The Annual Mason Film Festival

The 2024 Mason Film Festival will be April 22 - April 27, 2024. Scroll down to read more information and register for each day's events.

About the Mason Film Festival

The annual Mason Film Festival at George Mason University features the work of our Film and Video Studies (FAVS) program students.

Our event is free and open to the public, held in the Johnson Center Cinema. We invite students to bring their family and friends, and encourage representatives of local companies and organizations, as well as community members to attend.

This year's schedule begins on April 22 with screenings for a variety of student films, including documentaries, community-engaged learning projects, and music videos. On Tuesday, April 23, rising Seniors in FAVS 498 Development for Senior Project present their thesis film projects for monetary prizes. Following, on Wednesday, April 24, students in FAVS 497 Senior Film Practicum, display their reels in the Johnson Center Cinema lobby and participate in a conversation with their professors. On Saturday, April 27, our Senior Showcase wraps up the Festival with an all day event with students screening their films in the Cinema from FAVS 499 Senior Project. 

Following the Showcase, we have an Awards Ceremony. Here we announce awards for Academic Achievement and Capstone Excellence.  We also present Technical and Showcase Awards from juries comprised of faculty, Film at Mason Advisory Board members, alumni, and industry professionals. The coveted “Best of Fest” award is voted on by the audience.

Registration is required for each day and can be found at the links below. Both Mason Community Members and Non-Mason Members are encouraged to register. We have a separate registration for the Senior Showcase on Saturday. See important information below regarding ticketing.

George Mason University is committed to providing access and reasonable accommodations in its services, programs, and activities. Please make accommodation requests related to a disability by contacting Anjuli Singh, asingh80@gmu.edu, at least one week prior to the event.

We look forward to seeing you at the Mason Film Festival. 

Students, alumni, and family and friends packed the Harris Theatre at our Mason Film Festival and FAVS @ 10 anniversary celebration in 2018.

Professor Steger with his FAVS 499 Senior Project Directors at the 2022 Mason Film Festival.

Ticketing for the Senior Showcase

We anticipate the Senior Showcase on Saturday, April 27 will sell out: please reserve your seats as soon as possible. Note that registering does not guarantee a seat, so arrive early on April 27 to check in.   

The event begins at 3:00pm. Check-in begins around 2:00pm. Once you check in, you will receive a wristband that denotes your ability to enter the JC Cinema for the event. For those who do not register or who arrive after the event begins, we will have an overflow room in the JC Gold Room, where you can watch a livestream of the screenings and Q&A. 

Each 499 directing student whose work is screening during the Senior Showcase will automatically receive 2 wristbands, one for you and one for another person of your choice. 499 directing students whose work is screening do not need to register on Mason 360. You can pick up your wristbands from the Festival check-in table in the JC Cinema lobby on Monday, April 22; Tuesday, April 23; or Wednesday, April 24 during the Festival hours. All other crew members, actors, family members, and friends must register themselves on Mason 360 to have access to the JC Cinema during the event.  

If you are a 499 directing student and you are unsure if your film is screening at the Festival, please contact your 499 professor as soon as possible. 

MFF Color Block 1
Emily Rehr and the 2024 Mason Film Festival poster

Poster Design Winner

Congratulations to our poster design winner, Emily Rehr!

Emily is a senior at George Mason University, graduating with a B.F.A in Graphic Design (spring, class of 2024).  She currently works as a photographer and graphic design assistant with the New Student and Family Programs office and as an assistant trip leader for Outdoor Adventures.  Emily has a background in design and photography and hopes to combine her strengths with her interests in environmentalism and wildlife.  In her spare time she loves to read, rock climb, and hike. She plans to purse design after college, hoping to work amongst local conservation groups or with the National Parks Service. 

Festival Schedule of Events

Below is the tentative schedule of events for the 2024 Mason Film Festival. Continue to check this page for the latest information. Registration will likely open later in February.

Mon. April 22

*Schedule may be subject to change*

 

12:00pm-1:00pm     

FAVS 496 Staged Readings (JC Gold Room) 

 

1:00pm-2:50pm             

FAVS 255 Video Production 

 

3:00pm-4:05pm             

FAVS 399 Music Video Production

Tues. April 23

*Schedule may be subject to change*

 

11:45am-1:25pm   

FAVS 300 Global Horror Film

 

1:30pm-2:45pm

FAVS 375 Fiction Film Directing 

 

3:00pm-4:35pm          

FAVS 475 Advanced Fiction Film Directing

 

4:45pm-5:45pm             

FAVS 498 Pitch Competition

 

Weds. April 24

*Schedule may be subject to change*

 

12:00pm-12:40pm   

FAVS 366 Video Production for Social Change

 

12:45pm-1:15pm           

FAVS 497 Senior Film Practicum Producing Q&A

 

1:30pm-4:45pm                 

FAVS 365 Documentary Filmmaking 

 

5:00pm-5:45pm         

FAVS 497 Senior Film Practicum Q&A (Editing, Sound, Cine capstones) 

*Reels will be played in Cinema Lobby throughout the day.

Sat. April 27

*Schedule may be subject to change*

 

3:00pm-7:15pm      

FAVS 499 Senior Showcase + Independent Study

 

7:15pm-9:00pm    

Awards Ceremony (JC Bistro) 

MFF Color Block 2

Support Scholarships

Each year, Film at Mason awards scholarships to senior students at the Mason Film Festival. These scholarships are made possible through your contributions. Seniors use these scholarships to cover their film production costs.

Whatever the size of your gift, you can make a difference in the lives of our filmmakers. 

