USC Cinematic Arts | First Look 2017

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Drama Films:

Amelia's Closet (17:17)

When classmates bully 11 year old Amelia, she begins to secretly steal from them and hide the items in the back of her closet.

Dierctor
Halima Lucas

Producer
Elizabeth Boston

Sound
Derek Sepe
Dustin Elm

Editor
Dingwen Mei

Production Design
Megan Sunzeri

Composer
Murat Selcuk

Post Supervisor
Joshua Kadish

Post Sound Supervisor
Chris Morocco

Director of Photography
Angelique Molina

Associate Producer
O'Shea' Myles
David Liu
Jeremy Burkett

Cast: Kira Jane Pinkney as Amelia, Jon Chaffin as Curtis, Lizzie Zerebko as Mrs. Myers, Jaden Larsen as Jessica

Cal & V (12:50)

Cal & V are two lovers stuck at a crossroads until Cal places his successful movie career on the line to try and win Vanessa back.

Director/Writer
Timothy Offor

Producer
Ian McClellan
Jheanelle Brown

Cinematographer
Diana Matos

Editor
Rachel Summers

Sound Designer
Peter Bawiec

Production Design
Dylan Levers

Production Sound Mixer
Franz Braun

Post Sound
Peter Bawiec

VFX Supervisor/Credits
Franklin Okike

Composer
Joe Shirley

Cast: Lian Amado as Vanessa, Sean Dominic as Cal, Nathaniel Edwards as Larry, Sandra Vaughan-Cooke as Ms. Vincent, Alexander Cassell as Rooster, Brenda Perez as Jenny

Cocoon (25:40)

Set in 1997 China, a little girl discovers her mom's affair with another woman, and she has to make a decision of whether keeping this secret or not.

Writer/Director
Mei Liying

Writer/Producer
Xu Zhang

Cinematographer
Jon Keng

Art Director
Yiyong Yang

Editor
Yifan Zhang

Composer
Pantawit Kiangsiri

Sound Design
Qianbaihui Yang

Gunwalkers (19:00)

Set in 2009 Baja Arizona against the backdrop of the Sonoran Desert, Gunwalkers chronicles a string of violence following the U.S. Government's release of more than 2,500 guns to known criminals.

Director
Addison Sandoval

Writer
Addison Sandoval

Producer
Addison Sandoval

DP
Addison Sandoval

Sound Designer
Nicolas Osorio

Production Sound Mixer
Thi Dihn

Special Effects Coordinator
Erich Martin Hicks

Composer
Salomon Ligthelm
Evgeny Emelyanov

1st AD
Amanda Robertiello

1st AC
Kimberly Ceralde

Costume Designer
Crystal Culp

Armorer
Mike Tristano

Military Advisor
Matt Sigloch

Cast: Bill Kates as Hank, Cheyenne Watson as Bosco, Issac Dean as Enzo, Thaddeaus Ek as Dillan, Blaine Campbell as Agent Matthews, Dimitry Rozental as Enes, Larry Hopson as E.H., Benjamin Kim as kino, Edward Headington as Roy, Jordan Laesch as Reginald, Sarah Rebottaro as Hailey, Andrew Vela as Man

Lark (14:00)

A recovering junkie, Lark, sheds her past and reconnects with her enduring father through an abortion.

Producer
Sanford Jenkins
Miriam Arghandiwal

Cinematographer
Mahaliyah Ayla O
Sarah Winters

Sound Designer
Jonathan Steinfield
Jyothi Kalyan Sura

Production Designer
Paisley Mares
Lisa Dooley

Director
Jonathan Juntado

Editor
Sikander Sidhu
Michea Bryant

Production Designer
Heidi Diederich

Cast: Bianca Bethune as Lark, Dave Davis as Salinger, Ty Miller as Larry

Pearl (14:53)

An old lonely puppeteer rescues a 10-year-old mermaid and learns from her that love means no strings attached.

Writer/Director/Sound Designer
Qianhang Shao

Producers
Ian McClellan
Jeanelle Brown
Natalie Combs

Co-Writer
Randolph Zaini

Sound Recored
Adam Billingham

Editor
Andrew Hou

Director of Photography
Farhad Delhlvi

Composer
Min He

Cast: Alan Gray as Sam, Shea Smolik as Pearl

SPARK (19:00)

Oscar, a young Venezuelan student sparks a social media movement using an innovative cell phone application to circumvent the censorship in his country.

