New film festival showcases student work, renovated building

OSWEGO, N.Y. — The upcoming Hewitt Film Festival is the latest and greatest opportunity for SUNY Oswego students to share their creative work with the community.

A collaboration between student organizations Women in Entertainment and Film Club, the festival was conceived by the presidents of those organizations, Isabel Mulhern and Sean Campbell, respectively. It promises a complete film festival experience, including prizes and guest speakers.

“We really wanted something for everyone to work towards that wasn’t a senior thesis,” Mulhern said, in reference to the short films every Cinema and Screen Studies senior must produce.

It is not just for majors from that department, however.

“We wanted to make a film festival for everyone,” she said. “ I want it to be something that inspires people to create.”

Jose Vasquez, the festival’s marketing and public relations specialist, reiterated the event’s inclusiveness when contacted over email.

“I encourage everyone to participate in the event, whether it is showcasing a short, collaborating with other students, attending the event and spreading the word,” he wrote.

Vasquez is largely responsible for the festival’s Instagram page, which features a trailer, a faculty interview,  and more.

Jude DeBiase, a double major in Cinema and Screen Studies and Theatre, was said trailer’s star.

“I got involved in the trailer for them too, as well, because of working with Sean on my film,” he said.

As to the festival itself? “I’m excited to see what it culminates into.”

Members of the Film Club are excited too. Campbell in particular emphasized the festival’s theming around the newly renovated Hewitt Hall, the home of the College of Communication, Media and the Arts.

“It really is incredible, seeing the difference between my first year here as a freshman compared to what it is now,” he said. “We have a screening room, we have a bunch of studios here, and it’s very helpful.”

The Hewitt Film Festival is, in part, a celebration of the possibilities those new facilities allow for.

The festival is not SUNY Oswego’s first, however.

“We have quite a few festivals on campus that the Film Club is involved in,” said David Lefkowitz, vice president of the club.

The Hewitt Film Festival promises to set itself apart from many of those events — such as Genre Fest and the horror-themed Panic festival — by accepting films of any genre.

Its grounding in Hewitt Hall also makes it very much an Oswego event, as opposed to the SUNYWide Film Festival, which Oswego hosted in 2022.

“I think that’s going to be awesome, to have the opportunity to have students submit whatever they like, and have it be open to everyone,” said Film Club treasurer Hannah Gilcher.

“Movies, entertainment, it’s so important, and it’s probably bigger than ever,” she said. “So I think Oswego’s getting the jump on that.”

Mulhern and Campbell hope that the Hewitt Film Festival continues to help serve that need for many years to come.

“That’s really the goal,” Mulhern said.

The Oswego community will have to wait and see, when the festival begins on April 10.