Campus fest stars UI students
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Last week, we gave you a brief overview of Roger Ebert’s Film Festival, which provides behind-the-scenes opportunities for undergraduates and graduates attending the University of Illinois who have an interest in the cinema, and Foxtail Film Festival, which positions high school and college students from Illinois State University and other institutions front and center with their work. So, where does that leave our enrolled Illini in having their own work seen, heard, and celebrated? You can find out pretty easily at the UI Spurlock Center for World Cultures, 600 S. Gregory St., Urbana, this coming Friday, May 2, when the classmates of MACS (Media and Cinema Studies unit in the College of Media) and faculty supervisor Jonathan Knipp put on the newest Illinois Student Film Festival. Doors will open at 6 p.m. for mingling and the lights will go down soon after 7 p.m. for movie-gazing as the free showing will offer its audience an intimate look at the stories and sensations that young people on campus have teamed up to relate on the big screen.
In this Daily Illini article, Makenna Norman visits with Knipp and his students about what the show will entail. Yearly variations planned by those who take the spring semester “Film Festivals” course, MACS 366, have entertained the campus community for more than a decade under previous guises like the Illini Film Festival, Golden Corn Film Festival, Illini Independent Film Festival, Illinifest, and UIUC Student Film Festival as it was known last year. Unlike the formulated consistency of the other events, Illinois FF is as much a presentation as it is a lab project that is experimented with by its revolving group of organizers.
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Also, unlike with Foxtail and ‘Ebertfest,’ we can’t tell you what exactly will be shown other than the obvious; copy found on Illinois FF’s social media states “the event will contain screenings, concessions, trivia, interviews, and more for all to enjoy,” so it’s clear that “big fun” is a selling point. We’re not even sure if movies from past years are available to watch or if there still is a dedicated website for Illinois FF, as the only link from Facebook leads to an online submission form. A hint at the variety of approach can be gleaned from the 2024 award winners, pictured on Facebook and shared here; they include an experimental piece directed by Juan David Campolargo Hoyos, CHRONICLES OF THE FUTURE, winner of the Audience Award and a $100 gift card, and a period action fantasy called WUXING WARRIORS: AN ASIAN AMERICAN EPIC, which earned director David Zhang and crew the Jonathan Laxamana Award for Diversity in Student Filmmaking and a $500 prize. Congratulations to them and their achievements.
We hope the students and audience members who gather together on Friday can appreciate all the effort that is put into something like the Illinois Student Film Festival, let alone its selections, and honestly wonder whether those who take MACS 366 or other relevant MACS courses ever learn about the legacy of film on campus apart from the storied life of Roger Ebert. Many alumni have gone on to successful careers in media and entertainment, such as the filmmaker Christopher Folkens of Los Angeles whose first feature production CATALYST was released in February, and many tenets of cinema on campus have held steady over time, such as the regular presence of student-run clubs for film appreciation and creation like Illini Film & Video, which celebrates twenty-five years of making movies at UI this semester. Cinematic catalysts can be found all around at the University of Illinois – don’t forget to look outward to Champaign, Urbana, and the cities beyond for inspiration as well, kids – if one cares to seek them out.
~ Jason Pankoke
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2025 Illinois Student Film Festival schedule
@ Spurlock Museum of World Cultures, UIUC, Urbana, IL
Friday, May 2
6:00 p.m. Doors open for networking and seating
7:00 p.m. Film program
Stills from CHRONICLES OF THE FUTURE (top) and WUXING WARRIORS: AN ASIAN AMERICAN EPIC (above) are courtesy the Illinois Student Film Festival via Facebook. | Other artwork is courtesy the Illinois Student Film Festival via Facebook.
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