Each year, seniors in the University of Arizona School of Theatre, Film & Television program make films as part of their thesis projects and present them at the annual “I Dream in Widescreen” showcase. The event is considered a launchpad for many of these filmmakers, who often go on to submit to film festivals.
Going into year 21, the event will be held Saturday, May 9, at Fox Tucson Theatre.
This year, 11 seniors are presenting their films and competing for jury prizes.
Their films are focused on a range of topics and represent different genres.
Through the projects, viewers get greater insight into who the filmmakers are and what values and ideals are important to them.
This year’s showcase of films will include “They Wait” by David J. Aberle, which stars Tucson actor Jon Proudstar from the TV show “Reservation Dogs,” and Clinton Willis’ “Be Still, Boone,” which features Craig T. Nelson from “Coach,” “The Incredibles” and “Poltergeist.”
Aberle, a Diné filmmaker, director, medicinal person/guardian and paranormal investigator from Northern Arizona, blends ancestral knowledge with filmmaking to tell stories that are reflective of his roots, identity and history.
“They Wait” is his first narrative horror film. He was inspired by films such as “The Godfather,” “The Lighthouse” and “Poltergeist.”
The film tells the story of a distressed grandfather who, fueled by love and anger, asks indigenous spirits for vengeance, but he learns too late that once words are spoken, they cannot be revoked.
The film was shot in black and white with a 1:1 aspect ratio. He said this allowed him to really highlight the characters’ thoughts and feelings in an up-close-and-personal way.
His team also used color filters in front of the camera to create texture.
“I wanted the audience to feel those characters, to feel the room and to feel those emotions…We’re up close, and we see every hair. We see every crack of skin. I want people to feel that texture. In the same sense that texture was huge to visuals, texture was also huge to sound… That was a very important aspect is making sure our audience feels the power of these entities. They feel the wind when the accents of wind come in,” Aberle said.
In the film, Aberle also plays with sound in different ways, including layering voices on top of each other. The actors spoke in an old language called Diiyin Bizaad.
For Aberle, it is important to honor sacred traditions when making the film.
“We always wanted to make sure we respected the beings. We respected the regalia that’s in there because a lot of it is actual ceremonial objects. We made sure we did respectful offerings. We watched how we acted in front of these beings and reacted in front of the ceremonial objects,” Aberle said. “This is the power of indigenous storytelling is that we’re not just telling a horror story for the sake of it being horror. We are telling traditional stories and teachings that have power, meaning and purpose. When you do something like that, the beings that you are embodying or the beings that you are representing, they have every right to be here, show up and make their presence known…We expect that, and we are thankful that they’re there because they’re watching over it and making sure we’re doing it right.”
In the film, the grandfather’s pleas are answered by a spiritual being that is referred to as a “collector, which is an amalgamation of entities from different traditional stories.
“These beings are not evil. They’re not good. They’re just nature. Just like nature, they can be fearful, or they can be something that is necessary,” Aberle said.
Aberle is older than many of his fellow film students and is married with a wife and 10-year-old son.
“I think it’s living life that helps with storytelling. I’ve been through the ups and downs of what life can provide and in some very interesting situations that I can draw from creatively. For good or bad, it’s there, and it’s something that helps me to connect with audiences when I tell a story,” Aberle said.
He was originally pursuing computer science but decided to switch his major to film.
Aberle has his own production company and has been making films since around 2017.
While at U of A, he has made five films, two of which have gotten into over 30 film festivals and won international awards. His film “Finding Fire,” which centers around an indigenous college student who started a sacred fire circle at the University of Arizona, was featured at the Phoenix Film Festival.
Aberle also created the documentary “Death Mask,’ which is centered around ceremonies he does for his tribe to help with spirits.
His film “They Wait” has already won several horror screenwriting awards and has been accepted into the Nogales Film Fest. He plans to take it to other film festivals and has already been working on a feature film and TV series script for it.
In the film, Proudstar plays a boss figure/spiritual broker who others go to for favors.
For Aberle, one of the best aspects of filmmaking is working closely with others, such as Proudstar.
“It’s a huge part of what I love about filmmaking is that collaboration with everyone on the team, when it comes to the actors, the director of photography, all the departments,” Aberle said.
Many of the U of A student filmmakers, including Geen Lee, are trying to send a larger message through their work.
Lee, a transgender filmmaker and director that was born in Los Angeles and grew up in South Korea, noticed when she was growing up, there were few films that were reflective of her experience. This is why it has been important to her as a filmmaker to give voice to marginalized communities.
Lee’s project “’Synesthesia’ tells the story of an android who dreams of being more ‘human’ and is working on creating the perfect song. She comes to realize that all she needs to change is her perspective to become an idealized version of herself.
“Artemis is a transgender character, but it is explained to the audience through her being a robot in this sci-fi setting… I can see a lot of myself in Artemis, a lot of myself from different stages in my life…At the same time, Artemis has become her own person. It’s almost like she’s become slightly detached from me. She’s like my daughter,” Lee said.
Lee hopes through the film to spread of message of the importance embracing one’s true self.
“Transgender people don’t need to be this picturesque society-defined idea of what a woman or a man is in order to be who they are. … I know it is the greatest decision that a person can make to be your authentic self in the world and to not let anyone dissuade you from doing that. It’s never too late to take that first step,” Lee said.
Although she touches on the topic of emerging technology, she did not set out to make a statement about the role of technology in society.
“When I grew up, I never knew about the terms ‘transgender’ and ‘queer’ because it was never taught. It was this taboo subject matter, especially 15 years ago. Where I learned about it is online. There is this connection between technology and queer identity, at least for myself… When I was making the film, the connection of technology was more about using it as a tool, a means to explain the feeling of what it’s like to not be in the body that represents you on the inside,” Lee said.
In the film, Lee plays a character called Creator.
“I used to act, but I stopped for a long time. It was interesting to get back into it again. For me, it felt almost like I was talking to a younger version of myself, and it was an interesting headspace to get into,” Lee said.
In the film, Artemis has a computer screen as a head. Lee said they had to adapt the monitor they used.
“We had to unscrew all the screws and remove the actual screen elements and the technology on the inside. We were left with the shell of the monitor… We used foam padding to make it to bearable to wear and also to block out the light because the shell is slightly translucent,” Lee said.
Often in her films, she likes to bring handmade elements. Lee did this with her senior project by handwriting the credits.
Lee has been inspired by films such as “I Saw the TV Glow,” “It’s Such a Beautiful Day” and “Ratatouille.”
The director had some fears around making the film, but she wasn’t going to let this stop her.
“I felt that the film was important and that it needed to be made…Putting something out like that, I was worried that it would almost put a target on me due to the current political climate. Last year, while working on my junior film, I was assaulted on the Sun Link public transport… It reminded me almost of why I do what I do and why it’s important to continue,” Lee said.
For her junior film project, Lee worked with a partner on a film about romantic, asexual people.
On their senior projects, students in the U of A film program collaborate with each other and with students from other schools.
Lee served as a prop master for Aberle’s film, and Aberle was an editor for Lee. Aberle helped several students in the programming with editing.
Lee also served as a sound recorder and boom operator for Ashley Courter’s film “Vein” and a production designer for Donovan Heaney’s film “Where the Birds Still Sing.”
Filmmaking has been a lifelong passion for Lee. She hopes to continue to pursue it after she graduates.
“It’s always been something I’ve been interested in beyond just as an occupation I wanted to pursue. It’s just been a big part of my life, and I wish to continue going down that path,” Lee said.