The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor will present short Cru Films April 19, 22, 23, and 26. The two original Cru screenplays, which were produced at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor (UMHB) this spring are, Runaway by Steve Nelson and The Good Wife by Jillian Shook. These films were made for the public; for use by UMHB graduate counseling faculty, who teach marriage and family counseling courses; and for U.S. military chaplains, who are being trained in graduate work at UMHB in this field.
Once the UMHB graduate student, chaplains complete master's degrees in marriage and family counseling, they train other chaplains on military posts around the world to enable them to better serve military families, especially those stressed by multiple deployments to war zones. Dr. David Howard, director for the graduate marriage and family counseling program at UMHB, served as a consultant to UMHB student screenwriters as they developed films for marriage and family counselors to use as training tools.
At the first screening event on April 19, at the Beltonian Theatre (219 E. Central, in Belton) military chaplains and those who serve military families will be specially recognized. (Lunch and snack concessions will be available for this screening.) April 22, the two Cru Films will be shown at noon in the Lord Conference Center in the Parker Building at UMHB. April 23, these films will be screened at 11 a.m. in the Brindley Auditorium, York Hall on campus. April 26, these spring Cru films will be screened at the Starbucks Coffee Shop (111 N. General Bruce Dr. Temple, TX) off I-35 at 8:30 p.m. (Starbucks coffee and food will be available at this event.) Screenings will be free and open to the public.
The UMHB Cru Film Program is directed and supervised by Dr. Joseph Tabarlet (chairman of the communication and media studies dept. in the College of Humanities), Dr. Diane Howard (director of performance studies in the dept. of communication and media studies), and by Mrs. Donna J. Teel (director of computer graphics in the dept. of business information technology and systems in the College of Business). Dr. Joseph Tabarlet teaches a course in film studies. Dr. Diane Howard teaches courses in screenwriting and film acting. Mrs. Donna Teel teaches courses in production, digital video editing, and post production/special effects. Mr. Javier Rivera, director of photography, for Spring '08 Cru Films will teach a new cinematography course for the fall 2008 semester in the UMHB film program. The course is offered once a week on Saturdays at 10 a.m. for three hours in Brindley Auditorium at UMHB. Dr. Tabarlet is the adviser in the communication and media studies dept. in the College of Humanities for the film minor. Mrs. Teel is the adviser for the film minor in computer graphics design in the dept. of business information technology and systems in the College of Business.
UMHB film students participated in performing for and producing short films, television films, and feature films, public service announcements, industrial videos, commercials and documentaries. They write screenplays for short films in the fall semester. Performance studies, media studies and computer graphics faculty choose two fall screenplays for spring semester production. They also select teams of UMHB film students to produce the films and professional film staff to facilitate the teams. Independent film festivals screened Cru short films and featured them on corresponding Web sites.
Runaway is a Cru Film that depicts a young boy who is struggling in his family to escape from the monster in his life. Aidan Vitela plays the boy. Johnny Vacca performs the father and Margo DelaGarza plays the mother. The film staff and crew for Runaway consisted of the following: Co-Producers, Dr. Diane Howard and Mrs. Donna J. Teel; Production Supervisor Deann Graham; Post Production Supervisor Mrs. Donna J. Teel; Director of Photography Javier Rivera; and Student Director Ica Perry. Johnny Vacca provided the location for the film. Further, Runaway crew included Editor Scott Cheek and Dean Straight as assistant director. Holly Gaskamp was assistant editor. Cheryl Blake was the DVD authoring and script/continuity supervisor.
For Runaway, Scott Cheek served as 1st assistant camera operator and Yolanda Gonzales was 2nd assistant camera operator. Jonathan Pederson served as sound editor, Foley artist, sound recordist, and boom operator. Peter Blackwell was the sound mixer and engineer. Dr. Diane Howard and Tara Coet Felmly served as talent coaches. Ica Perry and Deann Graham cast for the film. Edgar Garcia was the key grip with Jon Graham worked as a grip. Production assistants have been the following: Noell Felmly, Jon Graham, Raychelle Presley, and Vince Van Dam. Rebecca Blizzard was the production still photographer and Frank "J.R." Vitoria was the behind the scenes videographer and editor. Yolanda Gonzales was the special effects designer and Amy Hoover was the makeup artist. Angela Booth served as location scout. Aja Bradford and Matt Litaker managed craft services. Rebecca Blizzard and Dean Straight were the public relations assistants. The UMHB art dept. provided graphic art.
In the Cru Film, The Good Wife, by Jillian Shook, a young soldier's wife learns how much her life was affected by her husband's PTSD. Karrie Cox played the wife, Carrie. Jeff Gibbs performed the husband, Jack. Marian Seitsinger played the doctor. Dean Straight performed a male voice. Raychelle Presley and Samantha Anderson performed female voices. The film staff and crew for The Good Wife consisted of the following: Co-Producers, Dr. Diane Howard and Mrs. Donna J. Teel; Production Supervisor Tara Coet Felmly; Post Production Supervisor Mrs. Donna J. Teel; Director of Photography Javier Rivera; and Student Director Scott Cheek. Johnny Vacca provided the location for the film. Further, The Good Wife crew included Editor Mark Rojas, 1st Assistant Director Edgar Garcia and Yolanda Gonzales as 2nd assistant director and assistant editor. Cheryl Blake was DVD authoring and script/continuity supervisor.
For The Good Wife, Mark Rojas served as 1st assistant camera operator and Holly Gaskamp was 2nd assistant camera operator. Jonathan Pederson served as sound editor, Foley artist, sound recordist, and boom operator. Peter Blackwell was the sound mixer and engineer. Dr. Diane Howard and Tara Coet Felmly served as talent coaches. Tara Coet Felmly cast for the film. Dean Straight and Vince Van Dam served as Gaffer. Jon Graham was the key grip with Vince Van Dam worked as a grip. Production assistants were the following: Malcolm Felmly, Patrick Muñoz, Dean Straight and Frank "J.R." Vitoria. Rebecca Blizzard was the production still photographer and Frank "J.R." Vitoria was the behind the scenes videographer and editor. Yolanda Gonzales was the special effects designer. Cheryl Van Dam and Laura Gebhardt were the makeup artists. Fred, Kendra, and Noell Felmly managed craft services. Rebecca Blizzard was the public relations assistant. The UMHB art dept. provided graphic art.
