Down the road, Owls can step into the shadows and prepare for a cinematic journey as the annual Keene State Media Production (KSMP) Halloween Film Festival returns.
This past Thursday, Oct. 30, in the Putnam Theater, KSMP hosted a film festival centered around terror where the club showcased student-made spooky-themed films and provided free food.
The club presented eight films that night: “1-800-Exorcist” by Thomas Berry, Eamon Matthews, Han Walz, and Sam Johnson, “El Sibon” by Patrick Garcia and Tyler Desjardins, “Love Spell” and “Ghost” both by Mariah Rodrigeuz-Costa, “Grandma Fingers” by Aiden Goodrich, Courtney Deschene, Wyatt Handy, and Isabella Stevens, “Hallow Vows” by Dillon Lawrie and Monica Wiese, “Ring Ring” by Hayley Doda, Emmett Hartford, and Dillon Lawrie, and “The Nights from Hell” by Zachary Johnson.
When Thomas Berry, director and script writer of 1-800-Exorcist, was asked what inspired the film, he said, “It was for our collaborative production class with [Film Studies Department Chair] Jo Dery. We got assigned groups and got together one day, then we started ripping off ideas. Our main character is this Australian priest who specializes in exorcisms and is also afraid of the dark.”
Eamon Matthews, the Director of Photography for 1-800-Exorcist, said, “It was nice to work with a positive group of people who just wanted to get the project done. No one had a big ego about themselves, and everyone respected each other, which made it move pretty efficiently.”
Jake Bemis, a first-year attendee, said, “My roommate and I decided to come to this event today because we felt that we needed to get out more. I had a good time, and the highlight of the event for me was being able to laugh at the funny parts.”
According to junior and President of KSMP Heather Gibb, the organization is an on-campus media creation club that does podcasting, photography and a variety of film festivals. The club meets on Monday nights at 6 p.m. in room 169 of the Media Arts Center.
“Planning for events, we have to find what we think would be the best day for most people, what space we want to use, and what food would be good. We then make a slideshow and hang up posters to promote the event,” said Gibb.
Junior and Vice President Cameron Rockwell said, “I enjoy talking with club members who are interested in doing films and providing them the right equipment. My favorite part of hosting events like this is being there for the creation of their films, then seeing how they play out on the big screen and how the audience reacts.”
KSMP also has Feature Fridays on its Instagram account, where the club highlights photographers on campus, whether they are club members or not. Weekly themes are released each Monday. Previous themes included pumpkins, the color orange and street lights, which you can find on the club’s Instagram page at @ksmpmedia.
Zoey Spirito can be contacted at
zspirito@kscequinox.com
