The 2021 Newport Beach Film Festival Features Sixteen Narrative and Documentary CSULB Films
This year, eleven narrative and five documentary CSULB Film & Electronic Arts (FEA) student films will screen in the 2021 Newport Beach Film Festival. In its 22nd season, the Newport Film Festival is widely recognized by Variety and across the film industry. All sixteen of the CSULB films listed below will screen in the festival which begins October 21st and concludes on October 28th. Films will be screened both online and at The Lot in Newport Beach, CA. Viewers have the choice between purchasing a single ticket or a ticket for a group of spotlight films, many of the CSULB films are also featured in the Collegiate Showcase. The full program and schedule are available on the Newport Beach Film Festival website. The Film & Electronic Arts Department is incredibly proud of our talented students and recent alums with featured films in the Newport Beach Film Festival.
Documentary Films:
Directed by Emily Graham and Jose M. Terrazas
81-year-old Rudy Burrola reflects on the adventures he’s shared with Angela, his wife of 53 years, revealing how much aging has impacted their lives.
Directed by Madeleine Braun
Former Olympic archer Madeleine Braun delves into the mysterious phenomenon of "target panic", how it wreaked havoc on her own career, and why it is rarely talked about.
Directed by Jackson Sjogren & Luke Duncan
A 58-mile river stretches through the greater Los Angeles county, bringing with it diverse signs of urban life.
Directed by Luca Pena
A found footage short documentary that interrupts the idea that gender roles are assigned at birth by remixing archival footage to envision a future in which being trans is not only accepted, but celebrated.
Directed by Paula Kiley
A whimsical introspection into one of the most inevitable, and taboo, parts of the human condition — death. This animated short explores life’s big questions through conversations about mortality with death doula Adrian Allotey, a woman who guides people at the exit point of their lives.
Narrative Films:
Directed by Jessenia Blackstone El Massioui
A young woman mourns the memory of her relationship with her brother. The past, present, and future are explored through archival home video, animation, and present-day footage.
Directed by Elisabeth Jane Porras
Jane recounts the times she has felt the presence of God. When she’s felt it, and when she’s felt the absence of it. As she questions, the realization of what that feeling actually is becomes clear. It’s been music all along. Jane is now forced to confront her new reality.
Directed by Madeline Haggerty
Art student Kalani craves a quiet place to finish her canvas, she decides on the park outside her home. Her anxiety gets the best of her as she tries to hide her unfished work from stranger’s eyes. After being supported by a friend Kalani realizes she is comfortable with her work in progress, despite the people around she is driven to paint.
Directed by Ronan Jensen
A collection of different voices ruminate on pre-COVID memories, speaking as one over a mosaic of household images. Part of the CSULB Collegiate Film Block.
Directed by Aura Rico
Before visiting her mourning sister, the ghost of Gloria roams a college campus while contemplating mortality.
Directed by Shruthi Anand
An artist suffers from a psychological break while painting a self-portrait.
Directed by Cathy Bui
A glimpse into a room that was once filled with memories, heart, and love.
Directed by Nathalie Johnson
The COVID-19 pandemic altered millions of American lives. When Kerry, an office employee, finds her career upended, change in her life comes with unforeseen redirection.
Directed by Micah Goldfarb
Short collection of images meant to showcase a location of personal importance. Created during Covid-19 quarantine for my Junior thesis at CSULB.
Directed by Suri Rosete
A short creating an atmosphere and capturing the dream-like quality of a park. The short juxtaposes music, image, and movement to Gove the viewer a better sense of the location.
Directed by Hunter Wolfle
As a child, she killed her mother’s bird out of revenge. Years later, Lucy returns to her sister, who is now a hoarder, after their mother dies. Long dormant mental health issues begin to surface until they culminate in a slow-burning breakdown. In a house that feels like a labyrinth, Lucy with her psychosis and her sister with her hoarding only have each other.
Special thanks to the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) without their support of the Film & Electronic Arts Department, many of these student films would not have been possible.
