Filmmakers of the future and curious fans were present Saturday night at the third annual Silver Screen Film Festival.
The Silver Screen Film Festival was created in 2009 to showcase local talent in an area where these type of platforms were non-existent at the university, according to the festival’s website.
The films ranged from dramas to comedies, and the winner of the festival was the film “The Innocent Maleficent” by Mason Kerwick.
“The Innocent Maleficent” was a coming-of-age tale about a young girl who — by going down the wrong path — learned something more about herself and her self-worth.
Kerwick said while winning was a good feeling, he is relieved that the experience of making a short film is over and that others could enjoy his work.
“The overall process was tough and a challenge to get through because of the level of effort it took to produce this film but the reward was well worth it,” he said. “I’m glad people liked the film and related to its message, which I think is something many young girls could learn from.”
Eight films in all were shown over a span of a hour and a half. The films ranged from two to 12 minutes in length.
Sophomore Taylar Merriweather said although she doesn’t know much about films, she thought the event was a fun experience because of the showcase of unknown features in the MU community.
“People sometimes need more culture and need to stop partying so much — if I can say that — which is the intent of these events to expand people’s horizons,” she said. “The event showed me that movies can be fun and exciting to watch, especially if they come from people that you don’t know but want to get to know through their films.”
Another film was “365” by Jake Wallach, a fast-paced thriller about three friends, money and betrayal.
Wallach, the film’s director, said the fact that he was able to show his film at the university will give him exposure and will make people aware of his newfound filmmaking talents.
He said he hopes this experience leads to opportunities to work with other talented directors in the future.
“Working with other directors would be great because I can learn from them and continue to display my own projects while helping out my fellow director,” Wallach said.