To give talented students studying film, broadcasting, video, screenwriting and new media an opportunity to present their works for critical review, CSU Summer Arts—an international arts program of master classes—established the Media Arts Festival in 1991.
A panel of distinguished faculty and industry leaders selects each year’s finalists and winners based on a points system, and all finalist selections are screened at the festival. Cash prizes and the prestigious CSU Media Arts Festival Award are bestowed on selected work in four categories: animation, documentary/creative non-fiction, narrative and short screenplay.
“The CSU Media Arts Festival saw its largest number of finalists this year because there were so many highly ranked submissions,” says Shannon Pringle, assistant director of CSU Summer Arts. “This speaks to the incredible talents of students studying at the CSU and the expertise of faculty who instruct them.”
“And The Dragons Danced” | Best Animation
Mia Cesario, Lea Hahn, Aki Lin, Sammy Song, Greyson A. Rout-Vazquez, Sugi Sugihara, Bethany Larson, Nicholas Doucet, Kevin Asis, Janet Valenzuela, Howard Hardaway and Nicholas Kendig
Cal State Long Beach
A film about a baby flame captured the hearts of judges at the 2024 CSU Media Arts Festival and took home the award for “Best Animation.” “And The Dragons Danced” follows Flabey who, finding itself alone in a forest, attempts to befriend multiple animals and faces rejection because of fear and misunderstanding.
Low on hope, the baby flame seeks shelter from a storm in a cave where it discovers a trio of dragons who are scary on the outside but filled with fire/warmth on the inside, just like Flabey.
“The story acts as a metaphor for friendship, reflecting on the difficulties we face when trying to find people who understand and love us for who we truly are,” says Cal State Long Beach alumna Mia Cesario (‘24) who served as the film’s creator, director and editor.
Cesario says the mentorship she received from CSULB Professor of Animation Aubry Mintz and access to programs like Storyboard Pro, Harmony and Premiere Pro were integral to her success in completing the film.
“My campus also supported me during production primarily by providing places to focus and work on my project, as well as serving as a central meeting place for my team and other filmmakers,” she says. “We often had screenings of our in-progress work and relied on each other for critique and support throughout production.”
“And The Dragons Danced” was also selected as a finalist for PBS SoCal’s “Fine Cut,” a student short film series, and aired in episode 4 of season 25 entitled “That Missing Piece,” among other notable festivals and series.
“The Pier Poet” | Best Documentary/Creative Non-Fiction
Sarah Atallah, Ger Skinder, Lesly Mendez Moraga and Jason Nghi Truong
Cal State Long Beach
A team from Cal State Long Beach snagged the top spot in the “Best Documentary/Creative Non-Fiction” category at the 2024 CSU Media Arts Festival for their short, “The Pier Poet,” which captures the story of a poet who shares moments of empathy with strangers. The documentary follows a fellow CSULB student, Henry, who has become known for using his typewriter to create original poems upon request in places like the CSULB campus and the Newport Beach pier.
“The film ultimately shows how art has the capacity to heal people and demonstrates the human need to be listened to and understood,” CSULB students Ger Skinder and Lesly Mendez, the documentary's co-directors, say. “In our film you will find a couple of these interactions, inviting you to reflect on the hundreds of poems that have impacted people’s lives and the importance of having people, like Henry, who spread art and love.”
Skinder and Mendez say Kate Trumbull-LaValle, a lecturer in CSULB’s Department of Cinematic Arts, and their classmates were incredibly supportive of their work, and department staff members helped the team secure critical on-campus and off-campus filming permits. The team also made use of camera and audio equipment from the CINE Equipment Center and post-production facilities on campus.
“[Using CSULB’s post-production facilities] was a great way to tackle such a demanding step in the filmmaking process, and it was also fun to see our peers editing their projects as well,” Skinder and Mendez say. “We would give and receive feedback, and we would encourage each other towards making the best out of our projects, which does not happen anywhere else.”
In addition to receiving this award, “The Pier Poet” was selected as a finalist in the PDX Recovery Film Festival, and the team plans to submit it to other festivals, as well.
“Levadura” | Best Narrative
Bianca Zamora, Irwin Ochoa, Melanie Campbell, Stefanie Pacheco, Hannah Grani, Calvin Cossio, Avery King, Nicholas Garcia, Jamie Fetters, Maria Martinez and Jakob Cohen
CSUN
The winning submission in the “Best Narrative” category at the 2024 CSU Media Arts Festival, “Levadura,” follows the story of an immigrant mother and her two daughters as they are forced to choose between meeting family obligations and ensuring their individual success. The short film, written by recent CSUN graduates Melanie Campbell (‘24), Jakob Cohen (‘24) and Bianca Zamora (‘24), highlights the struggles of many Mexican American families and what it means to be a first-generation child.
The production team leveraged several key resources offered by CSUN to complete the film, including the
CSUN Funder, a crowdfunding platform, and a newly integrated
LED production wall—along with campus classrooms and hallways, which served as set locations for some of the scenes.
“CSUN provided essential support that was instrumental in bringing our project to life,” says Zamora, who also served as the team lead. “While we didn’t have exclusive access to campus equipment and, in an ironic twist, had to resolve equipment allocation issues through a game of rock-paper-scissors, our professor, Quinn Saunders, played a key role in guiding us through logistical challenges and helped us find creative solutions to keep the production on track.”
Zamora says the most disheartening challenge the team faced came, surprisingly, after production was over. She says a few individuals were highly critical of the team’s story and openly expressed their negative opinions during a CSUN screening event.
“It was a difficult and uncomfortable experience, especially given that the event was intended to celebrate the hard work and achievements of all the projects,” Zamora says. “However, it made telling this story all the more significant and meaningful.”
“This small victory [of winning a 2024 CSU Media Arts Festival award] holds immense value for the ‘Levadura’ team,” Zamora continues. “We are deeply grateful for the opportunity and recognition.”
“Naya and the Legend of the Stone Woman” | Best Short Screenplay
Jan-David Soutar
CSUN
CSUN alumnus
Jan-David Soutar (‘24) took home the top prize in the “Best Short Screenplay” category at the 2024 CSU Media Arts Festival for his work, “Naya and the Legend of the Stone Woman.” The story, based on a real Cherokee legend, follows a young girl who discovers a sleeping stone woman and helps the woman find her husband across the Appalachian Mountains, encountering other mythological creatures along the way.
Soutar says he was influenced by the myths and legends his Cherokee grandmother taught him about as a young child, many of which have been lost or have had their meaning changed in modern society.
“I was curious to know what would happen if you took a myth like that of the stone woman and looked at it from a different perspective by setting it present day,” Soutar says. “The stone woman has been asleep for so long that she doesn't recognize her mountains because of what man has done.”
A California transplant from Baltimore, Maryland, Soutar has enjoyed a successful career as an actor and decided to pursue a bachelor’s degree at CSUN to advance his knowledge of screenwriting and directing. In addition to participating in the CSU Media Arts Festival, he has taken a master class through CSU Summer Arts on techniques for consent-based performances, the notes from which he keeps posted in his office.
Soutar says he aims to craft stories that dig deep into the layers of identity, society and personal discovery, and has won several other awards for his works including “Best Experimental Film” at the #FilmicFest Worldwide Film Festival for his 2019 film “Born a Snake.”
“I've written a lot of shorts—even a few others that are Cherokee-themed, in particular—but ['Naya'] was really special to me,” Soutar says. “It was just so heartwarming. Every time I wrote it, I was just like, ‘I love this. I love this world.'"