HAPPY 10th ANNIVERSARY BLACK WARRIOR!
The first Black Warrior Film Festival happened in 2013, wow how the years fly by! We hope to celebrate our past ten years this time around.
Our dates are March 31st - April 1st and it will take place in the UA Student Center Room 3700 "The Forum." Read below for more information.
Panels with Industry Professionals
Each year we invite people in the film industry to talk to students and answer questions.
Student Short Film Blocks
Our main goal is to showcase the hard work of student filmmakers. This year we have four blocks!
Scriptwriter's Workshop
Join us in talking about scriptwriting and working with other students and faculty.
10th Anniversary Award Ceremony
This year our award ceremony will be April 1st, we will be announcing all winners!
MARCH 31st - APRIL 1st
UA Student Center Room 3700
SCHEDULE
More information to come on how to sign up for panels! Panels are in-person but there is a Zoom option, but film blocks are all in person. The award ceremony will be in-person and on Zoom for out-of-state attendees.
March 31st
- "Setting the Scene: Directors in the Industry” Panel with guests Cameo Wood, Daye Rogers, RaMell Ross, and Todd Lewis at 1PM - 2:15PM
- “An Evening with Craig Brewer” Keynote Panel with guest Craig Brewer at 3PM - 4:15PM
- Scriptwriter's Workshop at 5PM - 6PM
April 1st
- "C&IS Around the Country” Panel with guests Leigh Ruselvyan, Mackenzie Rutledge, Caroline Moore at 11:30AM - 12:45PM
- Documentary/Comedy Block at 1:15PM - 2:15PM
- Horror/Experimental Block at 2:30PM - 3:30PM
- Drama Block at 3:45PM - 5PM
- Holle Finalists Block at 5:15PM - 6:15PM
- Award Ceremony - 6:45PM - 7:30PM
PANELISTS
Craig Brewer is a filmmaker who doesn’t stick to one genre. His skills as a director have led him to work on countless projects that have drawn many viewers such as Hustle and Flow, Footloose, The Legend of Tarzan, and Coming 2 America. Brewer has also made a mark in the television industry as he served as a director for multiple episodes of the award-winning television show, Empire. His experience landed him awards at Sundance Film Festival and the Oscars.
Craig Brewer
Cameo Wood has done many films during her career and has earned herself 26 awards and counting, including an Emmy. She primarily has worked on short films such as Real Artists, Dukha in Summer, and The Atavist, and has produced and co-directed episodes of The Alternative Guide to Secret Beijing. Her experience has also earned her the “Best Emerging Artist” award at the 2018 AT&T Film Awards, awarded by Ava DuVernay. In addition to her extensive experience in the film industry, she has also earned multiple degrees from universities across the country.
Cameo Wood
Dehanza “Daye” Rogers is no stranger to filmmaking as she has worked on countless films, both narrative, and documentary. Her most popular projects include Sweet, Sweet Country and The Youth. In addition to sitting in the director’s chair, she also has worked on projects as a producer, editor, and camera operator. She also serves as an assistant professor at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. Daye has earned many awards, including the Stanley Kramer Fellowship in film directing.
Daye Rodgers
RaMell Ross’s experience in the film industry focuses primarily on documentarian work. He has worked on numerous projects that explain Southern culture including Hale County This Morning, This Evening and The Nickel Boys. His dedication to documentary filmmaking has earned him screenings at the Sundance Film Festival and nominations at the Oscars and Emmys. In addition to his director, writer, and cinematography experience, he also teaches at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island.
Ramell Ross
A huge Alabama fan, Todd Lewis grew up in Mobile, Alabama, and has worked on countless projects as a production manager, including Deepwater Horizon, 21 Jump Street, Fantastic Four, and Looking for Alaska. His love for the film and television industry has landed him in New Orleans, Louisiana where he worked at Crimson Pictures.
Todd Lewis
Leigh Rusevlyan, one of the founding members of the Black Warrior Film Festival, has made her mark in the film industry as a production coordinator for many projects, including Thunder Force, The Midnight Sky, and Project Power. Since graduating in 2014, her experience in the film industry has landed her jobs at Netflix, Dick Clark Productions, and Snapchat. She was recently awarded the Outstanding Alumna Award in Creative Media from the University of Alabama’s College of Communication and Information Sciences.
Leigh Rusevlyan
Mackenzie Rutledge graduated from the University of Alabama in 2020 and has set the tone in L.A. as a Bama alumnus in the film and television industry. A former director of the Black Warrior Film Festival, she has worked as a publicist for Sony Music, Warner Bros., and NBC Universal.
Mackenzie Rutledge
Caroline Moore made her experience at the Capstone worthwhile as she interned at The Weather Channel and Electric Symphony Media. A 2020 graduate, she is currently pursuing her Master of Fine Arts at Columbia University in New York City. She has been involved with the Black Warrior Film Festival during her time at the university.
