Here at Portledge, the Senior Year Capstone Project is beloved by faculty members and students, and it is an opportunity for seniors to turn their passions into impactful contributions in the community. One student who stood out this year, bringing a touch of Hollywood to the Black Box Theatre, was Jules Richards, ‘25, who has always been passionate about film and storytelling through the screen. She is an HL student in Mr. Rigg’s IB film course and has been an avid participant in discussing film styles and techniques, ranging from the fierceness of German expressionism and Italian Neorealism to Edgar Wright’s fast pans. Jules has even been bold enough to create her own original film contributions. This year, for her senior project, Jules chose to hone in on these interests and host a film festival to commemorate the talents of other filmmakers and continue to share the love and passion for the art.

​

When students, faculty, and parents entered the Black Box Theatre, they were greeted with delicious movie treats to accompany their experience, such as popcorn and candy. As guests cozied up and the lights started to dim, it was showtime! The student’s works spanned various genres, from thrillers to comedies! Although the festival was a competition, the night was just as amusing as it was competitive. 

​

Our school's student art production is one of the most vibrant and exciting parts of our students’ everyday lives. Paintings, sculptures, music, and other tangible art forms are readily displayed through art showcases or musicals. However, until the night of Jules’ film festival, the extraordinary films produced by Portledge students never received a designated showcase. Jules hoped to use this night to shine a light on the talented film creators, actors, editors, and writers our film classes have produced, even awarding the movie of the night with a special trophy. The final, winning movie showcased was Arthur, created by Catherine Kasper, Madalena Peterson, Cole Sanveren, Hope Peterson, and Kennedy Abrahams. The creators of the short film credited their inspiration to a classroom screening of Aftersun, directed by Charlotte Wells, in Mr. Rigg’s IB Film class—a film they said “changed our lives for the better and allowed us to see the true meaning of telling a story through the screen,”  bridging classroom lessons to an acclaimed project. The film by Wells tells the story of a little girl and her dad on a vacation in Turkey, but little did she know it would be their last vacation ever, as secretly her father was silently suffering from his mental health.

​

The group attempted to replicate those ideas of grief, growing up, and memory, as well as Wells’ most notable usage of color and long cinematic clips to tell a similar story between a brother and sister. The brother, Arthur, identical to the father of Aftersun, was battling an issue with himself, and all he wanted to do was spend the last of his time with his sister Sophia, who was consumed with the idea of growing up and never took advantage of the moment. For a simple work, the audience was moved to tears in a way they had never experienced. The fabulous group was able to touch the hearts of everyone and reconnect the audience to the moment we remember the childhood memories that we will never get back with our siblings. We try to remember, but nothing will ever compare to the tangibility of sitting on the beach with your brother, goldfish in one hand, a Lightning McQueen figurine in the other, and enjoying the beautiful world around you, simply serene. Arthur proved to everyone in that audience that we should never take a single moment with our loved ones for granted because every second of this life is precious. It evoked a sense of vigor for life and taught us never to stop “livin'” because you never know what obstacles will be thrown at you along the way in this life. In addition, this beautiful film is a testament to the hard work, grit, and dedication that Portledge students choose to live by in everything they do. Not only did this group of five take time out of their Sunday to film the entire project, but they chose to do it on their own without a provoked assignment because they felt so passionate. A truly rebound job by these young filmmakers, and The Press commends you for your dedication to the arts!  We also would love to commemorate other films, like Around the Clock, which were obvious nods to past movies of the time, as the acting closely paralleled Bill Murray in Groundhog Day. Watching John Schnabel ‘25 act out the same daily routine had the audience laughing till their stomachs hurt, but also made them question their taste in film as they cackled at the same clip repeatedly for five minutes straight. After getting the giggles out, the room was quickly shifted to a more serious work.

​

Created by Will Rigg, son of IB Film teacher Neil Rigg, he confronted the truth and shed light on the serious topic of teen pregnancy. The test was both a beautiful and gut-wrenching story of a high schooler awaiting the results of his girlfriend's pregnancy test. The film breaks down the overall uncertainty, anxiety, and emotional baggage that comes with being a young teen in a world that lacks proper sexual education and resources.  It takes a situation that to most could seem utterly impossible to be utterly hauntingly real. From the complex script, to the gripping background score, Test humanizes a problem that most try to deem inhumane and prompts the audience to think about how confident choices we make as creatures with free will have a ripple effect. It is captivating and poses the question: Are humans ever ready for the curveballs life throws at you? No, but the more we can spread awareness around life’s uncomfortable reality, the more prepared we will be to take on any obstacle that comes our way.

​

Seeing the Black Box turn into the Cannes Film Festival was undoubtedly one of the highlights of this semester! It proved the power that film and visual storytelling can have on people to project the stories that fail to be told. Whether that's to humanize life's harsh truths, simulate the monotony in everyday routine, or reflect the power of memory and holding on to our loved ones, film is a tool that captures the singularity of the human experience. No story is the same, but the small parallels we find in between remind us that despite our differences, we are connected with the united mission of persevering through our pain and getting up the next day ready to take on life. Thank you to Jules Richards for your dedication to this event; it was truly admirable and inspiring to see you fulfill your goal of showcasing the notable films our student body has collected. We hope to see this carry through in the future at Portledge, as we know our students will continue to strive for excellence in the arts and defy our expectations daily.