“The Film Festival is SUTVs biggest night of the year, this is what we prepare for, I want to say months in advance,” Jordan Tucker, the president of SUTV, said.

“We plan [it] out at the beginning of the year… and spend a lot of time getting directors, editors, getting cinematography in order, editing, all that.”

The 2024 Film Festival Gala was hosted in Fulton Hall on May 10th, 2024, the last major SUTV event for graduating members of the executive board.

Every year, the festival showcases several student made films, giving directors, actors and editors an opportunity both to create a film and share it to a large audience. Attendees are encouraged to dress in their best attire, giving the event an air of glamor.

The annual Gala gave members like Tucker the chance to organize and spend time around close friends with similar passions, all working towards a common goal.

“It’s kind of a bitter-sweet end, because I enjoy this atmosphere a lot, I enjoy helping out my friends whenever I can, and I kind of don’t want to leave, but at the same time I know that I gotta go places, I know that I’m going to go places, it’s just different chapters of life,” Tucker said.

Jay Acevedo, an SU senior majoring in Communication, came to the Gala to enjoy his last SUTV event before graduation.

“So I was basically told about [the Gala] a month ago and I decided to come because I’m graduating this year, so this is the last film festival that I’m a part of, so I had to come here, basically,” he said.

“I guess just watching the films [is my favorite part]; very creative, there’s a lot of very creative people here and seeing all the types of different films is very interesting.”

Audience members, directors, organizers, judges, editors and actors in the several films produced were present at the event. Theo Marroquin-Gamez, an SU freshman majoring in International Relations, was an actor in “Bridges of Faith,” one of the films showcased at the festival.

“It was fun, a little bit stressful but definitely something I would do again, and have been in talks to do again, so my contract will get renewed,” he said.

Before coming to study at SU, Marroquin-Gamez had acquired years of film and media experience. Though he is not majoring in a media-related field, the student film production gave him the opportunity to revisit his skills.

“It’s been chill, I’ve just been socializing with people I know,” he said. “I like the two movies we’ve seen so far, excited to see how the reaction will be to Bridges of Faith.”

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By COLIN McEVERS

Editor in Chief

Featured image courtesy of Colin McEvers