Hanh Nguyen's Leaving My Mark: A Portrait of Scott Donahue screens Sunday, October 24, at 5 p.m. and again Wednesday, October 27, at 7:15 p.m. as part of the "Bay Area Shorts" collection (running time: 70 min.). Select your preferred date to purchase tickets.

This year marks the 9th Annual San Francisco Documentary Film Festival (aka DocFest), which runs October 14–28 at the Roxie Theater in the Mission District. Among the talented filmmakers premiering their work is Hanh Nguyen (BFA Media Arts 2009), who produced, directed, and edited the short documentary Leaving My Mark: A Portrait of Scott Donahue.

Hanh's documentary is a 12-minute film that addresses the art and philosophy of Scott Donahue, creator of Berkeley Big People, the much-debated public art sculpture that sits atop the footbridge crossing Interstate 80 and is intended to celebrate the city's culture and community.

Leaving My Mark originated as a class project within CCA's undergraduate Media Arts Program, now the Film Program. According to Hanh: “I chose CCA because of its diversity. Most of my inspiration came from my classmates and the hard work they did. Watching a class take their ideas from the first step to the final stage is such an inspiring process."

"Hanh shot Leaving My Mark and started editing the film during her last semester at CCA while in the Advanced Production II course," explained Film chair Rob Epstein. "It's very exciting to see how far she has taken something that began as a student project. The fact that the film is getting such serious festival attention is an enormous achievement. Of course we'll do all we can to help promote these screenings at CCA by putting the announcement on the Film Program website, the CCA page on Facebook, and feature the screenings among the CCA event announcements."

The talented alumna gives due credit: "CCA gave me an opportunity to work with some of the most talented people, classmates who are now my collaborators, and faculty members who continue to motivate and inspire me. Rob Epstein has greatly influenced my filmmaking. I was truly able to connect with his teaching and apply it to my work. He's one of the most inspiring filmmakers. My education at CCA prepared me with the concept and the technical skills to be able to stand out in this industry. I feel well versed in my practice and prepared for my future as a filmmaker."

The inspired filmmaker, also a 2008 All College Honors scholarship recipient for her 4D work, is no stranger to either local or national film festivals; Hanh's The Bush Man (2009), a byproduct from the Film curriculum's Directing course, is a six-minute, high-definition video that earned the 2009 Hollywood East Film Festival Gold Coast Award for outstanding achievement in filmmaking and was screened at the following independent film festivals:

• The San Francisco Independent Film Festival
• Zero Film Festival (Los Angeles), a festival dedicated to U.S. and international screenings of self-financed, zero-budget films
• Hollywood East Film Festival (Danbury, Connecticut)
• Big Sky Documentary Film Festival (Missoula, Montana)

About the San Francisco Documentary Film Festival

Now in its ninth year, the San Francisco Documentary Film Festival (aka DocFest) is celebrated for its extravaganza of unconventional and highly engaging nonfiction films and videos. By its completion this year, the two-week festival will have screened over 60 films that span 12 countries.

Related
Read Media Arts Student Hanh Nguyen Taps into Cutting-Edge Film Festivals, a 2009 feature that includes a clip from The Bush Man.