At a hospital bedside comes a myriad of reactions – tears, hand holding, denial and for some, music.
The Campus MovieFest dramatic film entry “The Violinist” placed in the top 16 shorts at UCLA and screened in Ackerman last week. The story follows a young woman dealing with the failing health of her estranged mother simultaneously with the advancement of her music career. The violin music played by the main character is woven throughout the narrative.
Tamara Rhoads, who won best actress in last Thursday’s screening ceremony, both starred in and composed the music for the movie.
Rhoads, a professional actress, auditioned and worked with David Gomez, a fourth-year English student, on his previous CMF entry “Revision.” Last year, Rhoads auditioned through the L.A. Casting website and played a supporting role in Gomez’s film. Two months ago, Gomez called Rhoads up for this year’s production after seeing her playing violin in some of her uploaded videos on Facebook.
Gomez said he liked the idea of a calmer, more emotional story that incorporated the violin.
“I was inspired by her playing,” Gomez said on writing Rhoads’ character.
After reading the script, Rhoads said she immediately felt an emotional connection with the story that she felt many could share. Rhoads said by composing for the movie in addition to acting in it, she became more involved in the entire creative process.
Gomez lacked experience in composing solo violin music. Rather than look elsewhere, Gomez asked Rhoads if she would be interested. Gomez said he was incredibly impressed when she played him what she had written.
“It was perfect,” Gomez said.
Alex Regalado, a fourth-year communications student, both produced and edited the short, and said as soon as she read the story she knew she wanted to be a part of it.
“There would literally be no movie without Tamara,” said Regalado. “It was nice to always rely on her for a good performance. It made editing easy because there were so many options to choose from.”
When Rhoads was called for best actress, cheers erupted from “The Violinist” section.
“(I was) so happy when she won,” said Gomez. “Collaborating with her was really awesome, we constantly had a back-and-forth.”
“I put a lot of hard work into it,” said Rhoads on her excitement over the recognition. “(Winning best actress) meant so much more because I was utilizing both of my artistic outlets.”