Vanguard seniors make the grade and a film

Today could not come too soon for Adam Genzink and Sunny Peabody.

The two Vanguard University seniors are eagerly awaiting thepremiere

of a short film they directed and produced for Genzink’s senior project.

The eight-and-a-half minute silent film, “A Hero’s Heart”, will debut

tonight at the campus’ Lyceum Theater. What the audience won’t see

however, are the blood, sweat and tears that went into making the film on

a tight deadline and an even tighter budget.

What they will see is a poignant story about a boy trying to honor his

dying grandfather by getting his war medals back from a pawn shop.

Genzink and Peabody said they wanted to create a story with substance

that would resonate among all generations.

“We thought it was a good wholesome story,” Peabody said. “And it

speaks to honoring our parents and grandparents. It’s a sentimental thank

you.”

The two collaborated last year on Peabody’s senior project -- Peabody,

24, is completing two majors. For his project, Genzink, 22, wanted to

shoot a 35-millimeter film so he could enter it in the Academy of Motion

Pictures Student Award Category.

The two say they complement each other -- Genzink is the technical guy

who photographed the film. Peabody is the visionary who directed it.

The tight deadline was imposed by the contest and by Genzink

volunteering the film to be edited by a post-production class on campus.

Even though the film was produced on a low-end scale, it went through the

same process as a blockbuster film would, Genzink said.

The film was shot in two-and-a-half days at various Orange County

locales. It’s based on a story written by one of Genzink’s’ professors.

They chose not to include any dialogue to make the film more compelling,

Genzink said. That meant they didn’t record any sound on the set and had

to recreate it instead in the post-production process.

They bankrolled most of the film on Genzink’s credit cards.

“I wasn’t too concerned, but it was a risk,” Genzink said. “But it was

worth it to me because I got the opportunity to shoot on 35.”

There were technical challenges as well.

“Never having directed children before, I learned it’s a whole world

in its own,” Peabody said. “You have to reach back to what it was like

yourself to be a kid.”

They presented a preliminary version of the film to fellow students

and professors and received mostly positive results.

Tonight, hopefully, will inspire the same feedback, Genzink said.

“We spent a lot of time on this project -- more than most projects I

do,” Genzink said. “I’m really excited to finally let people know what

I’ve been spending time on. Deep down I want people to think it’s the

best thing ever.”

The two budding filmmakers said they hope to collaborate again in the

future as they go their separate ways after graduation -- Peabody is

heading to L.A. to intern with a film development/production company and

Genzink will look for work doing film lighting.

FYI

“A Hero’s Heart” will premiere tonight at 7 p.m. at the Lyceum Theater

at Vanguard University.