How CMF Works (Carson Daly Knows)

Since its inception Campus MovieFest has given thousands of college students the opportunity to write, shoot and edit a short film. With each year CMF grows adding more schools and partners such as the Atlanta Film Festival and cable outlets TBS and TMC.

While we've written about some of the films and the teams who have participated what we haven't gotten around to is learning more about CMF's inner workings. Well, we've jumped all over that and sent the crew behind CMF a few questions.

A packed house enjoys the show at the CMF National Grand Finale during the Atlanta Film Festival (photo: Ajay Pillarisetti)

CMF: Campus Ambassadors (CAs) are student volunteers at each school. Film festivals are really fun experiences and we want as many students as possible to benefit from the opportunity so we never limit it to just two. Some of the schools, like Georgia Tech have whole clubs centered around the festival.

As for their duties, they can range from helping to get the word out around campus to helping plan the logistical aspects of the events to being one of the hosts of that school's finale. It's really up to the CA.

CinemATL: CMF strives to integrate the flavor and feel of each individual campus into the CMF experience. What led CMF to tailor the festival for each Campus?

CMF: Since we began, CMF has striven to ensure that the events at each of the schools really embrace and reflect what makes that particular one special and unique. It happened naturally but it makes complete sense. The festival is a celebration of creativity and a cookie cutter event just wouldn't seem right.

CinemATL: How did CMF go international? Why did it go international?

CMF: One of our founders, David [Roemer], was studying abroad for a year and decided to try running Campus MovieFest in Scotland. Before he knew it, more students turned out for the finale than the graduation ceremony and it convinced the CMF team that students everywhere have stories to tell. We'd love to continue expanding internationally.

CinemATL: Carson Daly was here for the Atlanta leg of the fest. How did you guys swing that? What other celebrities have been involved?

CMF: Carson discovered CMF last year and was blown away by the scale and creativity. We've been fortunate to have him host a couple of our events since then.

We've had a few others celebrities involved over the last year including Mayim Bialik and Margaret Cho.

Carson Daly jokes with the Atlanta winners.

CMF: We're always interested in increasing exposure for our participants and their creations!

CinemATL: What's the best experience you guys have had with Campus MovieFest?

CMF: After almost seven years, it's really hard to pick out the "best experience." Every moviemaking event we run reminds me of why we stay up all night getting ready for a finale... it's an awesome feeling to watch the students in the audience watch their movies on the big screen.

CinemATL: What are some of the biggest changes from the initial fest in 2000 and the fest seven years later?

CMF: We basically went from spending a year getting ready for one event to running 35 events in a year - so it's definitely been an adventure but we wouldn't give it up for anything. We still start planning events about a year out and we don't sleep much. But we're fortunate to have this opportunity to do so thanks to some great corporate partners. We also now work closely with hundreds of independent musicians so that we can provide some great music for students to use in their films and, at the same time, provide exceptional exposure of the musicians' works.

CinemATL: How long does it take to plan each CMF event?

CMF: Planning for next year's event begins the day after this year's ended. Organizing each school's part of the festival begins as soon as their participation has been confirmed so it's usually happens over the course of several months. 

CinemATL: What ideas and events would you like to incorporate into future CMF events?

CMF: We have some big surprises in store so stay tuned to find out.

CinemATL: What countries and schools are next to be added to CMF?

CMF: Currently, we expect to expand to Los Angeles, New York City and Alabama in the next year but our goal is to make CMF an institution in college life in every state and the rest of the world.

CinemATL: Sometimes there are controversial or touchy subjects in the films, how do you handle that?

CMF: We handle the topics of all of the films with as much grace and dignity as possible. Sometimes (though rare) the films border on the lewd or offensive but the concept of students tell their stories through film is the cornerstone of CMF, so it's extremely important to us to empower all of the participants rather than silence them. Ultimately, however, each of the movies are judged by a panel of their peers and faculty and, if the content detracts from the film, the results will reflect that and may not make it into the crop shown during a finale.

CinemATL: CMF has already partnered with TBS and TMC for prizes and screening opportunities? Are there any plans, or goals, to have an expanded television presence? If so what are they?

CMF: Nothing to announce today, but TBS and TCM have been incredible partners and we're looking forward to continuing and growing the relationship well into the future.

CinemATL: What exactly is Ideas United? What else do you guys do?

CMF: We first created the Campus MovieFest event at Emory in 200 then went on to found Ideas United, letting us share CMF with schools and organizations around the world. The team spends most of the time focusing on CMF, but we also run events for companies that are looking to enhance their employees' creativity and communication skills, and we're also getting more involved in the music scene.

CinemATL: Atlanta is a burgeoning production center. Do you think having CMF based here enhances Atlanta's reputation?

CMF: We sure hope so!

CinemATL: CMF is growing into a strong brand, able to reach a diverse youth market. Are there any moves you guys are making to improve the brand and make it even stronger?

CMF: We hope you'll see much more of this during the coming year as we expand to more schools and develop more ways for students to get their creations showcased.

Dan Krovich and Gabe Wardell announce CMF's partnership with the Atlanta Film Festival at the Atlanta screening.

CMF: The National Grand Finale is an excellent way to unify the regional competitions across the country. The schools from Florida, Atlanta, Boston and the San Francisco Bay Area can go up against the best of the best. It also helps generate national exposure for the top CMF student filmmakers. The timing and location of the AFF, plus the openness of their festival directors to recognize the importance of youth all make the partnership a perfect fit.

CinemATL: Some of the shorts were fantastic and some of these kids, even those without experience are talented. I would love to see some of them remade with a budget and production quality equipment. Are there any plans to give students an opportunity to do?

CMF: We think so too! We've been exploring ways to give the student teams the chance to take their stories to the next level but nothing's concrete yet.

The National Campus MovieFest Winners can be viewed at campusmoviefest.com including 2007 Best Picture winner Fanya Kaplan from Georgia Tech.

Charles Judson is a local screen & comic book writer and a regular contributor and film critic for CinemATL.