Stanley Kubrick once said, “”The best thing that young filmmakers should do is to get hold of a camera and some film and make a movie of any kind at all.””

Well, graduating seniors in media arts in the Fine Arts College have gotten hold of cameras and film and have created 12 very distinct movies as part of their senior capstone projects.

“”I feel like I learned the most about filmmaking during the actual process of shooting films and working with other people in the program,”” said media arts senior Dave Groseclose. “”The classes I took before my senior year really prepared me for going out and shooting the films, and my senior year was the test to see how well I could use my skills.””

Groseclose’s film “”The Garden of Edward,”” which he co-wrote, co-directed and co-edited, is a science fiction drama about Edward and Alice, two of only a few people left in what Groseclose described as a desolate world. He used a green screen and other special effects to create this new dark and bleak place.

“”The process of making this film was extremely challenging and fun at the same time. I think of this film as a very enlightening project that helped me see where I need to improve my skills as a filmmaker. I feel like this film gave me experience in every field of filmmaking,”” Groseclose said.

For the character Edward, Groseclose collaborated with his brother Mike Groseclose, who acted as the other co-writer, co-producer and co-editor of the film.

“”I found that by sharing these positions with someone, I was given new ideas for the film that I would have never thought of,”” Groseclose said.

Andy Martinez, a media arts senior, also wrote and directed his own film, “”Teacher,”” for the capstone project.

“”‘Teacher’ is a romantic comedy about a college freshman who tries to seduce his teaching assistant via an erotic English paper,”” Martinez said. “”It’s autobiographical in the sense that my bad spelling and sloppy grammar always prevented me from hooking up with my teachers.””

The process of making “”Teacher”” was not without its challenges.

“”(The filmmaking process) is up and down. I would get really excited when I thought up new ideas or fixed problems. Then the next day I’d watch it and my brilliant idea had lost its luster,”” Martinez said. “”It’s sort of like hooking up with a girl at a bar and then realizing she’s ugly in the morning.””

After the films were shot at the end of the fall semester, these students began whittling down their hours of footage into 10- to 15-minute short films. Once they had completed a rough cut, they showed their films to the class. Both Groseclose and Martinez said that they appreciated the process of receiving feedback from their classmates and faculty.

“”This class worked hard to interpret constructive criticism given to them by the filmmakers and teachers in this department,”” said Lisanne Skyler, a media arts assistant professor and instructor of the senior capstone class.ÿ””The students also demonstrated quite a bit of maturity and self-awareness about their work and creative process.””

For the spring semester, the students used the feedback they received from their peers and instructors, as well as their talent, to complete a film that has been almost a year in the making. For many of them, this has been a great learning experience and one that has brought the class closer together creatively and personally.

“”This program allows you to progress in your college career with the same people each year,”” Groseclose said. “”You really get to know each other, and I believe that I have made friendships that will last longer than just college. Working together outside of the classroom allows for a better understanding of who the people are and what they want to show the world.””

Jennifer Scher, a media arts senior whose film “”Release”” is also in the screening, shared Groseclose’s sentiments.

“”I’ve really enjoyed working closely with the same group of people for two years,”” Scher said.ÿ””You really get to know them beyond just classmates and become friends.””