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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 13, 1998)
The Bailie Battalion Aggielife Page 3 • Friday, November 13, 1998 AKE dents and eu; nicks atSlOOai. ' she said, atz, media co® I i for the Oftlcefci , said there hat|' iased so far. om the bricfc an endowmer.: on Center,” he eople can pt : Center’s Wet! t62-1856 ored t. OXE Students find creative outlet through the art of filmmaking trie Jennings rticipated in Jennings s ate do a lot of in. Asa who! it raising mon ng a wondetfi part of the ni[ le reason we a success, ly cooperative teall had a lots Drive Nicaragua 5 children am 10-3:30 untain r 2 round trip | h or South tal Airlines. raguan Studfi Airlin ’ invites f 11 REARMS/ :K CUNRAf 19-1093 Miles Eastoi i Hwy 21 I 3-Dark 0 a.m. ■ Dad ge Skeet Pi Jl ' FT MACHlNf BY MARIUM MOHIUDDIN The Battalion tudents can express themselves through short stories, poetry, pictures, paintings and movies. However, once students decide to embark upon the world of ie filmmaking, their paths take them one adventure to another. I Sarah Forbey, director of film produc tion for the MSC Film Society of Texas &M and a junior English major, said film- aking in college has a special vitality. “There is more energy in a college !lm, especially when there is not enough money,” she said. “When you have to give plasma to make it happen, it be comes more personal. It is a grueling rocess, and it makes you want to quit 11 the time. But the satisfaction comes hen you conquer that.” Forbey said there is an increasing inter- [st in filmmaking on campus, and the de- and should be met. “We definitely should have a film epartment at A&M,” she said. “There > a big interest, and it is getting a lot f exposure.” Juan Loya, a student filmmaker and ju nior journalism major, said making films at A&M presents interesting challenges. “When 1 first got here, I used to wish we were more like Austin,” he said. “I can imagine that if I were over there, it would be too cliche because everybody is into film. It is more unique here. We have no handouts, and we have to work hard. When I do this on my own, I find it more rewarding. ” Many organizations and departments have found ways to accommodate the de sire to make films. There are a handful of classes that discuss and analyze film. The Film Society hosts an annual film festival, and each year, they make a film. MSC Cepheid Variable, a science fiction organization, holds Schlockfest, a contest for students who make films. Schlock movies are cheap and funny horror or sci ence-fiction films that are so bad, they are good. Students create their own schlock films and have them judged. Eric Liga, coordinator of Schlockfest with Cepheid Variable and a senior computer sci ence major, said the purpose of the festival is to make people excited about films. “A year ago, we were all sitting around and were trying to think of something fun to do besides getting 49-cent rentals from Hastings,” he said. “We thought it would be fun to create movies. There is not a film department, and there is not a chance to produce. This allows students to express their creativity. ” Liga said last year Schlockfest had four entries, but this year, the interest grew and resulted in ten entries. Making a film may sound easy, but students have found many obstacles in the process. It begins with an idea, which is then formulated into a script. Revisions and treatments are done to make the script feasible for film and to give the characters depth. Next comes the biggest step in film pro duction — money. Forbey said even independent college films can get expensive. “Making Hollywood movies falls in the million dollar range,” she said, “but for us, the lowest amount we spend is $1,000.” The Film Society has funds set aside for production. They also get money from do nations, student groups, former students and some independent filmmakers. Loya said he owns a film camera but finds making a movie on a video camera easier and cheaper. “I bought a film camera, but it is more expensive to use it, and editing was a lot of trouble,” he said. “Ten minutes of film cost about $1,000 or more than that. But stu dents have learned how to cut corners, so they can become pretty cheap.” Once the money situation is taken care of, the cast and crew for makeup and light ing are hired. Finally the filming takes place, and students have to find a way to edit the work. Forbey said the process of filming and editing can be long and tedious. “It took us one weekend to film our movie,” she said. “Then you have to transfer it to video, edit it and then blow it back to film. We take it to a film pro cessing lab to transfer it to film and use the equipment at KAMU-TV for editing. We have to rent the camera equipment, usually from Austin.” Liga said as a student filmmaker he finds it easier to use equipment found at home. “The first year, I had to use a VCR and a video camera,” he said. “It took us three days of filming. That got tough. A few peo ple use the editing equipment in the archi tecture department. Editing is one of the trickiest things to do.” Equipment on campus is hard to find and difficult to use. There are three organi zations with AVIDs. AVIDs digitize footage and allow the user to edit on computer. Some students also use the equipment in the architecture department. Forbey said after everything is done and the movie is finished, the final prod uct is gratifying. “It is something to be proud of and to show your friends that you did some thing that you have talked about,” she said. “It is a desire to show not only a part of yourself but to create something that is a part of you. “A lot of people can write a short sto ry, but this is more visual, and it reaches a wider audience. Pictures speak a thou sand words.” Loya said he is always thinking about stories and finds many ways to express himself. “I write short stories or make a comic book, and if I had any sense of music, I would make a song,” he said. “But some things just have to be made visual because it would look better. ” The final test, however, is in front of the audience. Loya said production can be exhausting but having people view his films can also be difficult. “Watching people watching your films can be weird,” he said. “You want them to like it, and you wonder what they will think and if they will laugh at the right parts.” Forbey said there may not be a film de partment at A&M, but there are many av enues for students interested in film. “I would say to all those who want to get into filmmaking to keep writing and taking all the classes you can,” she said. “Find out about the film scene and get involved. Go to a bigger city and see what they have to of fer. 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