Solo

Writer/Director/Editor: Alice Almiron
Starring: Jaedan Sanchez and Greg Vlachakis
Producer: Anshul Mahakud
DPs: Margot Maxwell and Alice Almiron
Lighting Designer: Helena Magee
Gaffer/Grip: Jonny Berkowitz
AC: Emily Arce
PA: Kezia Barnaby

“With Solo, I wanted to tell a visual mood piece that exhibits a sensitive human subject matter. I wanted the story to present itself as a dream and show the grief that the violinist is going through. I really wanted to experiment with sound in this film. I wanted the sound to be disconnected from reality but connected to the main character’s journey. As I explore more filmmaking techniques, I want to tell more intimate stories about individuals going through life-changing yet common experiences”. – Alice Almiron

Calibrate

Starring: Mari Blake, Robert Fuller, Ziad Alezabi
Writer/Director: Ryan Gallagher
Camera Operators: Gerard Michaels, Zachary Smolder
D.O.P.: Daniel Reguinho

“Calibrate is a concept that I thought of when I was a junior in high school. This idea felt similar in scope to episodes I had seen in some science fiction anthology series that I loved, so I decided to pocket it until I was ready to shoot it with more production quality. I am still speechless that my thesis is finished, marking the end of a project I conceived six years ago. It feels like I was binging YouTube tutorials only yesterday to set up my first camera, but now I have a piece of work that I am genuinely proud of. Seeing this film in comparison to my work before coming to Mason Gross not only helps me realize how far I’ve come in college but also makes me excited to see where I’ll be in another four years.” – Ryan Gallagher

GROUNDED

BFA student Andreana Loukidis‘ grounded is a documentary self-portrait, film poem, focusing on experiences with mental health, specifically as they relate to dissociation and escapism. The film is told in segments of poetry and streams of consciousness that progressively challenge structure to bring viewers into the narrator’s perception of reality.

“This film is a product of my 2020 quarantine when I was dealing with feelings of stagnation, boredom, and claustrophobia. I challenged myself to record pieces of my world – the nighttime roads, the beach, the curtains of my family living room, the sunlight that comes through our front door and dances on the wall – and use them to explore my emotions. The structure is developed out of gut instinct and experimentation; I speak to the audience in fragments, tear the frames apart, and often warp the relationship between sound and image. “grounded” is my way of communicating and connecting to those around me by revealing pieces of myself and offering them up to be viewed.” – Andreana Louikidis

Marcia (Trailer)

Starring: Jessica Michal
Choreographer: Jessica Michal
Director: Marguax Beck
Cinematographer: Miguel Salcedo
Composition and Score: Nathan Bishop
Animator: Stephanie Bradli

“There were five people working on this simultaneously, and it was so exciting for everyone’s strengths to be highlighted,” says Margaux Beck, a third-year film student. “Jess taught us how choreography moves through a space, Miguel and I explained concepts like how shot lists work and what ‘b-roll’ is, Nathan explained the process of scoring a piece, and Steph shared her process of animation with us. I think we’re all coming out of this project as stronger artists.”

Shaniyah Barnabela

“Drifted is a film I made about a friendship in my own life and it was so fun see it all come together. I feel lucky that I was able to make a film during these crazy times with the best cast and crew I could’ve hoped for.” – Shaniyah Barnabela

Craft Services with Trent and Parth

Craft Services is a film podcast created and hosted by Rutgers BFA filmmaking students Parth Marathe and Trent Algayer. It started as a quarantine project during the summer of 2020, where they started interviewing behind the scenes industry professionals. By searching up heads of departments and IMDb pages, they’ve conducted over 30 interviews and over 60 episodes since the podcast’s inception.

Ryan Quon

“When I set out to shoot a film about paranoia and public health I couldn’t have imagined the state of the world only a few months later. Isolation has ironically made the filmmaking process much more complicated, but has also reminded me to create in different ways and gain inspiration through reflection.” – Ryan Quon