WSC Student Film to Premier on Dec. 15
November 24, 2008 -- The 7-11 Ranch in Ohio City, Colo., is a popular place for hunters to stay while they're looking to bag a deer. This past fall, a different kind of shooting occurred -- a film shoot by students at Western State College of Colorado.
Joe Quick (left) and Tory Maurer work on lighting on the set of Katabasis Destiny
The short film, "Katabasis Destiny," will premier at 7:30 p.m. on December 15 in the Taylor Auditorium at WSC.
WSC alumnus Tory Maurer, who is a third-year film student in the graduate program at UCLA, flew in from Los Angeles to serve as a cinematographer for "Katabasis Destiny." Maurer joined Jack Lucido, professor of film at WSC, and students from his Film and Video Production course for several 12-hour days to shoot the short film. Lucido is also the director. Much of the time was spent with the dozen or so members of the group in a cramped cabin at the 7-11 Ranch where a major portion of the film is set.
Will Dudley, a non-traditional WSC student, plays the main character. Dudley, who is a traveling country musician, has appeared in a few other films, including one with Dolly Parton, which he joked, "was real bad."
Set in Gunnison during "the mining days," "Katabasis Destiny" is a western film noir, and the basic premise of the story is a man facing his demons. The screenwriter, Nick Spuhler, is a former student of Lucido's who he taught at Wake Forest University. Interestingly enough, Spuhler has never even been to the Gunnison area.
Lucido explains that he wanted a short, original script that could be shot locally by students in his Film and Production class. He sent out a request to his colleagues and included a link to the Gunnison Chamber of Commerce website as a starting point for research. Spuhler ran with the idea and the film students selected his screenplay.
The Film and Video Production class have been editing the material for the premier on Monday.
In addition to "Katabasis Destiny," several other films will be shown: a senior project film on the WSC baseball club by Richard Eades, a short that Maurer made during his first year at UCLA, and several other shorts made in WSC classes.
The event is a Mountaineer Media production, which is a student-run media production organization based at WSC. Refreshments and a reception will follow the screening, which is expected to run for approximately one hour.
Story by: Luke Mehall, assistant director of public relations
