ArtPower! Film is expanding its annual Up&Coming Student Film Festival to include two nights of filmmaking, exploration, conversation, networking, and a brand new student networking event called Talent Campus. The festival will feature a selection of short films by UCSD students, as well as films by High Tech High students who are mentored through our Film Practicum program. From docudramas to comedies, and animation to experimental shorts, the level of talent is so impressive that even PBS has taken notice. Several films premiered in last year’s festival have been selected to screen as part of PBS’s internationally distributed Shorts Showcase series. Described as “excellent and diverse” by KPBS film critic Beth Accomando, this juried festival is a highly competitive screening event that continues to attract a growing number of submissions and audience members each year.

Video Story About the UCSD and HTHMA Film Practicum Partnership:

HTHMA Film Festival Premiere Happens on Thursday, May 16, 2013 / 8:00 PM
The Loft at UC San Diego
Price Center East, 4th Floor
9500 Gilman Drive MC 0077
La Jolla, CA 92093-0077

Directions:
From Interstate 5, exit La Jolla Village Drive and head west. Make a right on Villa La Jolla Drive heading north. Drive up the hill into the Gilman Parking Structure.

Parking:
UCSD requires parking permits for all weekday parking from 7am to 11pm. Permits will also be sold the night of the performance at permit machines. The machines charge $2/hour and take cash and credit cards.

Link to UCSD Google Maps

In photography, the golden hour (sometimes known as magic hour, especially in cinematography) is the first and last hour of sunlight during the day. When a specific photographic effect is achieved due to the quality of the light.

The color temperature varies by time of day. During sunrise and sunset, color temperature tends to be around 2,000 K, during the “golden hour” it is around 3,500 K and during midday it is around 5,500 K (the color temperature can vary significantly based on altitude, latitude and weather conditions).

Typically, lighting is softer (more diffuse) and warmer in hue. Shadows are relatively non-existent if the sun is below the horizon. When the sun is near or below the horizon, sunlight travels through more of the atmosphere, reducing the intensity of the direct light, so that more of the illumination comes from indirect light from the sky (Thomas 1973, 9–13), reducing the lighting ratio. More blue light is scattered, so if the sun is present, its light appears more reddish. In addition, the sun’s small angle with the horizon produces longer shadows.

“Hour” is used here quite loosely. The character of the lighting is determined by the sun’s altitude, and the time for the sun to move from the horizon to a specified altitude depends on a location’s latitude and the time of year. In Los Angeles, California, at an hour after sunrise or an hour before sunset, the sun has an altitude of about 10°–12°. For a location closer to the equator, the altitude is greater (or the time less), and for a location farther from the equator, the altitude is less (or the time greater). For a location sufficiently far from the equator, the sun may not reach an altitude of 10°, and the golden hour lasts for the entire day in certain seasons.

In the middle of the day, the bright overhead sun can create too-bright highlights and dark shadows. The degree to which overexposure can occur varies because different types of film and digital cameras have different dynamic ranges. This harsh-lighting problem is particularly important in portrait photography, where a fill flash is often necessary to balance lighting across the subject’s face or body, filling in strong shadows that are usually considered undesirable.

Because the contrast is less during the golden hour, shadows are less dark, and highlights are less likely to be overexposed. In landscape photography, the warm color of the low sun is often considered desirable to enhance the colours of the scene.

Color Temperature

The color temperature varies by time of day. During sunrise and sunset, color temperature tends to be around 2,000 K, during the “golden hour” it is around 3,500 K and during midday it is around 5,500 K (the color temperature can vary significantly based on altitude, latitude and weather conditions).

Student example shots using the same subject during sunrise, midday and sunset:

1. Photos by Brandon Dennis

2. Photos by Lincoln Dutcher

3. Photos by Naxiely Cortez

The Manhattan Project

Presented by Vander Thomas, Tyler Murphy, Zac Gill and Morgan Beltz

Harvey Milk

Presented by Spencer Williams, Emily Fine, Luna Rey and Noah Breslauer

Cristeros War

Presented by Daniela Ortiz, Karina Felix, Marcos Ramirez, Giovana Munoz and Adriana Navarro

Bob Moog

Presented by Eric Simpson, Lianna Wehrung, Vincent Skalka and Rachel Taylor

The Moon Landing

Presented by David Espe, Lindsay Miedema, Taylor Wilkinson, Samantha Valenzula and Danielle Weiss

