On March 9 at Santa Fe University of Art and Design’s Marion Center for Photographic Arts, 17 students gathered with actor-filmmaker and philanthropist Robert Redford, artist Sibylle Szaggars-Redford and the scholarship’s program director, Kathleen Broyles.
Eyre in the Family
posted by Nicholas Beckman
This article is part of a series of stories covering SFUAD’s new scholarship opportunity, The Robert Redford/Milagro Initiative scholarship, and the key players who have been vital to its success. “It’s all about networking,” Chris Eyre said, reflecting intently on his past 20 years in the film industry. Eyre, chairman of SFUAD’s Film School, spoke with such emphasis and humble pride about the path he has taken since attending NYU’s Master’s Program, that it appeared as if in this particular moment he had just put it all together, making sense of the incredible journey. Granted, as someone who had the life-changing opportunity to have his own creations workshopped and mentored by some of the movie-businesses’ finest as part of the Sundance Institute’s Director’s Lab, Eyre is no stranger to the intense and often unnerving world of independent film. “Ride the wave,” Eyre says. “That’s all you can do.” The wave Eyre refers to is the success into which he so modestly stepped when he met Robert Redford at the Sundance Institute. Eyre describes his first meeting with Redford as both daunting and, quite frankly, a little awkward (for Eyre, that is). Redford was reviewing the piece Eyre had written and created during his stay at the Sundance Labs. Eyre recalls Redford’s criticism as constructive and founded in years of knowledge of the craft, but there was only one problem: Eyre’s film was already finished. There was no time or resources to go back, re-shoot and fine-tune his work into a Redford-approved masterpiece. Eyre best described his reaction to this critique with a giant gulping “Huh?!” However, after spending time with Redford and learning more about the evolution of a filmmaker’s skill-set, Eyre found that those critiques were not calls-to-action, but solid advice for the...
Editing Whiz
posted by Nicholas Beckman
A product of Austin, Texas, Alec Brown, a freshman at The Film School was selected by the Robert Redford/Milagro Initiative to join the SFUAD community for the 2013-2014 school year. “Texas is very conservative, but Austin is an oasis!” Brown described with genuine admiration for the city he’s called home. It was in this “oasis” that Brown was able to pursue his passion for editing and be as creatively versatile as he desires. He also had the opportunity to work with his role model, Kat Candler, an independent filmmaker based out of Austin. Brown described a brief run-in with Kat that he had while going out to eat with his father where he told her that he had finally decided what to do with his life: edit motion pictures. “She was so proud…” Brown recalled with a smirk. Candler is working on her current film, Hellion, starring Breaking Bad’s Aaron Paul and Juliette Lewis. After some counseling with a SFUAD academic advisor, it was revealed to Brown that he could apply for the Robert Redford/ Milagro Initiative Scholarship. A long time fan of both Redford’s acting and directing work, Brown indulged in the idea. Now, well into the school year, Brown appears to have found his niche. “Absolutely,” Brown promptly responded when asked whether SFUAD’s Film School has met his expectations. “It has exceeded my expectations.” Brown didn’t even hesitate to this question. He was confident and undeterred by the woes many new film students have upon entering the busy world of movie-making. This couldn’t have been more apparent than when asked what he does for fun around campus. Brown says that he is “short on activities, but he makes shorts with his roommate in his dorm room. It may appear at this point in...
Redford Opens the Door
posted by Nicholas Beckman
This year, 14 film students were offered the Robert Redford/Milagro Initiative scholarship. Twelve of them received partial rewards, and two were granted full-ride scholarships. All received the opportunity of a lifetime: to meet the man who brought them to Santa Fe. “I never imagined in the first week of college I would be meeting someone with such a big name,” says Anastasia McAllister, one of the recipients of the award. Competing film schools in America have been feeling “The Sting” from SFUAD’s new scholarship opportunity, which is being supported by Jeremiah Johnson himself, Robert Redford. Redford, who in recent years has not only established himself as a refined actor, director, political activist and founder of some low-key film festival in Utah you’ve probably never heard of, also really enjoys helping artists find their true voices and passions and providing the means for them to do so. A big name, indeed. Redford has played all the classics: Jay Gatsby, the Sundance Kid, uncredited basketball player; the list goes on! Meeting Robert Redford your first week of film school must feel like getting befriended by the most powerful gang member on your first day in prison: pretty damn comforting. But a reward should only be given to those who have proven themselves worthy, right? “…I was very much involved in the Native American Community and participated in many cultural activities.” McAllister explains, “I spent a lot of my time making art, like paintings and drawings.” Redford, a long-supporter of Native American rights and activism, teamed up with Chris Eyre, chair of The Film School at SFUAD, on Eyre’s first feature-length, Smoke Signals, as well as Skinwalkers and A Thief of Time, so it comes to no surprise that Redford and the Milagro Institute would reward those with socially conscious intentions. McAllister grew up in Vancouver, WA, “Better known as the city across from Portland, Ore.,” she accounts. She claims her family, and parents especially, have always been a supportive force in her pursuit of the arts and higher education, but it was her art teacher who really gave her the strength to continue her passion for art that not only captivates, but inspires as well. “Without meeting him,” she says, “I wouldn’t be pursuing a career in art.” She spoke of being granted a work-study position in the Grip House, the Film School’s facility for equipment check-out, which houses some of the best platforms a young filmmaker could hope to work with, in addition to being given a new Canon T4i. Being that her interest in film lies with production design and cinematography, it appears that Anastasia has found a nice little niche at The Film School. “ The transition into college has been amazing!” Anastasia boasts. “It’s only been three weeks but I already feel comfortable...
Jackalope Magazine is the student magazine of Santa Fe University of Art and Design. Building on the interdisciplinary nature of our education, we aim to showcase the talent of our university and character of our city.
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