“Whether it’s behind the camera or in front of the camera we get to learn and experiment with each other as we navigate the world of filmmaking,” said Film Club leader Dustin Flaker.
The Atholton Film Club is up and running for a second year now and there’s new ideas, goals, and members.
Throughout last year, Flaker taught the club the basics of film and camera use. The club then got straight to work on their short film. They got second place in the Howard County Film Festival in their first year entering the competition.
According to Flaker, he hopes that last year’s success will be replicated this year and allow them to “spend more time making quality films.”
As well as the production of more high-quality films, Flaker hopes to continue to build the film community at Atholton. ”Film club is a place where we can all share a love of movies and find our own ways to express ourselves,” he said.
Another member of the club, TJ Lisulo, added to this saying, ”Film Club has taught me a lot about collaboration and communication. It’s also exercised my creativity and imagination to create fun films.”
The club already seems to have a mass increase in size as Flaker projects the year to go smoothly.
This year, with its increase in members and the experience from last year, the club expects to have another successful year. “As a member of Film Club, I’ve been able to create something of worthwhile also doing it with good people,” said Logan Rhoades, a second-year member of the club.
Rhoades hopes that short film projects will be started earlier this year to give the club time to make multiple films. “I’m looking forward to creating more projects,” he said. With last year’s success serving as momentum, there should be new ideas and projects as well.
There are multiple things to expect from Film Club this year. First, it’s fair to expect an increase in interest at Atholton after last year’s success. Secondly, due to the higher number of members, Flaker was thinking of spacing out projects to multiple groups of people.
This way, the club can be more productive and have an overall higher efficiency. Lastly, the club plans to submit another film, if not many, into the Howard County Film Festival this year in hopes to place highly once again. If you’re an Atholton student interested in film this is a great club to check out. As Rhoades said, “If you’re not in Film Club, what are you doing?”