Alumni featured in “Bright Lights”

Nine films by Emersonians are part of the “Bright Lights” Screening Series, which screens every Tuesday and Thursday in the Bright Family Screening Room.

Sponsored by the Visual and Media Arts Department (VMA), Bright Lights was launched in September 2011 by events and internship manager Anna Feder. It invites Emerson students and the Boston community to free screenings of a range of work from experimental to documentary, animation and narrative. Emerson students, faculty and alumni create many films. Most screenings are followed by a discussion with the filmmaker. The alumni features being shown this semester include:

• Urban Odyssey: A documentary directed and produced by Maryanne Galvin, MFA ’94, who spoke at the screening (shown October 2)
• BOSCPUG “Big Top Without Borders”: The Boston Creative Pro Users Group, helmed by VMA alumnus Dan Berube ‘89, will be screening a rough cut of Big Top Without Borders, a collaborative project highlighting the international circus community; Q&A and discussions on documentary filmmaking will follow (Thursday, October 11; RSVP required)
• In the Family: Andrew van den Houten ’02 is bringing his newest film and experience to Bright Lights with In the Family, an analysis of the contemporary family through loss and a struggle to move on with life (Tuesday, October 16)
• Funeral Kings: Kevin (’09) and Matthew McManus ’09 return to Emerson to screen one of their first major projects, produced by Andrew van den Houten ’02. The story follows two altar boys who get in over their heads. The McManus brothers and van den Houten will be on hand for a discussion (Thursday, October 18)
• Cape Spin: Directed by alumnus Robbie Gemel, Cape Spin is the documentary-style story of a clean energy initiative called Cape Wind in Massachusetts. Gemel will be in attendance (Thursday, November 29)

By opening the series to the general public, the work of Emerson alumni is exposed to a wider community while also keeping the screenings free and accessible to the student body. With an impressive roster of Emerson graduates coming back to their alma mater to showcase in the Bright Family Screening Room, students and Bostonians have a lot to be excited about. For more information, visit emerson.edu/brightlights.