Brianne Ries

Art. Camera. Action.
Five students in the Alternative Media class and one additional art major showcased three months of work at the 3rd annual Wildcat Film Festival on May 20.
Cris Moss, adjunct professor of art and visual culture and gallery coordinator, said the festival was a fun way for students in his Alternative Media class to present their final projects — their creations — to Linfield.
What Moss described as a small, intimate class setting comprised freshmen Ruben Mills and Tim Busse and seniors Wesley Mitchell, Rick Lenzer and Renata Tirta. Senior Ryan Gerdes, an art major, also submitted a film to the festival.
Students spent three months working on projects and learning the ins and outs of camera, audio and computer technology and editing, Moss said.
With no real limitations on content for students projects, there were a variety of films at the festival, ranging from documentaries and music videos to abstract, artistic pieces. Moss said he wanted the students to have free reign because of the variety of directions video production can take.
Tirta, who had taken a basic filmmaking class in high school, said this course has taught her more advanced techniques, ranging from using green screen to creating DVD packages.
“At first it was really overwhelming because I realized you can do so many different things with video,” Tirta said. “You can do movies with actors or music videos or art installments.”
Tirta featured three pieces at the festival: “Creature Fear,” “Linfield’s First Alien Daze Float Documentary” and “Play,” each highlighting various video techniques and styles.
“I felt really proud of my work and also just seeing the diversity of my projects and the other students’ projects,” she said. “I felt like we covered a great deal of different film techniques and genres.”
Mitchell, a political science and business double major, has had several glimpses into the entertainment industry during his time at Linfield.
Working on several music videos during the summer as well as on the film “Push” while abroad in Hong Kong, Mitchell said he was excited to be doing his own work.
“I came in political science and business, and I had this whole experience in the entertainment world, and I was like, ‘Wow, this is so cool and so fascinating, and it’s so easy because I like it so much,’ so I wanted to take the Alternative Media class,” he said.
Mitchell submitted five pieces to the festival, including the cut of the festival’s trailer; a commercial on Smartwater; a music video titled “On the Run,” a parody music video on Flo Rida’s “Right Round;” a film called “Coffee Date” and a more abstract piece called “The German Song.”
Throughout his videos, Mitchell used techniques he learned this semester, such as image manipulation and green screen.
Looking back, Mitchell said he would probably shoot his projects again knowing what he knows now.
“Through this class, you really pick up on what’s more appealing to the viewer and what are they going to like more. I didn’t have that skill set before I took this class,” he said.
Tirta and Mitchell both said having a small class was helpful for trading tips and feedback.
With no set syllabus, Mitchell said the class was expected to bring in work on a weekly basis to receive feedback from students and Moss.
“Cris Moss is very well-recognized in the alternative media sense, so having him there one—on—one and having someone like him there to critique our work was really amazing,” Mitchell said.
Although the turnout for the festival was small, students in the class were excited to showcase their work for others and see it on the big screen.