Some of the best films created by students in the Department of Entertainment and Media Studies this year were screened at 136 Fest on April 27, 2017, at Ciné in downtown Athens, Georgia.
The event featured projects made in EMST 5260 Advanced Production and Indie Studies, including:
- “American Myth”- [director] Connor Pannell, [producer] Elise Fitzgerald
- “Bodyguard”- [director] Andy Han, [producer] Kara Pemberton
- “Don’t Shoot the Cat”- [director] Joe Youorski, [producer] Schafer Sirmer
- “The Heckler”-[director] Kyle Rehl, [producerw] Gareth Kanter/Sean Smith
- “Hey Mister”- [director] Patrick Bailer, [producer] Hamilton Way
- “Skins/Entropy”- Maddison Griffin and Rick Adle
- “Best Weekend Ever”- [director] John Buckley, [producer] Lauren Holliger
- “Friendship”-[director] Emmett Cappi, [producers] Sam Armour/Christine Beldon
- “Skins”- [director] Shelby Eggers, [producer] Rachel Beavers
Various other student projects were shown in Cine’s Lab, including some behind-the-scenes footage and documentaries.
“It’s always fun to see the outcome,” said Shira Chess, an EMST assistant professor. “I was really excited to come here tonight. Nothing is ever perfect at this point in their careers, but I think that (the films) always are great.”
Chess recalled working with the students early on in the process.
“They came to us with some great ideas and we all developed them as a group,” she said. “It was also the students workshopping each other’s ideas, which I think is really important.”
Patrick Bailer wrote and directed “Hey Mister,” which he described as a “musical coming-of-age comedy.”
“It was cool finally getting to see it on the screen, getting to hear the music that we all worked on and then seeing everything fit together,” he said.
A spring 2017 graduate, Bailer said he is thankful for the skills he’s developed, thanks to Grady faculty.
“Everything I learned about writing was with Dr. Chess—figuring out how the stories fit, making them personal,” he said. “In all of (Jim) Biddle’s classes, it was helpful because I learned every different facet of production.”
Bailer will start his career as a replay operator at Turner Studios and aspires to become a show director while continuing to write.
Casey Hammons, also a spring graduate, produced the 136 Fest.
“It was a lot of fun to put it together,” she said. “It was a little rough there for a while—we had a bit of a recording issue with one of the dvds—but I thrive on running around like a crazy person. I loved it.”
In addition to her role in organizing the event, Hammons was associate producer of “Don’t Shoot the Cat,” a comedy/drama. She dreams of producing and will pursue opportunities in Los Angeles this summer.
“Grady helped in a lot of ways,” she said. “The professors treat you like adults, like in real-world situations. You’re not coddled anymore once you get into the major. You have deadlines and you don’t have excuses. You just get things done.”
More photos from the 136 Fest are on the UGA Grady Flickr account.