Three High Schools win top honors at Halloween Student Silent Film Festival
Students from three area high schools received awards for Outstanding Achievement in Cinema for their silent film submissions at the Halloween Student Silent Film Festival (SSFF) held Wednesday, October 18, 2023, at the Tivoli Theatre, 5021 Highland Avenue, Downers Grove.
Outstanding Achievement in Cinema Award includes:
- Neuqua Valley High School in Naperville for “Hiding in Plain Sight”
- Lyons Township High School in La Grange for “Pink Lady”
- Hillcrest High School in Country Club Hills for “Whispers of a Ghost”
The Halloween Student Silent Film Festival was a film competition in which students from ten high schools created original motion pictures. Unlike other film competitions, however, the movies submitted told their stories in visual terms without the aid of voices or sound effects. Each school was given four weeks to create its silent film entry.
Neuqua Valley High School students won a second award at the film fest – the People’s Choice Award. This year, the audience agreed with the judges, and “Hiding in Plain Sight” fromNeuqua Valley won an award for Outstanding Achievement in Cinema, and the People’s Choice Award.
“What I am most proud of in ‘Hiding in Plain Sight,’ is the students’ collaboration and commitment to the story,” said John Gelsomino, media instructor at Neuqua Valley High School. “They developed a thoughtful piece that was well received because of the detail in every element of the story.”
The students who created “Hiding in Plain Sight” were Jayden Adkins, writer; Emma Jenkins and Jayden Adkins, producers; Ani Avedoumian and Lauren Milani, costume designers; and cast members Ani Avedoumian, Addie Ramaker, Emma Jenkins, Chloe O’Keefe, Charlie Scriven-Young, and Drew Aurelio.
“This year’s event had a deliberately broad theme that revolved around Halloween,” said Ed Newmann, co-founder of the SSFF. “We aimed for a truly unsettling atmosphere with elements of horror, suspense, and outright creepiness. Students unleased their imagination and created something that’s truly spine-chilling.”
Submitted movies were shown with live organ accompaniment by festival founder Derek Berg who is a professional pianist and CEO of the Clarendon Hills Music Academy.
“I made a convergence of the silent movie era musical spontaneity with improvisation,” Berg said. “My preparations were minimalistic. I let the film, the audience’s energy, and the eerie Halloween ambiance guide my music.”
Participating high schools and media instructors:
- Neuqua Valley High School, John Gelsomino
- Lyons Township High School, Bill Allan
- Hillcrest High School, Michael Lynch
- New Trier High School, Jim Syrek
- Bremen High School, Michael Lynch
- Riverside/Brookfield High School, Gary Prokes
- Oak Forest High School, Michael Boniface
- Tinley Park High School, Michael Lynch
- Barrington High School, Jeff Doles
- Maine South High School, Mason Strom
For the festival, a panel of judges — all professionals in the entertainment or art education industries – selected the winners based on the quality of the story narrative, development, camera work, lighting, and editing.
Each school received an HD digital file of its movie with the accompaniment sound track.
“In addition to being an incomparable experience for all the participating students,” Newmann said, “the winning filmmakers will have powerful pieces of work for their portfolios.”
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