QR code for scholarship giving
FAVS 498 Pitch Winners
FAVS 498 Pitch Winners Sarah Heaton and Mauricio Alarcon receive scholarships to use toward production costs for their senior thesis films.
Mason Film Festival Graduates 2023

2023 Graduates receiving their official Film at Mason pins during the Awards Ceremony.

Congratulations to our Award Winners from the 2023 Mason Film Festival

Academic Excellence Award

This award goes to students with the highest GPA with 120 credits at Mason 

Jennifer Vu  

Sabrina Beach  

Tiffany Vu 

Ryan Burke 

Ty Wright

Academic Achievement Award

This award goes to students with the highest GPA with credits transferred to Mason. 

Sarah Strunk 

Daija Sykes

Professional Achievement Award

This award honors outstanding achievements in professional preparation for the field of film and video studies. 

 

Daniel Taylor 

Sophie Potts 

Paul Lee 

Mya Kenton

Service Award

This award recognizes outstanding service to the Film and Video Studies Program. 

Hintsa Mehari 

Capstone Awards

Olivia Cunningham (Producing) 

Cullen Livingstone (Cinematography) 

Sabrina Beach (Editing) 

Tyler Means (Screenwriting) 

Showcase Awards

Best of Fest: "Surrender," Tiffany Vu 

Best Drama: "We're Only Strangers," Jennifer Vu 

Best Comedy: "Side Bi Side," Will Fochtmann 

Best Horror/Thriller: "Oscuro," Wenhao Wang 

Best Fantasy Sci-Fi: "Countdown," Jaiden Williams 

Best Romance/Rom-Com: "Ms. Understanding," Damien Krzesinski 

Best Experimental/Non-Narrative Film: "Jazz," Andrew Opitz 

Story Changes the World: "Transcendent Love," Ty Wright 

Audience Awards

Audience Award Block 1 

Jennifer Vu, "We're Only Strangers" 
 

Audience Award Block 2 

Tiffany Vu, "Surrender"

Technical Awards

Best Producing:  Iana Lee, "Jazz" and Daniel Zaitoun, "We're Only Strangers" 

Best Co-Producing:  Tariq Ismail, "Ms. Understanding" 

Best Editing:  Sabrina Beach, "We're Only Strangers" and Elissa Padula and Paul Lee, "Countdown" 

Best Cinematography:  Jessilee Pollet, "Side Bi Side" 

Best Sound Design: Paul Lee, Justin Tyler Bowers, and Laim Tipler, "Oscuro" 

Best VFX: Julian Pryce, "Ms. Understanding" and Wenhao Wang, "Oscuro" 

Best Color Grading: Sidney Mullins, "Ms. Understanding" and Wenhao Wang and Matthew Baltar, "Oscuro" 

Best Original Score: Martha Molinaro and An Tran, "Surrender" 

Best Costume: Jae Villatoro and Angel Lee, "Invoke" 

Best Make-Up: Jennifer Vu, "Welcome to Grailwood" 

Best Production Design: Mat Ross and Olivia Williams, "We're Only Strangers" and Olivia Williams, "Surrender" 

Pitch Awards

Best Digital Pitch: Sarah Heaton, "She Shot That" 

Best Lookbook: Sarah Heaton, "She Shot That" 

Best Pitch Delivery: Spencer Phillips, "Found and Lost" 

Best Pitch Story: Michael Rivera, "History 101" and Mauricio Alarcon, "La Vida"

Faculty Awards

Outstanding Directing: Tiffany Vu, "Surrender" 

Exceptional Performance: Kayla Stephens, "Countdown"; Kiara Lu, "We're Only Strangers"; Catarina Kim, "Surrender"; Zoe B Winter, "Transcendent Love"; Justin Bowers, "Side Bi Side"; Miju Kim Pascual, "Surrender" 

Exceptional Ensemble Performance: Jennifer Vu, "We're Only Strangers" 

Best Screenplay: Jennifer Vu, "We're Only Strangers" 

Mason Film Festival Students in the JC Cinema 2023

Class of 2023 graduating directors during the FAVS 499 Senior Showcase Q&A.

Thank You to Our Supporters from 2023

Producer ($2,500 and above)

  • Clara and John Kelly 
  • Willy Meaux

Director ($1,000-2,499)

  • Dr. Joy R. Hughes and Mr. Kenneth Lee
  • Kathleen and John Kehoe 
  • Melanie Sams 
  • Paul and Virginia Singh

Screenwriter ($500-999)

  • Dr. Rick Davis and Ms. Julie Thompson 

Leading Role ($250-499)

  • G. Chesler
  • Ms. Melissa J. Houghton 

 

 

Supporting Role ($100-249)

  • Theodore Adams, Red Zeppelin Productions
  • Vicki and John Salmon
  • Mr. Jim Folliard
  • Cynthia and Thomas Judge 
  • Michael and Susan Kehoe 
  • Justin Plakas

Friend (up to $99) 

  • Anonymous 
  • Ryan Braaton
  • Amanda Kraus
  • Shawn Malangyaon
  • Catherine Morse 
  • Stanford Morse
  • Robert and Ida Portland
  • Samantha Sinagra
  • Unified Home Industries, Inc.
  • Lewis and Anne Wright
  • Mrs. Lorriz Anne A. Yi
Location

Parking and Getting to the Cinema

Covered hourly parking is available in the Mason Pond Parking Deck (4500 Aquia Creek Lane, Fairfax, VA 22030), adjacent to the Johnson Center. 

To get to the Johnson Center Cinema: 
-Exit the parking garage on the ground level near the Mason statue. 
-Enter the Johnson Center to the right of the Mason statue. 
-Go down one level to the ground floor. The Cinema is to the left of Starbucks.

Contact Us

For questions or accessibility concerns, email film@gmu.edu.

We hope to see you at the festival!