Two film majors submit video for fan contest
Sam Norton
A&E Editor
In fourth grade we dreamed of debuting our new toys or new pets during show and tell. It was never enough to tell everyone about your new goldfish or new reptile; you had to show them. Now two Keene State College students are no longer dreaming about showcasing their newly acquired pets or toys; it’s zombies that are their prized possessions. Seniors Max Moran and Lamar Clark are showcasing their one-minute film they created for a “Walking Dead” fan contest.
Max Moran / Contributed Photo
Keene State College senior Max Moran portrays Rick Grimes in a short video created as part of a video contest for “The Walking Dead.” The contest winner’s film will air just before the season finale of “The Walking Dead.”
Their film, which explains why they are one-of-a-kind fans, was created over the span of three days, with production beginning on Feb. 25. Clark and Moran said the video, which was directed and edited by student Trevor Thalin, was filmed at KSC film student, Sam Pacheco’s farmhouse. Moran said that the contest’s guidelines required the film to be less than 60 seconds and had to incorporate the use of Dr. Pepper. “We decided to use our major, which is film, to visually show why we are a one-of-kind fan by literally copying everything they do—shot, and structure,” Clark said.
The film will be judged based upon creativity, substance and originality, and will be judged by Robert Kirkman the producer and creator of the show and the comic book series, according to Clark. However, when it came deciding the concept for the film both Clark and Moran said they didn’t want to explain why they were one-of-a-kind fans, rather they wanted to show it. “The concept was pretty much the idea that I, personally, was a crazy enough fan to be going in and out of real life, thinking I was Rick Grimes, I would impersonate the character and I couldn’t tell what was real life anymore and I thought I was living the show. That’s something we wanted to stress—that I thought I was in ‘The Walking Dead’ and I’m that much of a big fan and I couldn’t stop,” Moran said.
Moran said the other entries for the fan contest consisted mostly of addressing Robert Kirkman, explaining why they are one-of-a-kind fans. “That’s why we did it differently, we didn’t want to say it we wanted to project it through film,” Moran said.
Clark and Moran’s film was voted into the top ten finalists round, and close to a thousand people submitted videos for consideration. If chosen, their video will debut before “The Walking Dead” season finale on March 27, they will also be flown out to next season’s premiere party, where they will receive $1,000 in spending money and will be given the opportunity to have a television interview about the film they created.
However, both Clark and Moran said their video would not have made it to the finalists round, if it weren’t for the help of KSC students. “Our video wouldn’t have made it anywhere without the students. People were willing to listen to our explanation,” Clark said. “The students really got us to number one,” Moran explained, “We would go table to table in the dining commons and explain we were doing a contest and would show them the video.”
And just like in fourth grade when we imagined that what we brought in for show and tell would beat out the other students’, Moran and Clark have high hopes that their video will beat out the competition, proving that showcasing your prized possession is better than describing it—especially when you’ve been bitten with zombie fever.
Sam Norton can be contacted at
snorton@keene-equinox.com