Students in the Ballard High School Digital Filmmaking Program led the pack of winners at theNorthwest High School Film Festival (NWHSFF), claiming eighteen awards and honors across seven different categories at the Cinerama Theater in downtown Seattle. Currently in its 21st year, the NWHSFF is the largest and longest running festival in the Puget Sound region exclusively for high school filmmakers. Hundreds of students competed for awards in twelve different production categories.
In addition to the awards for her Dramatic Narrative, PSA, and Music Video, junior Marley Rankin won a full scholarship to a summer program at Studio School in Los Angeles. Studio School is the first college film program created in a motion picture studio.
The festival was judged by a panel of industry professionals and college media professors. It was organized by the Media Educators for Excellence Team (MEET), an inter-district organization of high school media arts teachers. Festival sponsors included The Seattle Film Institute, Brain Buffet, Central Washington University, Montana State University, The Prodigy Camp, Seattle University, Studio School, and Vulcan Enterprises.
All the awarded productions from BHS initially had their premiere at the Ballard Film Festival (BFF). This event screens new films by BHS Digital Filmmaking students at the end of every semester. The next BFF will be Saturday, June 15 at 7 pm. Tickets are $5 for students and $10 for adults and will be sold at the door.
Here are Ballard’s Northwest High School Film Festival winners by category. (Many of these can be seen on the BHS Digital Filmmaking Program’s vimeo channel at www.vimeo.com/bhsfilmprogram.)
AWARDS OF EXCELLENCE
Art Film
Prayer
Saia Dugan, Evan Fekete, Jasper Laur, Fiona Paskoff
Comedic Narrative
Musical!!!! The Musical
Evan Fekete, Owen Russell, Robbie Wilbur
Commercial
The Better Pie
Everett Harley, Ransom Miller, Kenzo Rutledge
Dramatic Narrative
Doubts
Liam Bonds, Zach Boone, Ethan Hawthorne-Dallas
In the Wings
Max Beaulieu, Emma Lee, Marley Rankin
Music Video
Full Tilt Bounce
Casey Chamberlain, Violet Collins, Braiden Hayes, Marley Rankin
Honey
Emma Inge, Jen Frisch-Wang, Mina Koltnow
Public Service Announcement
Superhero Award Ceremony
Hadley Molman, Grace Stromatt, Jasper Swift, Hannah Weaver
A Day at the Beach
Olivia Flego-Wirth, Madison Jackson-Hite, Marley Rankin, Sebastian Zufelt
Suspense
Blood Cargo
Liv D’Arche, Brendan Hickey, Ben Murphy, Talin Phillips
Check
Dani Edwards, Emma Inge, Addison Lepse, Fiona Paskoff
HONORABLE MENTIONS
Comedic Narrative
Take Out
Brendan Hickey, Claire Kilkenny, Rachel Warshaw
Commercial
Haze for Dayz
Fiona Paskoff, Ben Murphy, Robbie Wilbur
Music Video
Love is All We Got
Brendan Hickey, Maddie Lausted, Lily Tatge
Public Service Announcement
Food Fight
Zach Boone, Claire Kilkenny, Fiona Paskoff, Jasper Swift
Words Pack a Punch
Skye Armstrong, Morgan Coffroth, Julia Lewicki
Suspense
Franklin’s Monster
Peter Brown, Casey Chamberlain, Evan Fekete, Ruth Payne
Gingerdead Man
Claude Brun, Violet Collins, Cole Kastner, Freeman Marshall
