My first experience with a film festival was on Monday April 11 at JC’s 2nd Annual Film Festival hosted by senior Brooke Basta. This was for her senior project and made me realize why she has such an interest in film.

At the film festival, audience members viewed 14 short films made by college students, local high school students, JC alumni, and JC students. These films were judged by three local judges for a film category, and by the audience who voted for their favorite film.

The first film the audience had the privilege of seeing was made by Basta herself, titled “Super Fresh Love.” It was a music video that was illustrated by Basta that went along with the song “Super Fresh Love” by the band The Sharpened Crowns, featuring JC alums Henry Basta, class of ’06 and Jay Karolenko, class of ’08.

Even though this film wasn’t judged by the judges or audience members, it still deserves praise. The Sharpened Crayons song is about a guy at the checkout counter at a supermarket who falls in love with a customer. Basta’s illustrations were amazing, capturing the song perfectly. I could definitely see this film being a hit on Youtube.

A film made by Nic Weinfeld called “Art Moves Us” was a one minute long film depicting how people show their passions for the arts. The film cuts to people dancing, acting, singing, and playing instruments. Even though the film was very short compared to the rest of the films, it really made an emotional impact. It showed how important the arts are to these passionate people.

Another film, and my favorite one out of all 14 films, was called “Webisode #2,” made by Jay Karolenko, class of ’08 and Henry Basta, class of ’06. It was hilarious, depicting Karolenko and Basta going on a job hunt and doing a terrible job on the interviews.

This video reminded me of a scene from the movie “Stepbrothers” where Dale and Brennan fail at the interviews, but succeed in providing excellent entertainment for the audience.

“My favorite film was ‘Webisode #2’ because it was a documentary styled video and it had subtle humor. It was very entertaining,” senior Casey Knell said.

Another strong entry was “Give Me Your Eyes,”  was made by senior Matt Ridge. It stars senior Alex Reddell who plays the role of a high school girl who discovers that she is pregnant. The film also stars junior Scott Novak who plays the baby daddy.

This film was the most controversial out of all of them all. It felt like it was a public service announcement about abortion.  It was about how if one person would help, everything would be different for the pregnant high school girl. Ridge got his message across in a tasteful way.

The film festival was a great form of entertainment for its viewers, and it was also a great way for filmmakers to get involved in the community.