The Los Angeles Rebellions

Presented by Raynesha Harris, Vincent Culliver, Lara Seghdat and Karen Arroyo

Pearl Harbor

Presented by Jeanette Rodriguez, Patrick Castro, Jocelyn Salcedo, Jocelyn Acevedo and Kevin Aceves

Woodstock

Presented by Jack Marshke, Chelsea Glickman, Luke Rosenberg and Oliver Reyes

The Wright Brothers

Presented by Luis Aguirre, Adriana Bustillos,Cesar Casteneda, Jocelyn Leon and Halan Castrejon

Tiananmen Square

Presented by Jovan Millet, Haley Holmes, Jennifer Seinbold, Illiana Guriant and Ben Martinez

Video Excerpts From Rehearsals:

–>Click Here For Images of the Student Design Process

–> Click Here For More Live Performance Photos

–> Download the Performance Playbill Here

 1.

“Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is no-one alive who is Youer than You.” – Happy Birthday to You by Doctor Seuss

Design by Illiana Guirant and Halan Castrejon

2.

“Life was good before I met the monster.” – Crank by Ellen Hopkins

Design by Ryan Collins and Daniela Ortiz-Mendez

3.

“It’s wrong what they say about the past, I’ve learned, about how you can bury it. Because the past claws its way out.” - The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

Thoughtcrime does not imply death, Thoughtcrime is death.” - 1984 by George Orwell.

Design by Morgan Beltz and Jovan Millet

5.

“If one’s different, one’s bound to be lonely” - Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

Design by Luna Rey and Samuel Diamond

6.

“In his blue gardens men and girls came and went like moths among the whisperings and the champagne and the stars”

-  The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald.

Design by Danielle Weiss and Samantha Valenzuela

7.

“Eheu fugaces labuntur anni (Alas how are fleeting years pass away)” by Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut

Design by Eric Simpson and Adriana Bustillos

8.

“We rest; a dream has power to poison sleep” - Frankenstein by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley

Design by Spencer Williams and Gio Munoz

9.

“I’m always saying ‘Glad to have met you’ to somebody I’m not at all glad I met.” The Catcher in the Rye by J.D.Salinger

Design by David Espe and Tyler Murphy

10.

“The web locks us into place, staring at each other as the moon slithers across the sky and the stars fall asleep.” Winter Girls by Laurie Halse Anderson

Design by Zac Gill and Lindsay Miedema

11.

“Poor nations are hungry, and rich nations are proud; and pride and hunger will ever be at variance.” - Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift

Design by Jack Marchke and Pedro Ramirez

12.

“I’m yurtle the turtle! Oh marvelous me!, for I am the ruler of all that I see” - Murtle the Turtle by Doctor Seuss

Design by Vincent Culliver and Jeanette Rodriguez

 13.

I believe that if life gives you lemons, you should make lemonade… And try to find somebody whose life has given them vodka, and have a party”

-  I had the Right to Remain Silent, but I Didn’t have the Ability by Ron White.

Design by Jocelyn Salcedo and Oliver Reyes

14.

“A book is a loaded gun.” - Farenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

Design by Jennifer Siebold and Lianna Wehrung

15.

“He who opens a door, closes a prison.” – Victor Marie Hugo

Design by Kevin Aceves and Jocelyn Acevedo

16.

“You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view… until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.” - To Kill a Mocking Bird by Harper Lee

Design by Karina Feliz Galvan and Chelsea Glickman

18.

 ”You never walk through mirrors or swim through windows.”  The Lords and the New Creatures by Jim Morrison

“The screams of the murdered. By day the dead impaled on spikes along the road” - The Road by John Hillcoat

Design by Vincent Skalka and Vander Thomas

20.

“We’re actors in our lives, pretendin’ to be who we want people to think we are.”  -  Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkele.

Design By Haley Holmes and Jocelyn Leon

21.

“You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view… until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.”

- To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Design by Taylor Wilkonson and Luis Aguirre

22.

“There are books of which the backs and covers are by far the best parts.” - Oliver Twist by Charles Dickins.

Design by Noah Breslauer and Luke Rosenberg

23.

“Don’t believe what your eyes are telling you. All they show is limitation. Look with your understanding. Find out what you already knowand you will see the way to fly.”  Richard Bach by Jonathan Livingston Seagul

Design by Patrick Castro and Karen Arroyo

24.

“Soccer isn’t something you can fake, its a feeling, a passion, a lifestyle. If you don’t live, eat, sleep and breath soccer then you are not a true soccer player. You just wear the jersey.”  - Anonymous

Design by Marcos Ramirez

25.

 ”When your hero falls so do the stars and so does the perception of tomorrow.”  A Rose that Grew from Concrete by Tupac.

