By Joseph Demme
triangle film columnist
It’s that time of year again: Caffeine-induced students feverishly completing their films to be submitted to the Broad Street Film Festival. The film festival has gone through several changes from recent years, and will continue to be held at the Tivoli Theater in Chattanooga on April 25.
The biggest change this year is the involvement of Covenant College (Lookout Mountain, Ga.). Senior Ben Johnson thinks that involving another school is a big step forward, helping the transition from a school event into an actual festival.
Sophomore Joshua Davis is excited about the opportunity for Bryan and Covenant filmmakers.
“We’re moving beyond a simple school event to an annual cooperation between colleges and universities to broaden the possibility of student filmmakers’ success as they pursue their careers,” Davis said.
The initial contact between Bryan and Covenant was through Bryan film professor Chris Clark and Drew Belz, the film club president at Covenant.
When asked about the film festival, Belz replied that, “Chris Clark was the nexus for the two colleges, having worked at Covenant before he left to aid the film effort at Bryan. We talked at Covenant’s first real film festival last year, the Watchtower Film Festival … I hope the Broad Street Film Festival explodes. I hope we get some bigger names on board next year and the standards are raised.”
The list of judges for this year’s film festival is comprised of local figures involved in the film industry. Bobby Stone, founder of the Atomic Films production company in Chattanooga, was chosen for his technical knowledge. He has previously worked with Clark and was a guest speaker for the film lecture series at Bryan last semester. Darren Moorman was chosen for his skills as a producer. He is currently the vice president of SkyAngel, a family-centered television network that will be showcasing some of the senior-made Bryan films. And finally, Karen Henderson brings her film knowledge and experience as an actress to the table. She currently teaches several classes at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and has an M.A. in film studies.
“I’m thankful that Ben Johnson and Faith Ammen have embraced reaching across party lines,” Clark said regarding the cooperation between schools. He shares Johnson and Davis’ view on the future of the Broad Street Film Festival, emphasizing not only the regional aspect of reaching out to Southern Adventist, Tennessee Temple and Lee universities, etc., but to high schools as well. He believes that this would spark more enthusiasm from potential filmmakers as well as reach out to surrounding communities.
The workload surrounding the film festival has been shared between both colleges. Bryan and Covenant will be providing presenters, live music, and advertising in their local areas. Music from Bryan will include performances by The Little Foxes, Centaur Cowboys, and Thomas Smith and Molly Green.
Editor’s Note—Over the remaining weeks leading up to the Broad Street Film Festival, we will be updating the Cinexcellence film blog on the Triangle website with information regarding the film festival, including interviews with those involved and previews of submitted films.