Film critic and CU Denver faculty member Walter Chaw knows how to get a filmmaker talking about their craft. As a regular contributor to Film Freak Central and with bylines in the New York Times, Washington Post, and Los Angeles Weekly, Chaw has reviewed and interviewed some of the film industry’s greatest films and their makers. When he’s not reviewing films, Chaw teaches and mentors students who are interested in filmmaking. In fall 2023, Chaw, along with fellow film faculty member Andrew Bateman, helped film students launch CU Denver’s filmmaking club. A place where students screen films together, work on original film projects, and even learn from some big-name Hollywood filmmakers.

Thanks to her experience in the club, co-president Marley Tremmel feels as if she and the other members are a year ahead of their film major peers. This last year, the club produced three original films, got to pick the minds of 17 filmmakers actively working in Hollywood, and raised over $14,000 via grants and concession sales.

Club Gives Students Experience They'll Use After College

Along with five other CU Denver students who served as officers on the club’s board last year, Tremmel gained experience planning a budget, writing a grant proposal, and pitching the club’s financial needs to CU Denver’s Student Government Association (SGA). Tremmel says the experience of approaching a committee of people who are not familiar with the intricacies (and expenses) involved in making a film was a beneficial exercise—experience she’ll draw upon as she pursues her own career in filmmaking. She’ll also draw upon the experience of working collaboratively with a group of people who aren’t showing up to “get a good grade or something like that,” but who are engaged because they genuinely love making films.

While CU Denver has an impressive film cage with enough equipment to keep its film majors on set during their classes and projects, the club realized they needed to purchase their own gear for projects outside of the classroom. They were able to do this thanks to the funding SGA granted them, along with a grant from CU Denver and the College of Arts & Media (CAM), and an external grant from the Colorado Office of Film, Television and Media.

The group worked on three film projects over the academic year. In the fall, the club called for scripts and received six from writers who read their submissions aloud at a meeting. After members offered feedback, the writers revised their scripts and read them again at a subsequent meeting. Members then voted on which scripts they wanted to turn into films. Over the course of the year, the group produced two 10-minute films and one 20-minute film.  One of the projects, a horror film titled “Analog” received a CU Denver EURēCA! grant. The students involved presented the film at CU Denver’s annual Research and Creative Activities Symposium in April 2024.

Learning From Filmmakers Active in Hollywood

If the filmmaking projects didn’t keep them busy enough, the students also organized film screenings of classic and contemporary work. They sold popcorn and other snacks at these screenings to raise more funds. Chaw wanted the students to experience a 360-degree view of the film industry, so members were also tasked with cleaning the campus theater after the screenings.

Chaw got to know the students in the club and their respective film-making interests, then he pulled from his connections to set up interviews with relevant filmmakers. The filmmakers joined them over Zoom to discuss the behind-the-scenes details of their processes. Over the year, the club interacted with screenwriters, producers, directors, costume designers, and actors currently working in Hollywood.

The interviews were conducted by the students themselves. Drawing on his background, Chaw coached the students on how to prepare for an interview. He gave pointers on what kind of research to do and how to make the most of limited time with busy people. The students had to watch as many films as they could connected to the person they were interviewing while drawing on the lessons they were learning in class about what they were seeing on screen. Interviewers were required to submit their questions to Chaw, who vetted them for technicality and relevancy to the particular filmmaker.

Since being a journalist has taught him the importance of making and maintaining relationships, Chaw passed on this key point to the students: Hollywood is a “shockingly small community.” And that means “if you make a good impression, they’ll talk among themselves”—conversations that can either make or break a career. Which is why Chaw emphasized the need for the students to follow up and communicate their appreciation after the interview is over. “It’s just networking 101,” Chaw says casually.

The students certainly benefitted from Chaw’s networking ability. Over the year, they enjoyed Zoom interviews with Natasha Lyonne, Bomani Story, John Adams and Zelda Adams (Adams Family), Jason DeMarco, Allison Anders, Christine Ng, Kirsten Smith, Stacey Battat, Peter Ramsey, Rian Johnson, Lilly Wachowski, Barbara Crampton, Jim Cummings, and Johnnie Burn. Thanks to the funds they raised, the club was also able to have writer/director David Lowry (The Green Knight and A Ghost Story, among others) and director Lucky McKee (May and Poker Face, among others) spend time with the group in person.

In addition to all the practical and logistical things they learned through managing the club, Tremmel recalls observing as Lowry set up a scene for the group and directing student volunteers to act it out. She was “so inspired” by talking to so many “great writers and directors” and looks forward to getting her feet wet in the film industry.