Amongst the many genres of films shown at Film Festival on May 13th, horror films are a distinctive type. According to Senior and co-president of Film Fest Carter Kuritzky, he is one of the few students who have submitted horror films to Trinity, and the main difficulty during production is finding the level of horror appropriate for the audience. After a break for COVID-19, Film Fest has come back for a 24th time with 20 films shown.
Film Fest was started 25 years ago with then-freshman Phil Markunas presenting an idea for an event and club to English teacher and future Film Fest sponsor Steven Krueger in class. Film Festival has carried on ever since. Over the years, Krueger has seen many students make innovative and unique films.
“Some of [the films] you could look at and say that they were certainly unorthodox and experimental,” Krueger said. “[The students’] sense of aesthetics was impressive, and they weren’t afraid to take some different chances and creative risks.”
Senior and co-president of Film Fest Carter Kuritzky has also seen new styles for films this year.
“We have some 2D animation this year; we don’t see that a lot,” Kuritzky said. “We have a lot of stop-motion [animation], we’ve had a 3D animation…but this [2D animated film] is completely different with colors and sound effects, and it’s very artistic. It’s a different kind of production than I’ve seen.”
In addition to Kuritzky’s horror film this year, he also made the introduction film and assisted another co-president with her editing. His love for movies led him to accept the role of co-president.
“I have always been a huge movie buff. I love analyzing movies, making movies, and I love the entire process of it,” Kuritzky said. “I love helping out other kids if they make their films too. It’s such an amazing thing when they start on such a tiny idea that turns into a whole feature-length film.”
The admissions fee is 5 dollars, and the money raised has always gone to a non-profit.
“We have traditionally supported United Cerebral Palsy (UCP), and it helps kids that have a lot of different challenges in their lives,” Krueger said. “And [it provides] educational, medical, and social support.”
Based on the $500 raised, around 100 people attended. According to Krueger, the money varies from year to year, and Film Fest is regaining its footing after skipping last year. Overall, his favorite part of Film Fest is seeing the students’ excitement.
“It’s students who want to share their creativity with others, and then their friends and families come out to support that,” Krueger said. “I love artistic expression, and I love opportunities for kids to show what they can do and take some chances without there being a grade attached.”
Kuritzky’s favorite part of Film Fest is similar, as he enjoys seeing the films reach their final form and be shown at the event.
“All the people work so hard on these [films], and they put a lot of effort into it,” Kuritzky said. “You can just see the blood, sweat, and tears that come through it…you just see all the effort put in there, and it’s shown on the big screen. You don’t get a lot [of those] opportunities in high school.”
