Nicholas' and Preston's projects, respectively titled Generation Lostand Silver Lining,were among 27 chosen from 139 submissions. The students' works will be screened at the Media Arts Festival, which is being hosted for a second year by Cal State Northridge on Nov. 9, 10 and 11.

The Media Arts Festival is designed to give talented students within the 23-campus California State University system an opportunity to present their work for critical review.

Student finalists in the film, video and new media competition are chosen by CSU faculty and industry leaders. Their work will be screened this year at 6 p.m. on Nov. 10. Cash prizes and the prestigious Rosebud Award are given to winning student entries.

In 2000, the Media Arts Festival expanded its mission to include helping CSU students bridge the gap between school and professional life by offering three days of seminars and events geared to prepare students for work in the entertainment industry.

Each year, the Media Arts Festival recognizes the work of a leader in the industry by presenting the distinguished achievement Rosebud Award. The 2001 industry honoree is director, producer and former child actor Gene Reynolds. A retrospective of his work will be shown at the festival.

The festival's days are filled with seminars for the students on such subjects as "Funding Your Independent Film," "The Secrets of Surviving Success in Hollywood," "Multi-Camera Directing for Film and Television," "Cinematography: Today and Tomorrow" and "Sitcoms and Variety Shows" Directing for Television." There are also two master classes in television production.

The festival's evening events are free and open to the public.

"An Evening Honoring Gene Reynolds" will take place at 6 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 9, in the Campus Theatre on the southwest corner of the campus at 18111 Nordhoff St., Northridge.

The Media Arts Festival screening of student films and awards ceremony will take place at 6 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 10, in the Campus Theatre. A re-screening of the student winners' works will take place at 10 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 11, in Room 130 in Manzanita Hall near the center of campus. The re-screening is also free and open to the public.

For festival details, call (562) 951-4060 or e-mail summerarts@calstate.edu.

CSU Summer Arts plays a major role in expanding the opportunities for talented media students. In addition to the November Media Arts Festival, CSU Summer Arts offer two- and four-week master classes for college credit each July. Summer 2002 classes will be held at California State University, Fresno and include "Special Effects for Animation," "35mm Filmmaking," "Scenery Automation," "3-Dimentional Makeup Art" and more.

California State University, Northridge has more than 30,000 full- and part-time students and offers 63 bachelor's and 51 master's degrees. Founded in 1958, it is the only four-year university in the San Fernando Valley and the third largest in the 23-campus CSU system. The Western Association of Schools and Colleges recently said CSUN "stands as a model to other public urban institutions of higher education."

CSUN's Cinema and Television Arts Department was recently hailed as the top television and film school in the region by the Association of Independent Feature Film Producers.