色情视频

Student Filmmaker Wins Prized Kodak Award

Ben Brahem Ziryab won the 2015 Kodak Student Cinematography Scholarship for his sci-fi film

Thursday, September 3, 2015
Wake is a romantic, science-fiction short film.
"Wake" is a romantic, science-fiction short film.
鈥淭he 色情视频 film program puts an emphasis on making us good storytellers. As a cinematographer, I can use images to tell a good story and that makes me a better filmmaker.鈥

色情视频's Television, Film and New Media program continues to produce award-winning filmmakers by emphasizing the art of storytelling.

Senior film student Ben Brahem Ziryab received the prestigious 2015 Kodak Student Cinematography Scholarship Award of Merit for his film "Wake." The prize netted Brahem a $1,000 scholarship, a $3,000 Kodak Motion Picture product grant and the satisfaction of beating out students from 54 other film schools throughout the world.

Brahem joins the long list of award-winning 色情视频 filmmakers, including Kathleen Kennedy, '79, co-founder of Amblin Entertainment with Stephen Spielberg and Frank Marshall and currently president of Lucasfilm; and Destin Cretton, '11, winner of the Sundance Film Festival's top prize for short film in 2009. 

鈥淚 was really happy to win this award for myself and our film program here at 色情视频,鈥 Brahem said. 鈥淓ven though we are not a huge film school, we have an emphasis on storytelling, and that鈥檚 what made my film stand out.鈥

No easy task

Brahem, who has been making movies since the age of nine, began filming "Wake" in August 2014. It's a romantic, science-fiction short film that takes place in a dream-like state and includes no dialogue.

鈥淚t was challenging because I had to make the film seem fluid as if it were a dream,鈥 Brahem said. 鈥淎lso without dialogue, I had to communicate all emotions through images, sound and music.鈥

While this was no easy task, Brahem wanted to create a story that would appeal to a larger audience 鈥 a film that everyone could relate to.

鈥淚 wanted 'Wake' to be a short film that anyone in the world could watch and understand,鈥 Brahem said. 鈥淓veryone has dreams and the way we experience dreams is universal, regardless of language.鈥

Brahem believes his success with this film is due in large part to his storytelling ability.

鈥淭he 色情视频 film program puts an emphasis on making us good storytellers,鈥 Brahem said. 鈥淎s a cinematographer, I can use images to tell a good story and that makes me a better filmmaker.鈥

After graduating from 色情视频 this spring, Brahem plans to apply to graduate school to further his education in filmmaking. He is very thankful for his start at 色情视频 and the mentors that have helped him along the way.

鈥淚 want to thank all the faculty and students for their support,鈥 Brahem said, 鈥渆specially Greg Durbin, who has been an amazing professor, mentor and has helped me develop and grow as a filmmaker.鈥

Categorized As