VIDEO: Sioux City teen competes in Samsung film contest
By Meagan Sexton Journal staff writer | Posted: Thursday, August 14, 2008
SIOUX CITY -- Megan Logan helped lock Kevin Clark -- the kid drummer in the movie "School of Rock" -- inside a chained compost bin.
It was so much fun, she did it again.
And again.
Logan, a 17-year-old from Sioux City, was in charge of making sure the lock looked just right for the short film she and other teenagers filmed in late July, starring Clark.
In only seven days, she helped cast, direct, edit and produce the short film, which could win an Academy Award.
And the winner is ...
Logan, a senior at North High School, was one of 99 teens selected from among 6,000 entries for the Samsung Mobile Fresh Films contest. She and about 10 other teens created a comedy called "Out With the Trash" in Chicago.
Teens were selected from across the country and then assigned to one of nine cities where they would shoot a seven- to 10-minute film in seven days.
Logan said her mother pushed her to apply for the competition.
"You know how moms are. They're like, 'Go check this out, it could be good for you,'" Logan said. "So, ya know, I didn't."
She said when she finally decided to take her mom's advice and apply for the competition, she had about an hour and a half before the deadline.
Laurrie Logan, Megan's mother, said she was browsing various Web sites in search of colleges that had filmmaking programs for her daughter and came across an advertisement for the contest. She said she e-mailed Megan the information, hoping she would pursue the opportunity.
"Seeing her so excited about everything involved in it (filmmaking), the long days, holding a heavy camera, filming to 2 a.m. ... It makes me feel like this is really what she wants to do because it's her burning desire," Laurrie Logan said. "It makes me feel very proud of her that she is passionate about something. I think it's important to have a passion."
Logan said she had to write 100 words about why she wanted to be a filmmaker and 100 words about an idea she had for a film.
Aviva Kleiner, marketing director for the company that selected the contest winners, said her company, Dreaming Tree Films, had its interns narrow down the choices.
Kleiner said the interns were searching for applications from teens who were passionate about filmmaking or who needed to be empowered. After the applicants were narrowed down, company officials selected the 99 teenagers and assigned them to one of the nine selected cities and provided them with the resources to make the movie.
"What made her unique was that she expressed a pure interest in filmmaking and creatively needed to be empowered," Kleiner said. "(I was thinking) if a girl like that could have an experience like this ... man, she could be empowered."
Lights, camera, action
Logan said the filmmaking experience was almost entirely hands-on. She recalled the casting session where she recognized many of those who were auditioning for a part in her team's film from commercials and even someone from the television show "American Gladiator."
She remembered shooting scenes several times to get it right and getting sunburned in the process, and her eyes lit up with enthusiasm when she discussed her role in promoting the film and how the film company gave her personalized business cards listing her profession as "Chicago Filmmaker."
"It was pretty overwhelming at first," Logan said. "It was such a good experience. We (team members) all had something in common. It was definitely our movie, and they made us feel like that."
Kleiner said the program helps teens find focus and in many cases, the experience is the first time teens have been given responsibility and been taken seriously.
"We want them to create quality material," she said. " We have a lot at stake here, and we want to make festival-quality pieces."
Oscar-worthy?
Logan's team's "Out With the Trash" will begin facing off with other teams' films in the same genre for a Viewer's Choice Award, voted for by an online audience of millions. The film will also be viewed by a jury panel of industry professionals who will provide feedback, according to a written statement.
The winning film will appear at the Samsung Fresh Films Youth Fest 2008, an event presented as part of the American Film Institute's AFI Fest.
Samsung Mobile Fresh Films producers will submit top-achieving films to national and international film festivals, which could make the film eligible for an Academy Award.
Voting begins at noon today and ends at 3 p.m. Wednesday.
Meagan Sexton can be reached at 712-293-4243.
To vote for this film or other Fresh Films, visit: fresh-films.com/comedy.htm
To watch "Out With the Trash" and find a link to vote on Fresh Films, see this story at siouxcityjournal.com.
