Filmmakers at USC’s School of Cinematic Arts pitched their feature or series ideas to a panel of industry professionals for live feedback on April 3 as part of the school’s annual “First Look” event.
The five finalists, Qingyi Song, Joanna Fernandez, Yao Wen, Inez Franco and Daniel Roman, also had a chance to win a $60,000 camera package from Panavision.
Fernandez shared her film “Reap,” a cautionary tale of what happens if people don’t respect the earth.
She said she found it challenging to make a five-minute-long, accessible package, but hopes “the panelists take away that it’s a producible thing that deserves to have legs.”
Her horror drama is set during the Dust Bowl, where an oil drill awakens a Lovecraftian monster. The story follows Ren Kearney, who goes missing during a dust storm, and her girlfriend Nita, who teams up with Ren’s disgruntled husband to find her.
The film blends elements of “Stranger Things,” “Midnight Mass” and “Nope,” with a focus on environmental horror and the dark side of manifest destiny. The story explores themes of religious dread, doomsday cults, and the consequences of abusing the earth.
Franco, a film and television production graduate student, came prepped and ready to go. She said she spent all day recording herself over and over, pitching to her mom over zoom. Franco said her family from Boyle Heights was the inspiration for her story, “The Edgars’ Tale.”
“I was writing stories for other shorts and other things that I wanted to submit for projects. And these characters kept coming up anytime I set a project in Boyle Heights,” Franco said.
The limited TV series blends crime, drama and supernatural elements. Three teenage boys find a lowrider car with a dead woman and a bag of gold inside, leading them into a dark world of crime and supernatural threats. The series explores themes of fate, identity and unseen forces, with the boys eventually finding death in the car they sought freedom in.
“Vermont” by Roman stemmed from him living across three continents and a dozen cities in my life.
“I never really felt like I had a home, but ever since I arrived in Los Angeles, I’ve wanted to do good for it,” Roman said.
The film is about three LAUSD eighth graders navigating gentrification and their diverse backgrounds.
The boys are obsessed with creating a unique sound and spend their days biking around South LA, but their friendship is tested when Rene’s father’s guitar is lost in a street fight. The story is inspired by personal experiences and the impact of education on communities of color. The film aims to portray the resilience and hope within the Latin American community despite the challenges of gentrification and immigration.
Song, a film and TV production graduate, pitched “Dog Catcher,” a coming-of-age film about kids borrowing dogs for reward money and confronting a dog catcher. The story centers on Rashad, Calvin and their friends, who form a bond and face challenges to save their friend from the dog catcher.
The film is inspired by personal experiences and aims to create a fun, family-friendly film with a nostalgic feel. The pitch referenced George Clinton’s “Atomic Dog” and modern influences like Kendrick Lamar and Bruno Mars
Wen, a film production graduate, pitched “Phoenix,” the story of a Chinese family on a cross-country road trip to Phoenix for a fake wedding. The main character, 14-year-old Lei, has to find a way to deal with her chaotic family while coming of age. The film team said the movie deals with themes of miscommunication, cultural differences, and growing up in Chinese culture while trying to portray the love and resilience that exists within a family despite the challenges of being far from home.