The SUNY Wide Film Festival took place over the weekend, awarding two Buffalo
State students for their films.
Taking home the grand prize was television film arts major Kraig Adams for the
short film “Speechless.”
“It was great for me personally because I had been to the festival before and the
team had never taken the grand prize. When I heard the first and second place come
up I got really nervous, completely forgetting about the grand prize,” Adams said.
Although he’d known about the festival for years, Adams said his group still missed
the initial deadline for submission and had to get it extended. After that it was just a
matter of choosing between the four categories.
“We had to choose between animation, narrative, experimental and documentaries,”
he said.
The students chose the narrative category for their submission, the silent film
depicting a pivotal moment in a young couples life together.
Adams shot the film and was the director of photography while Joe Blodgett was the
director and producer.
Fellow TFA major Kyle Mecca, assistant director for “Speechless,” was awarded
third prize for the narrative category for his work in directing the thriller “Tail.”
“Winning at SUNY Wide is a great honor,” Mecca said. “It’s a stepping stone. The
festival showed the amount of talent SUNY has to offer and makes for a very strong
competition. ‘Tail’ was my baby, and I won something for it so it’ll stay with me
forever.”
Meg Knowles, associate professor in the communication department and renowned
documentary filmmaker, said she is proud of the students Buffalo State has in its
departments.
“There are a number of talented emerging filmmakers at Buffalo State in the
television film arts and media production programs. It’s inspiring to see them
succeed in competitive film festivals,” Knowles said.
Both Adams and Mecca said they have big plans to follow their wins.
“Next on the agenda is a project with my professor Lou Rera. It’s a short film based
on a novella by Stephen King called ‘Big Driver.’ The script is being adapted now and
we’re looking to launch a kickstarter this holiday season,” Mecca said.
He said he would also like to work on more projects with Blodgett and Brandon
Williams.
“We have thrown around the word ‘feature’ a few times, but only time will tell,”
Mecca said.
As for Adams, graduation is coming up, bringing with it interviews and plans to
move to New York City.
“I’ve got a meeting with MTV next Monday and hopefully I’ll be in NYC for a few
years, working with people I know from NYU and also with the guys from Buff State
as well,” he said.
Jennifer Waters can be reached by email at waters.record@live.com.