MU Film Buffs
Marylhurst Messenger
April, 2009

By Jonnie Martin

In a liberal arts university such as Marylhurst, it is not surprising to find film buffs.  After all, films are just another literary form, studied in CHS-ELW crossover classes, and enjoyed in other corners of student life.  Fewer people realize that there are Marylhurst students pursuing a career in some form of screenwriting or film production, and that some of these students participate in a collaboration between Marylhurst and the Northwest Film Center.

One of the objectives of the Oregon 150 Film Fest, scheduled on the Marylhurst campus May 1-10, was to showcase young film makers, and at least three Marylhurst students are among 60 submitting works for the independent films competition.  Finalists will be shown during the week-long Film Fest that launches May 1 with personal appearances by directors Gus Van Sant and James Ivory.

Margaret Murray Eccles, an alum from the class of 1995, has submitted a film entitled “Clean.”  Eccles was an Art Major, and her goal as an artist reflects an interest in “understanding physical presence and its meaning through one’s body in relation to an object, place or spatial configuration.”  Her work along those lines has included architecture, sculpture, film and video.

John Hart, an ELW/Creative Writing senior, has continued his literary studies of the Biblical figure, Mary of Magdalene.  Hart’s short for the festival is entitled “Mary Magdalata,” and is a part of the screen play development for a longer film he hopes to shoot this summer.  Hart says he “has been in the movie business for about 20 years, working both sides of the camera.”

Michael Poulin-Roberson is a Junior with a busy schedule.  He is an Interdisciplinary Studies major with a concentration in Film Production and a CHS minor.  He takes co-op classes through the Northwest Film Center.  Roberson quotes Alfred Hitchcock as saying “Actors are cattle” but he claims as a vegan he treats his actors much better than that.  His film is titled “Breed Love.”

The ten-day Film Fest will include guest speakers each night and special film showings, as well as previews of the student films selected as competition finalists.  The May 1 launch will include a James Ivory film, The City of Your Final Destination, and an on stage discussion of the creative process between award-winning directors James Ivory and Gus Fan Sant.

May 3, the schedule features Oregon animator Bill Plympton, and the screening of his first animated film, Idiots and Angels.   On May 10, the Gold Coyote award to the top student filmmaker will be decided by audience vote, and two other awards given by the film judges. Information on all the festival events, including ticket availability, can be found at www.mufilmfest.com.