The film I color graded, “American Dream” by Rick Dumont, received an award at The Shawna Shea Memorial Film Festival. Specifically, it received a Shawna Spirit Award in the Short Movies category. I couldn’t be happier — Congratulations to the talented cast and crew who contributed to this moving film that explores treating the unhoused with kindness. Rick Dumont’s vision for “American Dream” was informed by his own experience helping the homeless.
It felt surreal seeing a film I worked on live at a festival. That’s only my second film that screened at a festival; the first being the film I helped create for the 48 Hour Film Project. But unlike the 48 HFP film, I wasn’t involved in the production process from the very beginning. It all started with a chance conversation when I met Rick at a Massachusetts Production Coalition event. He followed up soon after and asked me about color grading his film.
The other films screened alongside “American Dream” at the festival also told moving stories. “THAT KID” by Ashley Dawson follows a gifted young black student’s challenges navigating a biased school system. The documentary “The Fall of 1985” by Mackenzie McCree dives into the internalized grief of the filmmaker’s family after Mackenzie’s uncle was fatally shot several times by police. And “Bear Brook” by directed by Tony Fanini and written by Tom Anastasi, centers around a difficult conversation between family members about a father moving on from his wife’s death after 15 years of grieving. Each of the filmmakers in our block were passionate and deeply invested in their stories, so it was wonderful meeting them and hearing about how their films came to be.
Thank you to Rick for the opportunity to put my own personal touch on his film, and thank you to The Shawna E. Shea Memorial Foundation for honoring our team.
John Buday: Digital Storytelling 