Caroline Moore
FILM BLOCKS
DOCUMENTARY/COMEDY
A thought-provoking exploration of natural silence and human existence within it.
Director: Mykhailo Bogdanov, Depaul University
Avoesis
Nita, takes us through her past and how its affected her today. Through domestic violence, homelessness and kindness of others she has made it to where she is today. Spending her days helping others as much as possible. Dedicating her life to volunteering for others.
Director: Melissa Pratt, Depaul University
NITA
When I first came to Washington Square Park to play the chess hustlers, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I originally thought that people played street chess for the games, but I soon realized that street chess revolved around stories and community.
Director: Eugene Yoo, Stuyvesant High School
Street Chess Community: Care, Conflict, and Competition
Mitch has a meet-cute, only problem is…what was her name?
Director: Tony King, University of Mississippi
What's Her Name?
HORROR/EXPERIMENTAL
Created by US Military Service Members, "Twin Cheeks" is an action comedy following a close knit group of soldiers stuck in an impossible situation.
Director: Jacob Stauff, Emory University
Twin Cheeks
Spencer, a concessions stand worker, decides to give his new and attractive coworker, Jack, an internet "Are You Gay?" quiz to determine his sexuality.
Director: Caleb Cook, Florida State University College of Motion Picture Arts
Gay Quiz
A sexy car wash turns nasty—but not in the way you’d think.
Director: Abby Wright, Florida State University
Splash Zone
To boost her online popularity, Youtuber Amber and her boyfriend Johnny set up an occult ritual for her upcoming livestream. Little did they know, supernatural forces are at play, leading to deadly results.
Director: Matt Robb, Miami Dade College
NOMAN
To Be follows Jordan, a high school theater aficionado struggling through early-onset schizophrenia, as well as his family and their varied reactions to the onset of his illness.
Director: Ally Weinstein, University of Alabama
To Be
Our relationship with technology has changed. Everyone is chipped with neurologically enhancing hardware. This small family will soon discover if getting their son chipped was for the best.
Director: Connor Dealing, University of Alabama
CHIPPED
This animated short shows a glimpse of a girls bathroom routine.
Director: Autumn Darah Williams, University of Alabama
Night In
A woman moves into a new apartment, but strangely discovers she’s the only resident in the building. She makes friends with the sales agent and security guard, and realizes there is actually someone else living in the building.
Director: Szu-Wei Chen, Columbia University
A NEW APARTMENT
DRAMA
Striving to please her overbearing mother, a 13-year-old gymnast must lose 5 pounds in one night.
Director: Amanda Gordon, New York University
Let Her Eat Cake
Bare is a dramatic short film about a gay, male couple, Nick and Jamie. As the clock winds down and the arrival of Nick’s parents gets closer, tensions rise as Nick and Jamie work to pack away all evidence of their relationship.
Director: Nathan Kovar, Stony Brook University Graduate Film School
Bare
Brenda's estranged husband is out of town, again. Fulfilling her southern housewife duties, Brenda spends the day baking a delicious cherry pie.
Director: Kailey New, University of Alabama
Mrs. American Pie
Recent film production graduate Eli is entering his second stage of life and struggling to find his own path. He quits his job with the expectation of a job on a big-budget film.
Director: Andrew Scofield, Tre Butler, Birmingham - Southern College
IN - BETWEEN
HOLLE FINALISTS
Abril is an undocumented immigrant working as a seamstress out of her cousin's garage. When a bride comes in to have her wedding dress tailored, Abril discovers that the bride is marrying her ex.
Director: Sierra Nutkevitch, Columbia University
Seams
When a burnt-out dishwasher tumbles into a labyrinth of despair, he must overcome his fear of change or else succumb to a life of mundanity forever.
Director: Fred Midgley, SUNY Purchase College
Wilting
Trans and gender non-conforming individuals (TGNC) when asked about the topic of queer visibility, problematize the notion that visibility alone leads to any form of queer liberation, and offer what just might.
Director: Jordan Blanco, University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee
Seen/Unseen
After the death of her father, Agnes and her mother attempt to continue everyday life while dealing with their grief.
Director: Ava Kanthack, University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee
On Mother's Shoulder I Rest
DOLLHOUSE is the story about a group of diverse, young girls from across the globe who find themselves living together in a modeling apartment in New York City, hoping to become the next big-name high-fashion model. Soon reality sets in, and they realize that the industry they idolized and dreamed about is not what it seems as they deal with sexual exploitation and misogyny in an unregulated industry.
Director: Alexandra Connolly, University of Texas at Austin
Dollhouse
A young woman finds herself at odds with grief and tradition as she prepares for Dia de los Muertos.
Director: Tyler Garcia, University of Alabama
Ofrenda