Over the weekend, teams of high school students from across Springfield, Ohio created short films during a 48-hour film festival, Premiere the Problem. The festival concluded on Mar. 4 with a screening of the students’ films at the State Theater in downtown Springfield. Before the event began, WYSO Music Director Juliet Fromholt interviewed festival organizer Addie Powell. Powell is a member of the student group behind Premiere the Problem, Bring Awareness to Students (BATS). In the interview, she previewed the festival’s fast-paced schedule and discussed the exciting challenge of creating a short film in just two days.
“We got a ton of kids to sign up in teams of two to four,” Addie Powell told Juliet. “On Friday, they will be getting boxes full of mystery items that they have to incorporate in their film, and then Friday through Saturday–and a little bit of Sunday–they get to create their short film.” Over the course of 48 hours, each team of high schoolers was required to complete a film addressing “a problem in our generation,” Powell said. Beyond that, she wasn’t sure what audiences should expect from the films—as a participant in the festival, she had to wait for her mystery prompts like everyone else:
“I do have a team registered—me and two other BATS members. We're not allowed to know any of the mystery items beforehand. My job is to collect all of the films together and then compile them to be played at the festival. So once they're all submitted and finished, that's when I come in and start working.”
On March 4, the Springfield State Theater hosted a screening of the films created during the film festival—with a $500 cash prize for the audience favorite. The premier also featured music and visual art by Springfield high school students. To learn more about the festival, visit Facebook.com/bringingawarenesstostudents.
Text by Peter Day, adapted from an interview by Juliet Fromholt originally aired on March 4, 2024.
