University of Tampa’s student filmmakers brought their A-games this year to the annual Blackbox Film Festival held in Reeves Theatre. The variety and professionalism of the films was thoroughly impressive.
The first film, titled Waiting Room, started out with a moving, contemplative message: “Research shows that we’ll spend years of our lives waiting … and the waiting room can get quite lonely. Sometimes, we can’t help but wonder, ‘when will our number be called?’”
This original concept drew an interesting and somewhat frightening parallel between the actual waiting rooms we encounter and the “waiting rooms” of our lives.
In reality, we do wait for many things, just like the film said. “We wait for a text message, a phone call, a job interview, an email,” the film said. The film was definitely a call to action. “Stop waiting. Do more. Wait less,” the film seemed to state.
Monday Morning was a film without any spoken narration that was realistic and hilarious. The short film comically depicted the haze in which we college students drag ourselves out of bed every morning, throw our sleep-deprived bodies into a cold shower and go through the routine of making sure we have everything we need for class.
The film ended with an ironic situation some of us occasionally find ourselves in: as the student character remembers his phone on the way out the door, he pulls it off the charger only to find a “class cancelled” text message from one of his friends.
Solace, directed by Kylie Jacob, was a much more serious film. The film followed a passionate, but volatile relationship. The characters were played by Ryan Robidoux and Tamara Austin. The movie depicted the inner turmoil of
Ryan’s character, as he tried to cope with the loss of a girl he clearly loved. Poignant flashbacks and flash-forwards throughout the film painted a picture of a beautiful love lost forever.
“I got the idea from a French Connection [clothing] ad I saw in a magazine,” said Jacob. “The ad said, ‘Think of words, put them in order, maker her laugh.’”
This magazine ad makes an appearance in the film. A flashback shows a couple cuddling and happy, flipping through the magazine and stopping at that ad. It appears again when the boy is upset and the girl is gone. He flips through the magazine she left and finds the page, crying as he remembers better times.
“As this was my first movie, I have learned so much about what I could have done differently, but I am so proud of how much attention it has gotten thus far,” said Jacob. “Hopefully my upcoming projects can be just as successful or even more so.”
Breaking Point was another powerful film directed by Kaneesha Heath. This film highlighted the issue of domestic violence. The woman in the film, also played by Tamara Austin, is in an abusive relationship with an unrelenting man who constantly ridicules her for being infertile and unsuccessful in her acting career.
Through a monologue audition piece the woman performs, the audience sees how her morning played out. The man is reminding her how unsuccessful and useless she is, when the woman finally breaks. She slaps him over and over with a steaming pan of eggs she was cooking for breakfast, and then stabs him in the neck with a kitchen knife.
At the end of the audition, the panel compliments her and says they will be in touch with, her but tells the woman that she has something on her shirt. We see that the stain is blood and when the woman replies, “I had a rough morning,” we realize that she actually committed the murder described in her monologue.
Tamara won best actress for her role in this film.
TAG, directed by Alexander Solomita won the award for best screenplay and One Way Howard took home two awards, both for best actor and best drama. The dry humor mixed with high-tension, suspenseful scenes, made for a highly entertaining film.
A memorable quote was during a card game between the thugs in a rundown warehouse.
“Why’s his name Talker?” one man asks. “Because he doesn’t talk,” replies the other.
Another example of One Way’s humor is while Mr. V “The Boss” is strapping an explosive to a hostage. He says, “We got two minutes before this skank blows up all over the place.”
Spin Cycle, directed by Fawn Testa won the Juror’s Prize. This humorous, fast-paced short film starred Ryan Robidoux and Trixie Trigo.
“I really liked Fawn’s concept, because it’s based on that curiosity we all experience when we see someone who intrigues us,” says Rubidoux. “Trixie Trigo was great to act with. She helped me with my acting in Solace, so we had great chemistry. Getting to kiss a cute girl for about ten takes wasn’t too bad either.”
Sophie Erber can be reached at serber@spartans.ut.edu.