Every semester, the Mt. SAC Film club puts together a film festival where students and non-students alike can submit their films for presentation.
This semester’s festival was held in the building 13 auditorium on Dec. 3 at 6:30 p.m. With a total of 12 films showcased, attendees bore witness to the work their peers put into the creative process behind these shorts.
Abril Sepulveda-Moya, a 20 year-old film major, has been a part of the Film Club since her freshman year with this being her first semester as the president of the club. Originally finding the club through the Join-A-Club event that’s held every semester, she joined to find a place to learn more about her newfound major.
“I was just looking for any way possible to learn about film,” Sepulveda-Moya said. “I was very eager and still am very eager to keep learning anything I can about it. I saw it as an opportunity to continue and start my knowledge.”
However, behind the curtains lies hours of endless planning and dedication that go into putting on the film festival. That responsibility falls on the shoulders of the Mt. SAC Film Club president, Sepulveda-Moya and her cabinet.
“We start planning at the very beginning of the semester,” Sepulveda-Moya said. “We start by working with our club’s advisor Stillman Kelly. We first choose a day then put it through a bunch of approvals and paperwork. It’s very important to start planning as early as possible so we have everything set in stone.”
It’s not just the paperwork and school bureaucracy that the club faces when trying to develop the event. The club also has to promote the festival and build their community at the same time. “At every club rush and every semester, we make sure to mention the film festival,” Sepulveda-Moya said. “We get questions like ‘Hey, when is the film festival? When can I submit?’ and it makes me very happy not only as the president of the club but also as a film maker. With film making, it’s all about making a community and networking. So it’s nice to see that happening with just this event alone.
At a certain point in the semester, the Film Club opens up submissions for the festival via a google form. However, it’s not only open to students from Mt. SAC specifically. The club also allows directors from outside the school to submit their films.
“All information and regulations are included on the form,” Sepulveda-Moya said. “For example, we usually have a time limit to make sure everybody’s films can be shown. We have information about the location and how to contact us. We make it very detailed so we can answer everyone’s questions.”
While the club does have the whole semester to plan the event, times and schedules can conflict and cause issues.
“It did become a little difficult because my cabinet did have very busy schedules this semester and so did I,” Sepulveda-Moya said. “There would be times where we wouldn’t be able to get together. But in the end we all managed to work together and problem solve.”
Now with this semester coming to a close, thoughts of what comes next become commonplace. The film festival is no different in this aspect. While it can be expected to stay the same, smaller changes are always thought of.
“One idea I had that’s not for sure set in stone, is playing around with our dress attire,” Sepulveda-Moya said. “We always have it as semi-formal but maybe we’ll include a theme. I’m also always open to any suggestions by my Film Club cabinet or any students. If there’s anything that comes across, I’m always open to hearing it and taking it into action.”
Despite originally only doing it because the last president and cabinet put on a festival, the community that has grown around the film festival is what gives Sepulveda-Moya and her cabinet their motivation to continue to hold one semester after semester.
“We fell in love with seeing all these people show up and seeing their hard work and creativity be shown,” she said. “It made us all very happy and that alone gave us the reason to continue to put out these festivals and make this a tradition.”
