HIFF Final Thoughts

For the 36th annual Hawaii international Film Festival, that concluded this past Sunday November 13, 2016, I was fortunate enough to see four films. I went to the world premiere of Robin Lungs Finding Kukan a film that tries to uncover a mystery surrounding the loss of the first ever Grammy nominated documentary. The second film I saw was the Hawaii debut of That Demon Within which is about a police officer’s internal struggle with a mental illness. The third film I was fortunate to see was prison dogs which is about love, loss and redemption where inmates help train service dogs for service members who suffer from PTSD. The last film I saw was The Tiger Hunter, I chose this film because the actors that were in it and I wanted to see an upbeat comedy about a coming of age immigrant set in 1970s America. I chose this particular films due to their overall appeal. I was involved with the creative design of Finding Kukans print collateral which is the reason I chose that one. I was also involved with the creative collateral for That Demon Within. I wanted to see Prison Dogs because being a disabled service member I am a firm believer in Service animals.

Unfortunately, due to scheduling conflicts I was unable to make any of the press events. Personally the highlight of this year’s festival was the movie selection. I have attended HIFF for the past four years unlike previous years this year had a lot of movies that appealed to me personally. Being a part of a world renowned Film festival as a member of the press allowed me unprecedented access to all the movies and press opportunities. One film that really resonated with me personally was The Tiger Hunter, it really captured the struggle immigrants face when moving to a new country and captured their will to succeed at all costs. This year I did not have any negative experiences with any film or the festival itself.

I learned no matter what language you speak or what nationality you are, you can all come together over a shared interest of film. Film is a platform and medium which transcends nationality or race. The HPU and HIFF collaboration is an invaluable experience both scholastically and professionally. There is no other class offered at the University to my knowledge that allows for you to become unrestricted press and actually work with film makers and professionals in a creative environment. Yes, I would recommend HIFF to friends and family members and have. I am constantly talking about the films at HIFF and when and where they can be seen. I was also able to get tickets for my girlfriend who was able to attend most of the films with me as well.

I would suggest just go out there and see the films. You will not have another opportunity to go have unprecedented press access and screening ability to so many movies all for a couple articles. This experience is also great work experience working with talent on the red carpet and working with festival hosts scheduling interviews and press opportunities. It also provides great portfolio content that is published and viewed by thousands.