Justin Amorrantanasuchad (center) and his fellow Video Production Program students celebrate their success at the 2007 Northwest High School Film Festival. Amorrantanasuchad holds an Award of Excellence, one of several film awards he received in high school.
Justin Amorrantanasuchad, a 2008 graduate of Ballard High School died over the weekend in an accident in Boston.
Amorratanasuchad, was a film production student at Emerson College and died after falling off a five-story building.
According to a statement from the school's President Jackie Liebergott, Amorratanasuchad was filming a school project when the accident happened.
"I wish to express my deepest sympathies to all who knew and loved Justin," Liebergott said. "A service to remember and celebrate Justin's life will be organized at an appropriate time."
Amorratanasuchad discovered an interest in film in high school and joined the Ballard High School Video Production Program.
"Justin was a very talented filmmaker and an inspiration to me and his fellow students in our Video Production Program here at Ballard High School. It was impossible not to enjoy working with him. When he was happy, it was contagious. His smile lit up the room," said instructor Matt Lawrence, who stayed in touch with Amorratanasuchad.
"We spoke just a few weeks ago," Lawrence said. "He was really enjoying film school at Emerson and was looking forward to his production internship in Los Angeles next year."
Lawrence said Amorratanasuchad had a gift for storytelling and visualizing ideas and that he routinely uses Amorratanasuchad's high school productions to teach other students.
"By the time he had graduated from high school he had won awards for a variety of his productions from nation-wide film festivals as well as professional organizations," Lawrence said.
These awards included a National Student Television Award for Writing from the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, a Jury Prize for Best Experimental Film from the National Film Festival for Talented Youth, Best PSA from the Westport Youth Film Festival, and several Awards of Excellence from the Northwest High School Film Festival.
"I knew [Amorratanasuchad] was a great guy and a talented filmmaker. It's tragic when anyone is lost at a young age but unbelievable sad to hear he died while making a film," said Jesse Harris, who awarded him the Jury Prize for Best Experimental Film from the National Film Festival for Talented Youth.
Two of Amorratanasuchad's works, his PSA "Wash Your Hands" and his short film "Spaced Out", continue to live on and can be found on the Ballard High Video Production Program's blog.
