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TiltShift Film Festival: Free movies and workshops for Utah teens

Utah teenagers are about to experience their very own film festival. The Utah Film Center is hosting the TiltShift Festival April 24-26, presenting films specifically geared to a teenage audience. The festival is free to the public and also features interactive workshops that give kids an idea of what goes into filmmaking behind the scenes.

The event not only caters to teens, it was planned by teens. Patrick Hubley, the artistic director of the Utah Film Center, says nine teens worked on everything from marketing to organizing the workshops to choosing the film lineup. “I think it’s important for the teen voice to be represented. They understand what their peers would be interested in. We also thought it would be a great learning experience for them.”

Among the teens on the organizing committee are 16-year-old Dominique Noelle Kloepfer and 17-year-old Alexis Hernandez.

“The one thing I’m excited to see is a bunch of teenagers come and have a good time,” Hernandez told us. “Typically if you’re under 18 you can’t get into a club or a dance or whatever. It finally pays off to be under 21.”

Kloepfer says it’s also a great opportunity for youth to broaden their horizons. “A lot of teenagers aren’t necessarily interested in film festivals – and that’s kind of crazy because we have one of the best film festivals in the world here in Utah. So I feel like [TiltShift] will get teenagers [interested in] films, and it will bring them into the amazing world that is film festivals.”

 

The Movies

The movie lineup showcases five feature films and four different short film programs. The feature films include two documentaries and two foreign films. While those categories might not be teens’ first choices at the theater, Hernandez and Kloepfer encourage their peers to take a chance on something new.

“We don’t necessarily think, ‘Wow, I’m going to love foreign films,’” explains Kloepfer of her age group. “But then you actually go see it and it’s so different and artistic and just a completely different take on society. Kind of a culture shock for us as Americans to see the way other people are living and what they do day-to-day. It’s a really good experience for teenagers. It’s kind of humbling.”

Hernandez believes teens will also find independent films inspiring. “Independent films have this local sense of being made by someone just like me – [which makes you think,] ‘I could do it if I wanted.’ And the topics are always different. An independent film just has certain qualities and aspects that are totally different from typical Hollywood movies.”

All of the feature films have played at international film festivals around the world. Two of them premiered at Sundance this year: “Girlhood,” a French film about a 16-year-old girl who meets new friends that help her through difficult circumstances, and “How to Dance in Ohio,” a documentary about a group of autistic teenagers preparing for a spring formal. The TiltShift screening of “How to Dance in Ohio” will be followed by a question and answer session with one of the subjects of the film and her mother.

The other features include “The Beat Beneath My Feet,” a coming-of-age story about a teenage loner who convinces his rock star neighbor to teach him how to play guitar (“Beverly Hills, 90210’s” Luke Perry plays the rock star); “Secrets of War,” a Dutch film about friendship and the effects of war on a group of young people (the film is set in World War II); and “The Year We Thought About Love,” a documentary about a young LGBTQ theater troupe that transforms their personal experiences into theater. Fernandez, who hasn’t seen any of the features yet, says he is especially looking forward to that one.

Each of the four short film programs will run 70 to 90 minutes and include about 12 films of varying lengths. Festival-goers will notice something unique about this section: Teenagers created and directed all of the short films. The Film Center put out a call for entries and received almost 350 submissions – four times more than they were expecting. The teen committee members and volunteers then had to narrow them down. “These are all films being made by 13- to 19-year-olds,” Hubley explains. “So part of why we’re showing them is to hopefully inspire some people to think about filmmaking and to express themselves creatively through film. If anyone’s ever thought about making a movie and wondered if they could do it or not, I’m hoping that these shorts programs can answer that question. Yes you can.”

The shorts program is also diverse. The festival will feature animated films, documentaries, comedies, PSAs, music videos, dramas and historical dramas. And one of the programs will showcase short films from Utah teens. These kids created films over a five-week course at the Adobe Youth Voices Film Camp, and their projects will premiere at the festival, followed by a question and answer session with the filmmakers.

 

The Workshops

Kloepfer’s role on the festival committee included planning the media arts workshops. She says it’s a part of the festival teens won’t want to miss. “It will be so fun. The workshops show you what goes on behind the scenes and how much work goes into these [films]. It kind of gives you a new appreciation for all of them. I really would recommend them coming to the workshops.”

Three of the workshops are limited in size and require advance registration. (Space was still available at press time, but check the TiltShift website for the latest information.) The first workshop revolves around production design. Kids will learn what it takes to make a movie set come to life by building the basic structure of a set, then add their own artistic details.

Another workshop focuses on fight scenes. “They get to do a class where they see what goes into fight scenes, and then we’re gonna have a camera there and they’ll film their own fight scenes,” explains Kloepfer. A third class will teach teens to make their own film equipment on a budget, focusing on camera gear. After they create the equipment, it will be raffled off for someone to take home.

The fourth workshop requires no advance registration – it’s a drop-in class focusing on special effects makeup. Here teens can watch a professional artist create some screen-worthy characters while also getting a chance to test their own skills.

 

The Anticipation

It’s hard to say how many people will attend the festival in its inaugural year. But if all goes well, it will return as an annual event. Hernandez says, “My main goal is to start off with a bang and make ourselves known as a film festival, where teens go and have fun in a professional setting. That’s my goal to set that bar for years to come.”

Kloepfer says she’s excited to see the organizing committee’s hard work pay off. “This has been one of the best experiences I have ever had in my entire life. It’s so exciting now that it’s almost here. Something is actually coming out of it. These independent films can make you have more of a respect for the world, more tolerance and acceptance for the people around you, a new outlook for other countries, other cultures. There are so many good things that can come from these films.”

The festival’s opening night takes place at The Leonardo with a short film program open to those who buy a ticket to the museum. The rest of the films will screen at the Salt Lake Main Library April 25-26; these showings require no tickets or fee. Non-teens are also invited. “Even though this is a teen festival, I think these films are so strong, they would appeal to all film lovers,” says Hubley. “We hope people come out and support it. We’re launching something new that hasn’t been done in Utah. We’re presenting an event that we think has tremendous value, not only for our youth but also for our community.”

To check out a full schedule of the festival or register for workshops, visit tiltshiftfestival.com.