Young filmmakers excitedly gather for Student Oscars

1/19

Seth MacFarlane’s opener proved to be one of the most bewildering Oscar openers in recent memory. With a cameo appearance by William Shatner squeezed into his old “Star Trek” uniform, a tribute to film nudity called “We Saw Your Boobs” with the Los Angeles Gay Men’s Chorus and finally a song and dance with Channing Tatum, Charlize Theron, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Daniel Radcliffe, some people were probably numb by the time they got to the sock-puppet re-creation of “Flight” or MacFarlane’s monologue jokes that seemed cribbed from Bob Hope circa 1965. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

2/19

Best red carpet fashion accessory: nominee Quvenzhane Wallis’ stuffed puppy purse. And why did the 9-year-old choose her dress? “It was sparkly and fluffy,” she told the red carpet hosts. Finally, someone who knows how to navigate the red carpet without looking like a dolt. (Valerie Macon / AFO Getty Images)

3/19

Strange David Lynchian moment on the red carpet: While Dustin Hoffman was talking to E! red carpet host Ryan Seacrest in the little secondary window in the corner of the TV screen during E’s broadcast, Melissa McCarthy was shown posing for photographers in the larger picture. Suddenly, Hoffman appeared in the larger window to greet McCarthy at the same time he was talking to Seacrest. It’s still unclear if one was time-delayed video or Hoffman has a doppelganger at the Oscars. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

4/19

What’s in the box? Throughout ABC’s red carpet pre-show, Kristin Chenoweth quizzed attendees about the mystery contents of a covered box that contained “a piece of Oscar history.” Oscar attendees have a lot of things on their minds that night, but guessing the contents of a box on live TV is not one of them. Nor one that anyone wanted to spend much time contemplating. (Strangely, it was eventual lead actress winner Anne Hathaway who guessed it correctly: the ruby slippers from “The Wizard of Oz.”) (Jason Merritt / Getty Images)

5/19

Artists from the visual effects house Rhythm & Hues won the Oscar for visual effects for “Life of Pi,” marking an important moment in the company’s tense recent history (it filed for bankruptcy protection earlier this month). But in yet another squirm-inducing moment for the ceremony, the winners were loudly and aggressively played offstage by the “Jaws” theme just as winner Bill Westenhofer attempted to address their company’s situation. Even Keith Urban was left shaking his head in the audience. (Kevin Winter / Getty Images)

6/19

When is a James Bond tribute not much of a James Bond tribute? When there are no James Bonds to be seen. In celebrating the 50th anniversary of the character, there was a lengthy clip package and a performance of “Goldfinger” by Shirley Bassey, but Sean Connery, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan and Daniel Craig were nowhere to be seen. They didn’t even have George Lazenby show up. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

7/19

It’s never a good sign when the presenters start trading surly comments with the host, especially at the Oscars, where everything and everyone is supposedly floating on clouds of celluloid and magic. But after a series of gags by Seth MacFarlane at the expense of presenter Ben Affleck, the director of “Argo” took the stage and grumbled, “Thanks, Seth, I thought the show was going well. Maybe you can turn it around.” Fistfight in the parking lot later? (Kevin Winter / Getty Images)

8/19

One of the biggest mysteries of the evening: Why was the Oscars orchestra sequestered a few blocks down Hollywood Boulevard in a studio in the Capitol Records building? The orchestra has been in the theater for decades, and suddenly they’re being treated like a cabinet member at the State of the Union. What were they moved for? To make room for bigger egos? Adele managed to get a different orchestra into the Dolby Theatre for her performance of “Skyfall.” (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

9/19

One of the highly touted moments of the evening was the tribute to film musicals, featuring live performances of songs from “Chicago,” “Dreamgirls” and “Les Miserables.” Only one of those films was actually up for any Oscars this year, leading many to scratch their heads and wonder if they were watching the Tonys and not the Oscars. On the plus side, after Seth MacFarlane’s masterful bombing throughout the evening, no one seemed to mind that Russell Crowe still isn’t a great singer. (Kevin Winter / Getty Images)

10/19

Mark Wahlberg agreeing to act alongside a potty-mouthed CGI teddy bear in the comedy film, “Ted”: smart move. Mark Wahlberg agreeing to appear alongside a CGI teddy bear while presenting Oscars: bad move, bad bad move. (Robyn Beck / AFPGetty Images)

11/19

Oscar statisticians had their minds blown when the sound editing category yielded a tie. (It has happened only five times in Oscar history). Sound editors for “Zero Dark Thirty,” right, and “Skyfall” went on stage to get their awards, and showed that in order to be really successful in the sound editing community, one’s hair must be long and blond. (EPA / Getty Images)

12/19

Potentially creepiest opening to an acceptance speech ever: Anne Hathaway accepting the award for supporting actress and whispering to the gold man, “It came true.” An innocent girl’s Hollywood dream finally achieved or the final result of a disturbing act of black magic and witchcraft? You decide. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

13/19

Not everything in the Oscar ceremony was an uncomfortable mess. Adele brought the charm and power she’s displayed so many times at the Grammys to the Oscars and owned the room for her performance of the nominated song “Skyfall.” (Christopher Polk / Getty Images)

