West Bloomfield Brothers Win Awards in Michigan Student Film and Video Festival

Two local siblings will be honored for visual creativity and imaginative storytelling at a prestigious setting this month.

Young filmmakers Adam and Daniel Cooper of West Bloomfield High won Best of Show honors in the 44th Michigan Student Film and Video Festival. An animated short by Daniel and a live-action comedy by both will be part of April 28 screenings in the ornate, 1,200-seat Detroit Film Theater at the Detroit Institute of Arts.

War of the Species, a five-minute animation embedded at right, pits "militaristic birds" against a man with a slingshot. It parodies The Matrix (1999) and Pearl Harbor (2001) feature films.

The brothers, who created the festival's promotional video (also accompanying this article), are honored jointly for L.U.C.K. — a slick 10-minute comedy that won an Orchard Lake Student Film Festival award two months ago. It's produced by schoolmate Chris McClellan and features cast members from the high school.

Anti-bullying message

Festival attendees will see a four-minute excerpt from L.U.C.K., which is posted on YouTube in full. It focuses on Luke E. Shwartz, a bully who escapes punishment until he picks up an unlucky penny. "A slapstick medley of pain, twist and irony" ensues, as the filmmakers' describe their entry, shot over three weeks. A promotional trailer is embedded alongside this article.

Video production teacher Kevin Walsh says the Coopers have "the amazing combination of creative talent, hard work and great humility."

Judging and the five-hour festival are organized annually by a Royal Oak-based nonprofit called Digital Arts, Film and Television (DAFT). It invites K-12 teachers and students to submit class projects and independent work in a dozen categories, including music video, animation, newscast, sports documentary, public service announcement, comedy, instructional and general entertainment.

Nurturing digital media talent

"The main goal is to encourage and support young people who are already using media," says festival director Kathy Vander of Berkley.

Three dozen educators and media professionals reviewed hundreds of statewide entries last month at the University of Michigan-Dearborn. They chose 25 high school winners and 22 from lower grades, who'll share more than $20,000 in scholarships and prizes thanks to support from the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs and the Kresge Foundation.

Other entrants get certificates of excellence, honor or merit. All are invited to the free festival, which starts at 10 a.m. in the 1927 theater downtown and is open to the public. An 11:15 a.m. reception in the mezzanine-level Crystal Café will salute high school winners, their teachers and families.

Other Metro Detroit winners

In addition to the Cooper brothers,  winners include students from Birmingham, Dearborn, Grosse Pointe, Lake Orion, Novi, Royal Oak and the Huron Valley Council for the Arts.

Submissions also came from Detroit, Holland, Kalamazoo, Madison Heights, Sterling Heights and smaller communities. Parents or schools paid $10 to $15 per entry, depending on how many DVDs were sent.

DAFT, an education nonprofit, was created in 1969 to promote media literacy with workshops and conferences for students, teachers and other professionals.

"This the oldest festival in the nation providing public recognition for the work of students in grades K-12," says Vander, an award-winning film producer who's an account manager at TVS Commercial Solutions in Troy. She joined DAFT's  board in 1996.

"In fact, many young people who got their first public exposure through this festival have gone on to professional careers."