The Mount Sentinel Performance and Media Academy (Academy PM) film festival Thinking In Colour takes place at The Capitol Theatre in Nelson at 7:00 p.m. on June 3 and 4. Family, friends, students, teachers and the public are all invited to screen a dozen short films produced by students in their semester-long program.

“This year’s collection of short films definitely reflects the creative minds of their teen writers and this year a lot of scripts played with the concept of color, or unique perspectives, and they ended up as the strongest our class created.  Over a two-hour period, viewers will get a chance to see creativity, imagination and film-making techniques that cover modern parodies of familiar characters to psychological pieces about the struggles of being an artist. We could not be more proud of how hard the class worked as a team to craft each one.” said Academy PM teacher Danny Leeming.  The program is co-taught by Leeming and teacher Jacy Schindel who has over two decades of experience in the media/film industry.

The year end Academy PM showcase has become an annual celebration of young talent. In 2023, students focused on theatre and stage, and this year, film is again front and centre, with two films already nominated in May for BC Student Film Festival top prizes. The film, Post Lonely Tea Party directed by Soly Carpio, written by Mila Liboiron and starring Murrin Gingras and Raisa Nazaraoff is competing for Best Senior Drama. The film, Go For A Walk directed by Kail Westlind, written by Oaklyn Blunderfield and starring Caelen Smith and Easton Laren is competing for Best Senior Comedy. Winners will be announced in June. 

“I am incredibly excited to share our student perspective on contemporary world issues and find the support at our school to tell stories that are important to us as young adults. I love working with our team and experimenting with storytelling, technology and communication. We are applying everything we have learned so far – from graphic design to audio to advanced camera and lighting” said student Mischa Gretchen, grade 10. 

Academy PM is a cross-curricular program that is designed to prepare students to enter a post-secondary education or a career in the film, theatre, game and digital media industry. It is one semester long and offers students an opportunity to work on major, student-led projects and showcases such as film festivals, theatre productions and gallery displays. 

Mount Sentinel Secondary and Academy PM work hand in hand with industry partners to give academy members an authentic opportunity to work in an industry they want to pursue after high school. All students who successfully complete the program are automatically awarded a scholarship at Vancouver Film School, a partner in the academy. 

All films are completely original scripts written, directed, and produced entirely by students and appropriate for the whole family. Tickets to Thinking In Colour are $10 and available from the Capitol Theatre online box office or at the door.