘26, Zeinab O. ‘26, Maddox S. ‘26

“The Final Hours” – Isabel K. ‘25,  Lev F. ‘25