SMC grad screens film at USC

On Monday night at the University of Southern California's Eileen Norris Cinema Theater, the student filmmakers of the 310 Green course presented their current work.

In total, 18 short films written, directed, shot, and edited by the students themselves were shown to the audience. The films covered a wide range of genres. Dramas, comedies, horror, and even a western were showcased.

Among the filmmakers whose work was shown was Jennifer Miguel, a former student at Santa Monica College. Miguel, who just finished her first full year of film school at USC, screened her first film titled, "Rainbow Boy."

The film, which focuses on a young woman attracted to a man whose sexuality she's not entirely sure of, was one of the night's only comedies and elicited some of the loudest applause of the evening.

"I'd like to thank everyone who worked on the film with me," said Miguel, addressing the crowded theater after her film ran. "I'd like to especially thank those I found on Craigslist, I'm glad you weren't Craigslist killers."

After the show, Miguel revealed a slightly autobiographical inspiration for the film.

"For some reason I feel attracted to guys who turn out to be gay," she said. "All my classmates initially hated the idea, and thought I was trying to make some sort of statement, but all the time it was meant to just be a lighthearted comedy."

The film was well received by the audience, with laughter erupting at the appropriate cues and an audible "aww" at the film's denouement. Miguel was pleased by the crowd reaction to her first project completed as a USC student.

"I was glad that it got the reaction I was aiming for," she said.

Though "Rainbow Boy" was Miguel's first film produced as a film student at USC, it was not her first production. While at SMC she directed two other shorts as part of the film production courses headed by Professor Salvador Carrasco.

"I feel like SMC prepared me a lot. Most of what I know I learned at SMC," she said.

The USC 310 screenings are held twice a year, at the end of the Spring and Fall semesters respectively, and offer a chance for students to showcase their work and for audiences to catch a glimpse of potential rising stars in the filmmaking industry.

The sense of camaraderie between the filmmakers themselves and the support exhibited by the audience created a pleasant atmosphere and made for a successful event.