Media Studies Faculty Take Film Festivals By Storm
The media studies faculty continues to make its mark on the industry, as films directed and produced by faculty members are screened at festivals all over the world this fall.
On Saturday, November 6 at 4:00 p.m., the Museum of Modern Art will screen assistant professor Kamal Aljafari‘s Port of Memory. The film follows the story of Aljafari’s family after they receive an official order to evacuate their home in Ajami, a seafront neighborhood of once-wealthy homes and villas in Jaffa. The order throws the family into disarray and despair, as they lack the means to fight back. For details and ticket information, please visit www.moma.org/visit/calendar.
On November 12-14, part-time assistant professor Melissa Friedling‘s short experimental documentary Garden Roll Bounce Parking Lot will be screened at the Cucalorus Film Festival in Wilmington, North Carolina. In the film, pop culture and land-use practices converge when a Bangladeshi immigrant family recalls the found film that formed the overhead lattice support for their urban garden. The film has been making the rounds, screening at the New Orleans International Film Festival, the Atlanta Film Festival, and in Ann Arbor, Athens and Chicago.
Part-time assistant professor Marina Shron‘s short film recently screened at the Cyprus International Film Festival. The film won the 2010 Silver Creative Spirit Award for originality and creativity, and has been presented at festivals around the world.