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Cape
May Teens win Emmy Award
At an elegant ceremony in Washington, D.C. last Sunday,
five Cape May teens were presented with the Student
Award of Excellence from the National Television Academy
for their film Blue Sunday, a film about teenage depression
made during the Young Filmmakers Workshop offered by
the Cape May New Jersey State Film Festival last September.
High
School students Chad Shagren and John Papale and their
parents attended the ceremony in Washington along with
Stefan Prosky, a noted animator, who represented the
Cape May NJ State Film Festival. Other members of the
filmmaking team are Tom Discepola, Darren Rutherford,
and Gino Miglio.
The Film Festival's founder and artistic director, Ron
Rollet, organized the workshop which included professional
filmmakers Stefan Prosky, Joe Stinson, a well-known
screenwriter, and Art Smith, artistic director of the
Charter-Tech High School for the Performing Arts.
Shagren
summed up the whole experience in a word: Òawesome.Ó
Tom Discepola remarked that ÒThe Young Filmmakers
Workshop gave us the freedom to make the film we wanted
to. We wouldnÕt have been allowed to make that
strong a statement in something done at a school.Ó
Rollet said, ÒThis award proves how talented
and capable our Cape May teens are and at the same time
how important the arts, including filmmaking, are to
strengthening their own sense of accomplishment.
The
Young Filmmakers Workshop is an outgrowth of the educational
program of the Cape May NJS Film Festival, a year-round
showcase for independent New Jersey filmmakers and films
culminating in an annual four-day film festival each
November. This yearÕs festival will take place
from November 13 to 16 and will feature an entire day
of workshops for young filmmakers from South Jersey
and across the state.
We
have poured much of our efforts into developing a film
and video program for students in New Jersey, especially
South Jersey, who otherwise have no access to professionals
in the field and to professional equipment,said Rollet.
For
these young filmmakers to win a national award is one
of the small miraclesthat somehow have been a signature
of our film festival. Having Robert Prosky and Susan
Sarandon as headliners, bringing good films to thousands
of film viewers, selling out our major venues during
the festival, receiving national, even international,
recognition from the press, and presenting over 100
films by New Jersey filmmakers, including several feature
film premieres and the premiere of Tiffany Evans first
music-video--these are the kind of giftsthat have come
to Cape May through this film festival.
The
National Television Academy, the prestigious organization
governing the Emmy Awards, selected Blue Sundayas the
recipient from the Mid-Atlantic Chapter in the category
of Public Affairs/Community Service/Public Service Announcement.
All student submissions were judged on an individual
basis against a standard of excellence by a panel of
industry experts including television industry professionals,
media teachers, as well as students.
The
caliber of work submitted by students across the country
was quite impressive,said Peter O. Price, President
of the National Television Academy.
The
Academy salutes all of the participating students for
their hard work, creativity, knowledge of the medium,
and determination to strive for excellence in their
broadcast journalism pursuits.
A
total of 42 awards were given to entrants from around
the country. The Student Award of Excellence is part
of the National Student Television program that was
launched earlier this year and which promotes, encourages
and supports journalistic skills among students. It
was designed to expose young journalism enthusiasts
to the substantive and ethical aspects of television
news.
TIME
Classroom,the education program of TIME Magazine and
PBS are both sponsors of this award initiative.
The
Foundation of the National Television Academy, which
has administered this initiative among other educational
undertakings. Its Executive Director is Av Westin, longtime
ABC News executive and former Executive Producer of
ABC News 20/20.
It's
our privilege to honor students who have produced work
that demonstrates high ethical, editorial and intellectual
standards, said Av Westin.
If these young men and woman choose to continue with
careers in television news, we can be confident that
the quality of broadcast journalism will be in excellent
hands.
Hearing
Price and Av Westins commentssaid Rollet, only makes
me more determined than ever to continue our work with
teens from this area to make available to them the filmmaking
resources they need to achieve this kind of national
recognition.
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