It was so much fun, she did it again.
And again.
Logan, a 17-year-old from Sioux City, was in charge of making sure the lock looked just right for the short film she and other teenagers filmed in late July, starring Clark.
In only seven days, she helped cast, direct, edit and produce the short film, which could win an Academy Award.
And the winner is ...
Logan, a senior at North High School, was one of 99 teens selected from among 6,000 entries for the Samsung Mobile Fresh Films contest. She and about 10 other teens created a comedy called "Out With the Trash" in Chicago.
Teens were selected from across the country and then assigned to one of nine cities where they would shoot a seven- to 10-minute film in seven days.
Logan said her mother pushed her to apply for the competition.
"You know how moms are. They're like, 'Go check this out, it could be good for you,'" Logan said. "So, ya know, I didn't."
She said when she finally decided to take her mom's advice and apply for the competition, she had about an hour and a half before the deadline.
Laurrie Logan, Megan's mother, said she was browsing various Web sites in search of colleges that had filmmaking programs for her daughter and came across an advertisement for the contest. She said she e-mailed Megan the information, hoping she would pursue the opportunity.
"Seeing her so excited about everything involved in it (filmmaking), the long days, holding a heavy camera, filming to 2 a.m. ... It makes me feel like this is really what she wants to do because it's her burning desire," Laurrie Logan said. "It makes me feel very proud of her that she is passionate about something. I think it's important to have a passion."
Logan said she had to write 100 words about why she wanted to be a filmmaker and 100 words about an idea she had for a film.
Aviva Kleiner, marketing director for the company that selected the contest winners, said her company, Dreaming Tree Films, had its interns narrow down the choices.
Kleiner said the interns were searching for applications from teens who were passionate about filmmaking or who needed to be empowered. After the applicants were narrowed down, company officials selected the 99 teenagers and assigned them to one of the nine selected cities and provided them with the resources to make the movie.
"What made her unique was that she expressed a pure interest in filmmaking and creatively needed to be empowered," Kleiner said. "(I was thinking) if a girl like that could have an experience like this ... man, she could be empowered."
Lights, camera, action
Logan said the filmmaking experience was almost entirely hands-on. She recalled the casting session where she recognized many of those who were auditioning for a part in her team's film from commercials and even someone from the television show "American Gladiator."
She remembered shooting scenes several times to get it right and getting sunburned in the process, and her eyes lit up with enthusiasm when she discussed her role in promoting the film and how the film company gave her personalized business cards listing her profession as "Chicago Filmmaker."
"It was pretty overwhelming at first," Logan said. "It was such a good experience. We (team members) all had something in common. It was definitely our movie, and they made us feel like that."
Kleiner said the program helps teens find focus and in many cases, the experience is the first time teens have been given responsibility and been taken seriously.
"We want them to create quality material," she said. " We have a lot at stake here, and we want to make festival-quality pieces."
Oscar-worthy?
Logan's team's "Out With the Trash" will begin facing off with other teams' films in the same genre for a Viewer's Choice Award, voted for by an online audience of millions. The film will also be viewed by a jury panel of industry professionals who will provide feedback, according to a written statement.
The winning film will appear at the Samsung Fresh Films Youth Fest 2008, an event presented as part of the American Film Institute's AFI Fest.
Samsung Mobile Fresh Films producers will submit top-achieving films to national and international film festivals, which could make the film eligible for an Academy Award.
Voting begins at noon today and ends at 3 p.m. Wednesday.
Meagan Sexton can be reached at 712-293-4243.
To vote for this film or other Fresh Films, visit: fresh-films.com/comedy.htm
To watch "Out With the Trash" and find a link to vote on Fresh Films, see this story at siouxcityjournal.com.
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Barb V. wrote on Aug 14, 2008 2:03 PM:
BJ Heitzman wrote on Aug 14, 2008 10:31 AM:
BJ "