Director/Writer
Juan Martinez Vera

Producers
Diego Najera
Tim Hautekiet

Cinematographer
Will Jobe

Production Sound
Jonathan Vazquez

Sound Mixer
Chris Morocco

Editor
Angelica Lopez

Production Designer
Colleen Marie O'halloran

Composer
Gabriel DiMarco

1st AD
Rachel Byrd

Cast: Gabriel Tarantini as Oscar, Ileanna Simancas as Marina, Carlos Montilla as Diego, Steve Wilcox as Quinones, Daniela Azuaje as Alma

The Ballerina, Her Shoemaker and His Apprentice (16:10)

In 1930s London, a lost young man George stumbles into the refined world of ballet pointe shoemaking and learns to earn his name.

Writer/Director
Eva Ye

Sound Designers
Randolph Zaini
Olivia Zhang

Editors
Meibei Liu
Raymundo Archila

Production Designer
David Dean Ebert

Director of Photography
Xi Guan

First Assistant Director
Kelly Austin Bates

Producer
Michael Schwarcz

Co-Producers
Rachel Boyajian
Kathryne Jansen

Cast: Nicholas Podany as George Arkwright, James Oliver as David Traynor, Oliver Goodwill as Jerome Bellamy, Chelsea Paige Johnston as Sylvia Keralli

The Suitcase (20:55)

The ordinary life of a Boston bred baggage handler is turned upside down when he steals a suitcase that contains terrorist plans. Inspired by true events on 9/11.

Executive Producers
Jean de Meuron
Elena Bawiec

Producers
Drew Diamond
Daniela Ruiz
Abi Damaris Corbin

Writer/Director
Abi Damaris Corbin

Cinematographer
Jon Keng

Sound Designer/Mixer
Peter Bawiec

Editor
Chris Witt

Production Designer
Lauren Mayer

Composer
Nathan Mattew David

Costume Designer
Christine Bald

Casting Directors
Selina Ringel

VR Coordinator
Lindsey Townley

Cast: Mojean Aria as Joe Franek, Joseph Reitman as Sully Dropo, Charley Rossman as Donald Timilty

The Waste Land (12:45)

Unheard by his family and bullied by his peers, a mentally unstable teenager struggles to arm himself against the mounting pressures of adolescent life.

Director
Brian Brooks II

Writer
Guillermo Ortiz Pichardo

Producers
Eric Baird
Scott Sullivan

Cinematographers
Steven Robbins
Brian Sergott

Editors
Jiayuan Liu
Calvin King-Herrmann

Production Designers
Brittney Collins
Dominique Sheth

Composer
Bryan Curt Kostors

Assistant Director
Yuan Wang

Sound Designer/Production Sound Mixer/Post-Production Sound
Erika Davis-Marsh
Wenqi You

Cast: Conner Scott as Anton, Carla Betz as Laura, Cece Paige as Emily, Hunter Jackson as Theodore

True Colors (17:34)

A scientist makes a discovery that could eliminate the need for toxic dyes and pesticides, but creating change will be harder than she thinks.

Writer/Director
Bethann Morgan

Producers
Aqsa Altaf
Assia Qianhang Shao

Director of Photography
Daniel Beresh

Supervising Sound Editor
Joshua Paul Johnson

Editor
Antonia De Barros

Re-recording Mixer
Chris Morocco

Composer (Thornton School)
Nathan Drube

Costume Designer
Jessyca Bluwal

Production Designer
Colleen O'Halloran

Make Up Artist
Kate Oja

1st ADs
Kelly Austin Davis
Micah Johnson

Co-Writer
Rhonda Morgan

Cast: Shawn Lockie as Dr.Carol Cunningham, Sean Heyman as Gray, Julia Manis as Shirley, Paul Tigue as Bob, Travis Lincoln Cox as Tom, Ron E. Dickinson as Joe, Dwight Turner as Scott, Michael Gilliland as Daryl

When Pigs Fly (15:44)

At his brother's funeral, Al, a washed up, perpetually tipsy man, comforts his mourning niece with a story of how he once found a magic tree that could bring all his drawings to life. Through telling her the story, Al rediscovers the wondrous spark that gave him hope in a time when he thought all was lost.

Director
Andrew Wood

Producer
Kaveh Veyssi

Line Producer
Kevin Hart

DP
Adam Linzey

Production Design
Mallorie Ortega

Sound Designer
Jan Bezouska

Editor
Tom Watts

Associate Producer
Uttera Singh

VFX Supervisor
Johnson Thomasson

Sound Supervisor
Chris Morocco

Cast: Glenn Howerton as Uncle Al, Mia Moore as Grey, Gavin Lewis as Young Al, Jayden Bartels as Esme, Dominic Rains as Pig (Voice), Mike Quirk as Dad, Alex Bowman as Tommy, Shaun S. Sutton as Dragonfly (Voice)

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