BFA Film Students Prepare for Senior Projects

BFA Film Students Prepare for Senior Projects

Mar 28 2018

Seniors Anna Gamarnik and Julie Bergman Discuss Their Capstone Films

by Hadiyah Weaver

Film students in the BFA directing concentration complete a final project as capstones to their education at Temple University. These films will be presented at the Senior Projects Screening on Sunday, May 6 at 5:00 pm at the Temple Performing Arts Center and are eligible for inclusion in the department's Diamond Screen Film and Media Arts Festival. Seniors Anna Gamarnik and Julie Bergman are excited about presenting their short films after a year of hard work developing and filming them.

Twenty-one year old, Anna Gamarnik a writer and director of the short Lost At Sea. The film is a gothic tale about a mother’s obsession with her son. Gamarnik was inspired to write the film after being at a beach one summer, and having a vision of a woman "all dressed in black against the white sand and calling out to her lost son."From there, Gamarnik went into development.

“The whole film is about maternal love and how maternal love can be distorted if [there is] too much of it,” Gamarnik said. “and how far a person will go for their love because I feel like it’s one of the strongest bonds people can have; a mother to a child.” Gamarnik said.

This is not Gamarnik’s first time dabbling with extreme concepts. Her junior-year film, Spaced Out, is deals with young girl and her affinity for aliens. Spaced Out was screened at the Philly Film Showcase on March 9, and will possibly screened at festivals in the near future.

Gamarnik is graduating a year early and plans to freelance while in Philadelphia, before possibly moving to Los Angeles or Atlanta. She credits Associate Professor Elisabeth Subrin for teaching screen directing where she learned techniques to work with actors, as well as Nina Isaacson and Professor Lauren Wolkstein for helping her mold her craft.

“I love [Lauren Wolkstein]! She has really helped me so much with my screenplay, and also with directing and I love her style, and her confidence in me,” Gamarnik said.

Julie Bergman is also excited to for her short film, Eighteen, to debut. Eighteen is about Tory, a recent high school graduate, who gets dragged to her boyfriend’s little brother’s birthday party at an arcade. Eventually she decided to move on with her life and end her relationship with her boyfriend.

Bergman, who is originally from Florida, was inspired for her project by personally experiencing the weight load of transitioning from high school into college. However, she thinks that the theme can be applied universally.

Viewer can relate "not just [to] graduating high school, but people can [also] relate to it in traditional periods like in their job or in life," Bergman said, "and that was a big thing that I wanted to get across.”

Bergman began her film journey with photography and her high school’s news station in Boca Raton, Florida. After winning second place for her short film that she submitted to the Palm Beach International Film Festival, Bergman knew she want to pursue film school.

Bergman also credits Professors Wolkstein and Subrin for their guidance, as well as Professor Chris Cagle for his help while at Temple.

Both seniors used crowdfunding to help raise money for their projects, and asked for money from family and friends. All seniors received an additional $1,000 from Dean Robert Stroker and the office of the Center for the Performing and Cinematic Arts.

The two were thoroughly invested in who worked alongside them on their projects

“One of my big goals for starting this project going into senior year was [to] have a predominantly female crew, and I just knew since we were going in with the other teams that I didn’t want to be stubborn in collaborating. I was open to whoever I got, but I ended getting the best team ever.” Bergman said.

Gamarnik had the executive producer from her Spaced Out film, Brynn Antaran as her assistant director for Lost at Sea. Gamarnik thinks it’s important to have a great relationship with the people that she works with.

“Film is a collaborative art, and I just want to treat everyone with so much love and admiration because without them; it wouldn’t be possible. Gamarnik said. “I know that sounds cliche, but it’s so true.”

You can expect to see Lost At Sea and Eighteen as well as other amazing senior projects at the Diamond Screen Festival, Tuesday May 1 and Wednesday, May 2 at the Temple Performing Arts Center.  

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