Evolution Oct. 2016 | Page 6

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Back to School , Back To Screen

Arts October 2016

Hannah Badger Staff Writer
The academic year has just begun , and conservatory events are already underway : auditions , shows and soon , Film and Television ’ s 9th Annual Back to School Film Festival . The FTV event , however , stands out as the only film festival of the year open to all conservatories . Aaron Orullian , director of the FTV Conservatory , recently spoke about the unique experience the festival has to offer .
“ This [ festival ] is a lot more casual ,” Orullian said . “ Our first official event , Winter Cineplex , isn ’ t until Jan . 20 , so this provides us a chance to have an event earlier . Also , I was realizing that students were making work on their own , just for fun . We wanted to find a venue and a place where we could showcase
that . So this gives them a chance to do something earlier in the year and kind of meet [ and ] hang out .”
Orullian also described the differences he sees in the Back to School Film Festival submissions compared with those of the FTV-exclusive Cineplex festivals . “ It ’ s a real , real broad array of filmmakers . We ’ ll get new and emerging filmmakers , students that are just trying out filmmaking ,” said Orullian . “ We ’ ll get , usually , more music videos ... We ’ ll get a lot of comedy , students just wanting to get together with their friends and make something funny over the summer .”
This year , the selections are even more varied , Orullian said , because of some special films FTV students made over the summer . “ We ’ re actually going to be showing
some work done during a documentary film camp that we did , as well as a trip to Alaska that we took . So it ’ s going to be a little bit more focused in that sense .”
The FTV trip to Alaska covered a wide range of locations and topics , including the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center and Denali National Park and Preserve . Back in California , the documentary camp held at OCSA , Doc Squad , was a collaboration with Girls Inc . and the BLITS Foundation covering different nonprofit organizations in Orange County .
When asked how Symphony Hall compares as a viewing space to the Folino Theater at Chapman University where FTV has its annual Cineplex festivals , Orullian expressed his appreciation for the smaller
venue . “ I ’ ve really liked the fact that it ’ s just a nice cozy place to meet very casually ,” Orullian said . “ We can also have refreshments in the lobby ... At Chapman , we can ’ t have any food or drink in the theater or in the lobby , so it ’ s much more formal .”
Orullian also acknowledged how the renovations to the theater space may enhance the event . “ It ’ s interesting because this year , with the upgrades to Symphony Hall ,” he
Illustration by Emma Lu
said , “ I ’ ve been told that they ’ re putting in a new screen and projector . There ’ s new seating , new flooring , so it may feel kind of fancy .”
When asked what we can look forward to in the coming film festival , Orullian smiled and responded , “ You ’ ll have to come and see .”
Film submissions are open until Oct . 7 . The Back to School Film Festival is free and will be held Friday , Oct . 14 at 7:30 p . m . in Symphony Hall .
Madalyn Watson Online Editor
Calling all wallflowers ! The third annual Creative Writing Read- A-Thon fundraiser was on Friday , Sept . 30 from 2 to 9 p . m . Everyone willing to be part of Stephen Chbosky ’ s novel “ The Perks of Being a Wallflower ” packed the Webb Theatre ’ s Event Center to marathon the book by reading it out loud , followed by a screening of the film adaptation .
Past read-a-thons have collectively brought about $ 4,000 to the conservatory through the sale of book-related snacks , as well student pledges depending on the amount of pages they read . The fundraiser not only raises money for the entire conservatory , but students are given the option to set aside

We are Infinite

half of the money they individually raise for field trips like Literary Summer , a program that has previously taken Creative Writing students on a literary tour through London .
After hours of dramatic readings , students watched the 2012 film adaption starring Logan Lerman , Emma Watson and Ezra Miller . While students always choose read-a-thon books by a conservatory-wide vote , this year ’ s selection has much darker and more adult themes and content than what has been seen in previous years ’ selections including “ The Princess Bride ” by William Goldman and “ Coraline ” by Neil Gaiman .
When asked what he would have voted for if given the option , Josh Wood , director of the Creative Writing Conservatory , he said he would have chosen “ The Hitchhiker ' s Guide to the Galaxy ”, the “ Harry Potter ” series or “ On Stranger Tides ” by beloved Creative Writing teacher Tim Powers . Powers ’ novel actually won third place in the voting this year and many students hope that it will be the chosen book for next year ’ s read-a-thon .
Wood , explaining how he thinks the fundraiser benefits his students more than just financially , said , “ It just keeps Creative Writing current , it ’ s one of those big events that brings people together … it ’ s everybody coming together and having a good time .”

What a Rush !

Dominic Roth Staff Writer
One of the hallmarks of the OCSA experience is the vibrant club culture . Nowhere is this more clear than at Club Rush , a bi-annual two-day festival celebrating the diverse selection of clubs the school has to offer .
The festival , and the clubs displayed at it , has long been a staple of OCSA culture . Senior Soorim Lee ( FTV ) and founder of LIME Train , a club based around artistic collaboration , explained , “ OCSA students are so creative and not shameful about what they love . From fandom clubs , cosplay clubs , to service organizations ... there ’ s so much variety .”
Senior Alicia Swanson ( IM ), the leader of the
Harry Potter Alliance , a club in which charity and fandom overlap , said “ it ' s pretty entertaining even if [ people ] don ' t sign up .”
Diversity in clubs is represented by the two political debate clubs , JSA and Political Debate . JSA focuses on the spectrum of American politics ; Political Debate engages in more extreme debate . Alvaro Guillen ( PD ), the junior co-founder of Political Debate , said his club will cover topics that JSA doesn ’ t .
“ I wanted to talk about international politics and ideology .”
OCSA ’ s clubs offer a massive array of experiences for people of all walks of life ; whether it ’ s Pokemon Go or traditional Irish dance , there ’ s something for everyone .