Students, Alumni and Faculty Screen Films at Film Fest Knox
It’s that time of year again: the leaves on the surrounding mountains are turning color, there’s a chill in the air, and Film Fest Knox is back in town! Cinema Studies professor Paul Harrill and other area filmmakers co-founded Film Fest Knox in 2023 in order to promote Knoxville as a premiere location for filmmaking and the arts; the festival has since been ranked among the top “50 Film Festivals Worth the Entry Fee” by Movie Maker Magazine. An important screening platform for regional filmmakers with categories such as “Made in Tennessee,” and “American Regional Cinema Competition,” it also offers UT Cinema Studies students the opportunity to screen their work at a festival that is gaining international recognition. This year’s showcases will feature several films created by the talented students, faculty and alumni from the School of Art’s cinema studies program. Scroll down to read about this year’s lineup of UTK films and filmmakers.
Clocks, Time and You!
Written and Directed by Elle Hoytt (Current Student) Cinematography by Daniel G. Johnson (Alum)
Nov. 9 · Regal 1 · 12:00 p.m.
A woman just trying to finish a major project finds her sanity unraveling after an interdimensional clock shows up on her doorstep and refuses to be ignored.
Take and Drink
Written and Directed by Wesley Reagan (Current Student), Produced by Desirea Burke (Current Student), Cinematography by Daniel G. Johnson (Alum)
Nov. 9 · Regal 1 · 12:00 p.m.
After forgetting her fake ID when trying to buy alcohol for a party, a high schooler sneaks into a church to steal a bottle of communion wine.
Echoes
Written and Directed by Aaron Lusk (Alum), Produced by Ben Cline (Current Student), Cinematography by Justin Falin (Alum)
Nov. 8 · Regal 1 · 11:30 a.m.
A reticent widower’s car breaks down on the way to connect with his late wife.
Niches
Written and Directed by Janelle VanderKelen (Faculty)
Nov. 8 · Regal 8 · 9:45 p.m.
Not all teachers are human in a bustling Spanish farmhouse. While instances of interspecies care are enacted beneath the cool stone arches of this rambling structure, the ecological niches (or roles) of various beings shift along with their unexpected environmental relationships.
Janelle VanderKelen is an artist and filmmaker based in Knoxville, TN. Her films imagine alternative acts of relation between imperfect bodies (human, vegetal, geological, or otherwise). She uses animation and time-lapse to make the agency of plants and fungi visible for human audiences. VanderKelen’s work has been exhibited at institutions including The Museum of Moving Image in New York; Anthology Film Archives in New York; and Bow Arts in London. Her films have screened at Ann Arbor Film Festival, True/False, Athens International Film + Video Festival, Revelation Perth International Film Festival, and Antimatter [Media Art] Film Festival.
Pink Sync
Written and Directed by Eli Heaton (Alum)
Elev8or Pitch and Short Film Competition Finalist
Saturday, November 8, 1:30pm, Regal Riviera Theater 1
Sleeping Princess
Written and Directed by Callie Bacon (Alum), Produced by Eli Heaton (Alum), Cinematography by Guido Del Rosso (Alum), and Edited by John Thomas Dickson (Alum)
Elev8or Pitch and Short Film Competition Finalist
Saturday, November 8, 1:30pm, Regal Riviera Theater 1
