September 26, 2013
13-273

Jessica Pope
Communications and Media Relations Coordinator

Short Film Created at VSU Wins at New York Festival

VALDOSTA — A short film written and produced at Valdosta State University earned the title of Most Creative at the inaugural Central New York Short Film Festival, held Saturday, Sept. 14, in Syracuse, N.Y.

“The entire production crew was extremely excited to find out that the film had won an award at the Central New York Short Film Festival,” said Colin Walker, a lecturer of mass media in the VSU Department of Communication Arts who, along with six of his students, created the prize-winning short film. “I had only been notified prior to the festival that it would be screened.”

“The students worked extremely hard on this project,” he added, “and their work is the real reason why the film just won an award. We literally lost sleep in the process of creating this film.”   

Walker and his students — Jasmine Bennett, Lucas Hicks, Damian Grey, Carey York, Shalonda Martin, and Daniel Shadle — teamed up to originally create the film, titled “The Chance,” for the VSU 48-Hour Film Competition, held March 1-3. At 6 p.m. that Friday, they were given a prop, a character, a line of dialogue, and 48 hours to write, shoot, direct, and edit a four-to-seven-minute film. The team worked until midnight, perfecting the script, and reconvened the following morning to begin filming, which had the team running from the Oak Street Parking Deck to the Mass Media Building to nearby Drexel Park to a local apartment for roughly 14 hours straight. The editing process began early Sunday morning and “was a sprint to the finish line because we burned the film to DVD only 45 minutes before” the competition deadline — and the film’s big premiere.

Walker and his team placed second at the VSU 48-Hour Film Competition.

“The Chance,” Walker explained, runs seven minutes and 23 seconds and tells the story of a man named Charlie who is down on his luck and looking for a chance to redeem himself. He is willing to sacrifice anything for another chance but does not realize that he is part of a game where he does not control the pieces at play.

“I am thankful to have had this opportunity and look forward to working with the students on future projects,” he said. 

Contact Colin Walker at colwalker@valdosta.edu to learn more.

Visit http://vimeo.com/74582045 to watch “The Chance.”


Valdosta State University’s 2013-2019 Strategic Plan represents a renewal of energy and commitment to the foundational principles for comprehensive institutions.

Implementation of the plan’s five goals, along with their accompanying objectives and strategies, supports VSU’s institutional mission and the University System of Georgia’s mission for comprehensive universities.

The story above demonstrates VSU's commitment to meeting the following goals:

Goal 1: Recruit, retain, and graduate a quality, diverse student population and prepare students for roles as leaders in a global society.

Goal 3: Promote student, employee, alumni, retiree, and community engagement in our mission.

Goal 4: Foster an environment of creativity and scholarship.

Goal 5: Develop and enhance Valdosta State’s human and physical resources.

Visit http://www.valdosta.edu/administration/planning/strategic-plan.php to learn more.

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