Design by Adriana Navarro and Raynesha Harris

After two rounds of critique and revision, most students split off from their partner to learn how to do basic motion graphics in After Effects by themselves. In these cases, individuals worked on the same design but interpreted them differently through motion and sound design. What was interesting to observe was how different two similar animations could become with just a few sound changes. Their work is compiled in the video below. 

–>  Arts education is critical element for our public schools

–> University lecture stresses art’s impact on medicine

-> Future leaders need art-infused education.

-> How arts training improves attention and cognition.

-> The role of the arts in neighborhood revitalization and urban renewal.

-> The arts can boost the local economy, enhance education and provide a cultural uplifting.

-> Arts hold promise as jobs engine in California economy.

-> Why right-brainers will rule the future.

-> It is not possible to live by rationality alone.

-> The arts have a role in America’s future.

-> The arts play a key role in keeping students in high school and graduating on time.

-> Critical study: arts can help students in other academic areas. 

This semester-long project has been a collaboration of students’ multimedia and English classes. This project began with each student conducting one 45-minute interview with an adult whom they admired or about whom they wanted to know more. Then, as part of the story building process, each student transcribed their own 45-minute interview. Using their own transcription as a guide, students then edited their sound work into a seven minute story. Lastly, and after many rounds of critiques, each seven minute story became a beautiful and concise three minute piece. Through this process, students learned to carefully find and craft a meaningful story. The classes nominated their final 10 selections (out of 25 total) for cinematic production. An archive of all their sound narratives is here.

Next, students moved into visual production through an extensive film practicum program with UCSD’s ArtPower! program. ArtPower! recognizes that creative learners make creative teachers, and teaching and learning go both ways. In spring 2012, ArtPower! Film, Sixth College, and the Department of Visual Arts, along with our 12th grade students at High Tech High Media Arts, embarked on a ten-week creative mentorship program where UCSD students collaborated with and mentored our 12th grade students in order to produce these very special short films.

These final films culminate into the following ten projects and will be shown at the 5th Annual Artpower! Student Film Festival at The Loft on UCSD’s campus during the spring of 2012.

We hope you enjoy their work.

-Margaret Noble, Media Arts Instructor
-Rachel Nichols, English teacher

In the Pit of Your Stomach

One man’s tale of waiting at the alter.

Watch: http://youtu.be/-TXi7Xx5Ru0

Duct Tape Ninja

A quirky story about men, women, and duct tape.

Watch: http://youtu.be/wF9Zl9polJM

Caged Dreams

Trapped in a concrete box.

Watch: http://youtu.be/IByCkVGfFz8

Signs of Love

One man’s perspective on love and communication.

Watch: http://youtu.be/tdjw1ruAxm0

Through a Father’s Eyes

A father speaks on living through two wars with his family.

Watch: http://youtu.be/_BzOxcJF9ng

Playa Sola

 The choice and challenge presented to a young girl in an extremely difficult position.

Watch: http://youtu.be/LIADR_xiBiE

Extinguish

Extinguish tells the story of Joel E. Bowdan, one of the first African-American firefighters in San Diego, California.

Watch: http://youtu.be/j5a1FlbFQ4w

Rail Road Tunnel

 A dramatic re-creation of Mathew Pena’s police chase that has unsuspected results.

Watch: http://youtu.be/pqzEeYgXNmg

Nascent

The story of revealing oneself in the face of adversity.

Watch: http://youtu.be/Ifd-CurPkFQ

Trapped Ethics

An honest tale of fur trapping in the 1940s.

Watch: http://youtu.be/hEdQQ0MdaFw

Description: Trapped in a concrete box.

HTHMA Student Team: Kadija Grant, Adam Sutherlin, Alvaro Chagollan and Annalisa Madruga.

UCSD Mentor: Kristen M Hastings

This 12th grade film is part of UCSD’s ArtPower! Film Practicum, click here for more info on this project.

Description: A dramatic re-creation of Mathew Pena’s police chase.

UCSD Mentor: Angela Colgan

HTHMA Student Team: Erica Snider, Brandy Bussell, Alexander K Machado, Megan Bailey and Tomas Pena.

This 12th grade film is part of UCSD’s ArtPower! Film Practicum, click here for more info on this project.

Description: One man’s tale of waiting at the altar.

HTHMA Student Team: Brandi Coley, Noah Schlottman, Shaila Simpson, Anapaula Garciabueno

UCSD Mentor: Phoenix Lawton

First Place Winner, Best Cinematography: California Student Media Festival