Annual Union Board Film Festival returns for round 7

This year, IU students and Bloomington residents will once again have the chance to check out IU’s hottest young filmmakers at the Seventh Annual Union Board Film Festival this Friday. \nThe festival will start at 8 p.m. April 4 in the Whittenberger Auditorium and is free and open to the public. IU students may submit their work for inclusion in the festival and compete for various prizes. \n“I think it’s just a great opportunity for students to showcase their talent,” said Union Board film director and sophomore Rachel Elman. “It’s the students’ chance to shine.”\nElman estimates Union Board screened 20 films last year, with many more submitted. The competition is open to IU Bloomington undergraduate and graduate students.\n“I like the variety they had (last year). ... It was very diverse,” Elman said, citing live-action and animated pieces, short and long, all with different plots and characters. “I think that there had to be something that everybody could relate to.”\nFilms committee member sophomore Alex Stahler said he was surprised at the talent last year.\n“I went last year,” he said. “It was kind of fascinating, all this creativity students were coming up with.”\nStahler said students can expect these same qualities at this year’s festival.\n“It’s going to be entertaining, and it’ll offer you maybe a different perspective,” he said, adding that one thing he finds intriguing is the amateur element, which gives the films “kind of a different style than what you’d see in the movie theater.”\nThe Union Board films committee will give awards for Best Picture, Best Cinematography, Best Screenplay and Committee Choice. Partipants will also compete for the Audience Choice award, which attendees will vote on at the festival. Prize money is $375 for each except Audience Choice, which is worth $200. Elman said the Union Board hopes filmmakers will use their winnings to “further their cinematic talent.”\nSenior Ole Brereton is majoring in film and video production and said events that encourage student filmmakers to pursue the field and gain recognition are important.\n“It’s a really hard industry to get into,” he said. “Bigger film festivals don’t really take on (low-budget, student) films.”\nHowever, not all contestants are film students.\n“I just grabbed a handheld camera and some buddies and went to work,” said junior William Callahan, who said it was a last-minute project that he started four days before the submission deadline. “I just saw (an ad) on campus this year and decided to do it.”\nCallahan’s film, “Familiar Faces,” is about a man who believes he’s being followed around.\n“He starts freaking out, and all these things start happening,” Callahan said. “It’s only about 10 or 11 minutes.”\nCallahan said he isn’t expecting his film to win any awards at the festival.\n“I had fun doing it,” he said. “Whatever happens, I’ll be happy with the outcome.”