Campus Moviefest: International Grand Finale

It's an interesting phenomena when you find yourself in a situation which embodies itself as the culmination of an entire year's worth of work. It feels as if I've been gradually building up to the moment I made it back to California..

June 17 passed a few days ago. This marked the one year anniversary of Que The Lights. From the beginning I set a simple, yet honest goal, establish myself as a legitimate filmmaker. What do I mean by legitimate?

Honestly striving to create a powerful body of work uniquely my own. I wanted to produce my own web of artistic design which displays a quality of work capable of standing on its own.

I believe I've done this to a degree. I still have a bevvy of work left to finish, start, and create, but this year has been a significant kick-start. Where I am gives validation to the words I set forth over a year ago.

Two of my films are in competition at CMF's International Grand Finale. The first is "Bottom of a Glass" and the second is "Portrait of the Storm: Tuscaloosa, AL."

"Bottom of a Glass" will be competing in the Best Drama section while "Portrait of the Storm" will be competing in the 3D competition.

Along with my own, others films from Alabama such as "Sugarbaby", "Blue Barry", and "A Certain Woman" will be in competition and screened. You can find more info here.

CMF is also providing student's with another great opportunity, the ability to meet with Hollywood executives, agents, and directors. This does not guarantee any individual a ticket into the inner-workings of the industry, but it does carry the potential of garnering valuable experience when we're thrown into the real world.

This is why they asked us to not only bring our resumes, but be ready to show our demo reel if asked. A demo reel is essentially a compilation of your best work edited into a single piece. It's your calling card to the industry and signifies the strength of your work as a filmmaker.

Check out mine and let me know what you think,


Director/DP Reel 2011 from Xavier Burgin on Vimeo.

This is why this moment truly signifies a round-up of this year. All of my best work tightly wrapped in about two minutes. It seems so small, yet every drop of sweat, long night story-boarding, headache induced irritation via shot listing, and carpal tunnel-esque bout while revising a script is somewhere simmering within this reel forming my hopes for a successful future.

Wish me luck this weekend. Hopefully my work won't need it.