SAY SI Summer Shorts Premiere
Filed in film reviews by Jeremy on August 25, 2006
The 5th SAY SÃ summer film program premiered on Friday to a crowd of students, friends, and patrons of the arts at the Buena Vista Theater of UTSA’s downtown campus. The annual event is the highlight of the year for the kids of SAY SÃ’s film program, where the culmination of their hard work is professionally screened free for the public. SAY SÃ is a tuition-free, multidisciplinary art program unique to San Antonio.
“Really the idea behind the program is to help [the students] find out their talents,” explained Media Arts Director Gisha Zabala. “And part of being an artist is being able to see how people react, so we exhibit all the works.”
Media Arts Instructor Ned Meneses elaborated: “The students aren’t here for grades, they’re not here because they have to be, they’re here because they really feel that they are artists. One of the things we try to get them to do is develop their own artistic style.”
The exhibition was well-received but also bittersweet, as the prospect of graduation loomed around the corner for many.
“It’s hard to see the seniors go,” Ned added. “All the media arts students are going out of state.”
Appropriately, the main event, a thirty-minute film titled Bon Voyage…and All That Lovely Stuff, is about a group of high school friends facing the choice between staying home to provide support for their families, or leaving for the college adventure and a chance at personal success.
The main character’s father, trying to diffuse her daughter’s guilt and trepidation, tells her at one point, “We’ll be okay, it’s about time you did something for yourself anyway.”
Writer/director Sarah Lauren Hinojosa, whose script was chosen to be the summer project, is leaving soon herself for Sarah Lawrence College in New York.
“This story I guess was probably subconsciously influenced by my own life,” she admitted. “SAY SÃ is like my family, and all the crew and cast are here, so it’s really fun.”
Bon Voyage… was preceded by a program of shorts made by high schoolers, the challenge being to make a film sans dialogue. The test bore fruitful results, as filmmakers were forced to circumvent the limitation through creativity. All the movies were shot in and around San Antonio, and featured such familiar locales as the Pig Stand, Central Public Library, and the King William district.
The productions were detailed in a slideshow and a filmmaker Q&A session bookending the show, followed by a lobby reception where program DVD’s were on sale. SAY SÃ’s non-profit programs survive off of such fundraising, and they are currently seeking contributions to assist in the renovation of their newly-acquired studio warehouse. Beginning with 12 students in ‘94, the program has since expanded to over 120, and with the continued success of events like this, it shows no sign of slowing down.
“Every year we try to outdo the previous year,” said Ned Meneses. “I was very pleased with their work.”
-Andy Gately