Sam Manion, a 10th grader from Minuteman High School, has been named the winner of the poster contest for the fourth Arlington International Film Festival (AIFF), an event sponsored by YourArlington.com.
At a reception at Town Hall, film festival organizers celebrated the entries for the image that becomes the face of the festival, with James Milan, as master of ceremonies.
Submissions from Arlington High School, Arlington Catholic High School and Minuteman High School were reviewed by a panel of judges who critiqued the posters for their visual appeal, content and marketability.
Bob Sprague, YourArlington editor and publisher since the site began, in 2006, announced the winner of the contest and awarded Sam Manion $500 on behalf of AIFF. The announcement marks the official launch of the 2014 festival, scheduled for October 15 through 19 at Arlington’s Regent Theatre.
‘Jumped on it right away’
“My school offered the opportunity to make a poster for my home town, Arlington,” said Manion, who takes graphic arts at Minuteman. “I jumped on it right away and began working.
“After about two days of brain storming and making thumbnails, I had thought that my idea was good enough to be created in the computer. My poster was the one with the earth in the lower-right hand corner, and it took at least a day to create the globe and the film reel (that STILL didn’t come out right!).
“I wanted to have the design represent earth-tones and I kept the earth green and purple, not giving it a distinctive color representing a region. In my class, I probably worked on it the longest, a full week and two days of changes and testing software and 3D effects that my computer couldn’t even run.
“So that’s my story. Even if I don’t win, that didn’t stop me from putting my all into my work.”
Many members of his family watched as Manion received the award.
Judges also recognized these participants:
Jacob Ballin
Matthew Collins
Dylan Contarino
Neva Coovert
Clayton Dunlop
Nathaniel Etienne
Galen Hall
Marley Jurgensmeyer (who won the contest the last two years)
Matthew Mori
Isaac Peters
Natalie Schultz
Daniel Solano
Zachary Weber
The film festival is an award-winning organization whose mission is to foster appreciation for different cultures by exploring the lives of people around the globe through independent film.
In 2013, AIFF was awarded the Alan McClennen Community Arts Award by the Arlington Center for the Arts, the Gold Star Award by the Massachusetts Cultural Council and Person of the Year award by the Arlington Avocado blog.
Through the founding of AIFF, the mission has also focused on the enrichment of the community and broadening the view of our world and ourselves. Using the power of collaboration, AIFF has engaged and involved students, volunteers, businesses and town leaders, fellow arts organizations and of course, filmmakers from all around the world. AIFF’s founders believe that the arts are here to connect us, to communicate across boundaries and touch our common humanity.
This story was published Saturday, March 22, 2014.
