Student films, new stars

A documentary about sweat pants and a six-minute film entitled "J'aime le fromage" ("I like cheese") are only a few of the films to be viewed at Student Film Night (SFN) tomorrow night at 8 and 10 p.m. in Kettering.

Student Film Night is a biannual film/video festival that is co-sponsored by the Oberlin Film Series (OFS) and the Independent Film Series (IFS). Student contributors to SFN are not just students who want to "show off" their work; they are "Students who have done work. There's actually a lot of people who are interested in film here," said junior Amanda Larson, chair of OFS and organizer of SFN. "There's not a lot of opportunity to show films.This is a night we give the student filmmakers to show their work to people."

"What we're trying to say when we make a film is that it's for us, it's an exercise in trying to function and stay alive. It's an instinct," said double-degree sophomore Cory Arcangel, part of a two-person filmmaking team. Tomorrow night's SFN will include four or five contributions from Arcangel and conservatory sophomore Paul Davis, awarding them a monopoly on the event. The pair make children's films and "experimental" minimalist films. "It's a spectrum," Arcangel said. "We have broken a few boundaries in the past." Davis added that their films have "raw emotional power."

One of Arcangel and Davis' films that will be shown is called "It's Spice Time," which they termed "a post-modern children's choose-your-own-adventure type movie." In their own words, Arcangel and Davis make "some happy stuff, some dark stuff" but emphasized that a lot of their films are for kids. The stars of "It's Spice Time" are children from Buffalo, Arcangel's home town. According to Arcangel and Davis, the plot of "It's Spice Time" is a "montage, basically a deconstructed music video."

"J'aime le fromage" is a video created by Arcangel and Davis last year that uses stop-action animation, a one-frame at a time process reminiscent of the famous California Raisins commercials. At six minutes long, "Je'aime le fromage" is the longest film that will be shown tomorrow night. "We're not out there to waste people's time," said Davis. Arcangel said that the film is short but profound, like "a flash of light" and that it is "very MTV influenced."

Many of Arcangel and Davis' films are inspired by the film Brewster's Millions. Davis said, "Every time you watch it, you learn a little bit more. It's really deep, it's incredible."

Davis and Arcangel stressed that they would be prepared to answer any questions viewers might have about their films. "In a public domain, we have to be responsible to our viewers. We are ready to respond if the need arises."