The 2012 Senior Film Showcase took place Wednesday, May 2nd in the Leonard H. Goldenson Theatre at the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences in North Hollywood. The evening was attended by various industry guests including director/D.G.A. Board Member/Northridge alum Donald Petrie (Miss Congeniality, Grumpy Old Men, Mystic Pizza, How To Lose A Guy In 10 Days, etc.) and Emmy Award winner/producer extraordinaire Charles Floyd Johnson (Executive Producer of NCIS, JAG, Producer of George Lucas's Red Tails, etc.).
The host for this year's event was Luis Valdez who received a CSUN Cinematheque Award that evening. Valdez is considered the father of Chicano theatre and film in the United States. His film directorial breakthrough into mainstream America was with Columbia Pictures La Bamba which he wrote and directed. The film about Ritchie Valens, a popular Chicano rock and roller, was an overwhelming box office success and created instant stardom for Lou Diamond Phillips. La Bamba was nominated for a 1988 Golden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture- Drama.
Luis Valdez's hard work and long creative career have won him countless other awards including numerous L.A. Drama Critics Awards, Dramalogue Awards, Bay Area Critics Awards, the prestigious George Peabody Award for excellence in television, the Presidential Medal of the Arts, the Governor’s Award from the California Arts Council, and Mexico’s prestigious Aguila Azteca Award given to individuals whose work promotes cultural excellence and exchange between the U.S. and Mexico.
Also receiving a CSUN Cinematheque Award was CSUN professor Lillian Lehman, a veteran stage, film and television actress of 45 years.
Attendees enjoyed a reception with live music from Star Trek: Voyager star Tim Russ and his band in the Academy lobby and patio areas. The evening was sponsored by the CSUN Associated Students Instructionally Related Activities Fund and the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, known worldwide for The Golden Globe Awards.
Senior film projects screened:
"No Hay Nada Mas" Director: Giovanni Solis 35mm (15 minutes)
"Without a Shadow" Director: Alex Maleski 35mm (12 minutes)
"Not at Home" Director: Arielle Kilker 35mm (17 minutes)
"Pareto Principle" Director: Benny Wolde-Yohannes 35mm (16 minutes)
(All senior film project directors have the distinction of being Hollywood Foreign Press Association Fellows)