Keene State Film Festival in Keene, New Hampshire

Every year at the end of second semester in April, the students at Keene State College in Keene, NH host a film festival. The festival highlights the very best works that the students have to offer. Many of the films are excellent quality done by driven students who have a desire to succeed. The film festival displays films from freshman year students to seniors. The best part of the festival is that you can witness the evolution of students from their early years to near graduation levels. The production quality and thought behind the senior levels films are usually of a much higher quality and standards than the younger students.

What makes the KSC film festival unique?

The KSC film festival is unique for a variety of reasons. It allows students of all skill levels and class rank to showcase their very best works for a general audience. The film department takes pride in their students' works and spends a lot of extra time outside of the classroom making sure all the films in the festival are of the highest quality, and edited to near perfection. Since the festival is comprised of only film majors and minors, the films are typically very good as the students are motivated to produce some of the highest quality content.

What was your favorite memory of the KSC film festival?

In 2008, I attended the film festival and was amazed by the production value of the first year students, as well as the more experienced seniors. My friend Shawn Curley produced a music video for his production one class, which required students to make a video without dialog, but did not limit creating original music. Other original films looked for a deeper meaning in life in the eyes from the student creators.

Atmosphere

The atmosphere at the KSC film festival is that of semi-casual dress and community togetherness. Everyone knows everyone at the festival, and the people that do not usually will come over and talk to filmmakers after their film is shown. The filmmakers are very friendly and are always looking to make connections on a personal and professional level. From my personal experience, I liked the fact that all the filmmakers in the festival were open to discussion of their film after the film finished. The students are very excited to show their work to an audience and the passionate atmosphere demonstrates this.

How much is the film festival and who can go?

The film festival is free for anyone that wants to view any of the films. The festival usually runs a course over 8-hours and starts with the freshmen films, and finishes with the senior level films. Typically, parents and students attend the event, but there are often some townspeople and professors interested as well.

Why is the film festival unique?

Most of the film students in the festival have dreams and hopes of going to Hollywood or New York to work professionally in the film industry. The festival is unique because you could possibly be watching a movie from a future famous director or filmmaker one day.

Sources:

Personal experience going to the KSC film festival