Author Archives: Jessica Rothenberg

Just as its name suggests, the UCLA Shorttakes Festival is all about maximizing time. With some entries as short as 90 seconds, student filmmakers must utilize every second to successfully portray their points. “One of people’s complaints about shorts is that it seems like they’re trying to pack a two-hour movie into six minutes,” said […]

For most students, ballroom dancing is traditionally associated with an older generation, but the release of documentary film “Mad Hot Ballroom” reflects the changing views of ballroom dancing and its increasing popularity among younger generations. This popularity is wholly apparent at UCLA in the form of the Ballroom Dance Club and International Folk Dance Club, […]

When most people think of curses, the first image that comes to mind is that of a horror film rather than an aging knight determined to save the world. Nevertheless, the focus of “Don Quixote and the Curse of the Silver Screen: A Complete Night of Incomplete Films” is the curse that seems to have […]

M.K. Asante Jr. didn’t hear his name called when they announced the Best Documentary at the Pan African Film & Arts Festival. But that doesn’t mean he didn’t win. “We actually didn’t know we won until one of the question-and-answer sessions after a screening of the film when someone in the audience told us,” said […]

Every so often, among the crowds of UCLA students walking around North Campus, children can be seen gathered in small groups everywhere, complete with yellow school buses parked along the sidewalk. These youth, who range from kindergartners to high school seniors, are the main focus of the Design for Sharing program, which is celebrating its […]

For writer and director Quentin Lee, the reason for screening his film’s world premiere at AFI FEST was simple. “Once you launch a film in Los Angeles, that’s it,” said Lee. “If you picked the wrong place for it, your movie is pretty much dead.” And dead is anywhere but where Lee wants his film […]