14/19

During her presenting of the Oscar for production design, Kristen Stewart managed to make the entire audience feel like they were the parents of a surly and troubled teenage girl. Rumpled, lethargic and acting as if she really didn’t want to be there, Stewart even made people worry about her with her limp and bruises. (Frazer Harrison / Getty Images)

15/19

Anyone wondering why there were so many tributes to “Chicago” in the Oscar ceremony need look no further than the end credits of the telecast, which featured the names of producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron, who also produced, you guessed it, “Chicago.” (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

16/19

Strange bit of Hollywood trivia: Charlize Theron and Quentin Tarantino are next-door neighbors. Tarantino admitted as much when he got up to accept his Oscar for best original screenplay. Only question is: Did Charlize realize she was living next to Quentin? (Kevin Winter / Getty Images)

17/19

What do Michelle Obama and William Shatner have in common? They made surprise appearances via remote feed to bookend the ceremony. Shatner appeared from “the future” to chastise MacFarlane at show’s opening and Obama appeared to announce the best picture winner at show’s end. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

18/19

Falling while walking to the stage to collect an Oscar is every nominee’s nightmare, and Jennifer Lawrence played that nightmare out when she won for lead actress. Luckily, Lawrence is exactly the kind of goofy performer to handle the wipeout well. And she did, telling the audience that gave her a standing ovation, “You guys are standing up because you felt bad that I fell, which is embarrassing. This is nuts.” (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

19/19

Ben Affleck already has an Oscar, but the actor-turned-screenwriter-turned-director seemed overwhelmed with emotion during his best picture acceptance speech -- a blathering, heartfelt conclusion to a long ceremony. As cynical as the Oscar show can be at times, it’s always nice when people allow themselves to feel. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

By Dana Ferguson, Los Angeles Times

June 8, 2013 6:30 AM PT

On Tuesday, Wouter Bouvijn left his home in Belgium for his dream trip to Hollywood.

Wednesday morning, the 25-year-old filmmaker from Deinze, a small municipality in East Flanders, sat in the lobby of the JW Marriott in Los Angeles, jet-lagged but eager, preparing for his weekend of events leading up to the Student Academy Award ceremony on Saturday.

“I’m so excited to see what the students here are doing,” Bouvijn said. “It makes me wonder what my work could be like if I had gone to school in the U.S.”

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The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences established the Student Academy Awards in 1972 to “support and encourage excellence in filmmaking at the collegiate level.” This year the academy selected 13 applicants from universities in the United States (including Eusong Lee of California Institute of the Arts in Valencia and David Aristizabal and Jonathan Langager of USC) and three from international universities to receive its awards in Hollywood.

The 16 winners were flown to Los Angeles, put up in the JW Marriott and invited to attend meetings with directors, producers and screenwriters in Hollywood prior to the presentation of gold, silver and bronze medals in five categories (narrative, documentary, animation, alternative and foreign film) at a formal ceremony at the academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills.

A 2012 winner, David Winstone, representing University of Westminster in the United Kingdom, said the opportunity to share ideas with professional filmmakers and other students was the highlight of his Student Academy Award experience.

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“It was really inspiring to get a glimpse of Hollywood, and even more so to feel part of it, even if only for a week,” Winstone said.

The roster of past Student Academy Award winners includes filmmakers such as John Lasseter, Pete Docter, Robert Zemeckis, Trey Parker and Spike Lee. Recipients have gone on to receive 46 Academy Award nominations and eight Academy Awards.

This year’s host, comedian Bob Saget, was also a Student Academy Award winner.

Winning the gold medal in any category qualifies a film to be submitted to the academy to be considered for a grown-up Oscar. Luke Matheny, a former Student Academy Award winner and one of this year’s judges, said his gold medal win as a student was the only reason his short action film “God of Love” went on to win an Oscar in 2011.

An Oscar is beyond Bouvijn’s dreams at this point. He hopes to gain some recognition and return to Belgium to work on his next screenplay.

Elmar Imanov, a 2012 winner in the foreign film category representing his university in Cologne, Germany, went on to win awards at festivals all over the world with his film “The Swing of the Coffin Maker.” Imanov now owns his own production company, something he said he would not have been able to accomplish without his first win in Hollywood.

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“It brings a lot of publicity and prestige,” Imanov said. “Everybody knows what the Oscars are, even people who are not affiliated with films.”

Bouvijn will find out Saturday which medal his film “Tweesprong” (Crossroads) will take home. The film tells of a young man’s struggle to decide whether he should be tested for the genetic disease that killed his father.

Bouvijn said he will be excited no matter which medal he receives. Family and friends at home will be cheering him on too, he said.

“In Belgium it’s a small country, so it’s not hard to stick your head out and be noticed,” Bouvijn said. He added casually: “The president is waiting for a call when we know more and we find out what I won.”

The 40th Student Academy Awards ceremony on Saturday is free and open to the public, but advance tickets are required. Tickets are available online at https://www.oscars.org or in person at the academy box office.

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Student Academy Award Ceremony

When: Saturday 7:30 p.m.

Where: The Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater, 8949 Wilshire Blvd., Beverly Hills

Admission: Free but advance tickets required

Info: https://www.oscars.org or (310) 247-3600

dana.ferguson@latimes.com