Seventh annual doppelganger film festival showcased last Friday

Pauline Villegas, Asst. A&E Editor

Brahmas shined both on screen and off during the seventh annual Doppelganger Film Festival, held in the Diamond Bar High School theater on Friday. The film festival offers a chance for DBHS students to showcase their talents through producing, directing, and starring in their own videos.

Presented as an award show, the festival separates all videos into different categories based on their content. The categories range from best music video to best short film, and feature a variety of students displaying their technique and acting skills.

Some videos were meant to make the crowd laugh, such as senior Leila Johnson’s music video for the popular Backstreet Boys’ song “I Want it That Way.” Other videos took a more serious approach such, as sophomores Marisa Umeh and Megan Hoang’s short film about hydrogenated oils in our food and makeup products titled “In & On,” which went on to win best short film, along with best writing and editing.

Throughout the night, different hosts came on stage to announce the nominees and winners of each category. Small skits were also incorporated throughout the show, which referenced a number of things, from “Star Wars: The Force Awakens”  to the classic TV comedy “Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.”

“Making the video was so much fun. I had an amazing team and they were easy to work with. It only took us a few days to film but communicating my ideas editorially was the big challenge. The final outcome was extremely satisfying,” sophomore Priscilla Gomez said.

Gomez directed a music video to the song  “Gone” by Twenty-one Pilots, winning the award for the best music video.

Other winners include best commercial, “Geico” by Dustin Park; best theatrical trailer, “Blacksmith” by Alexander Zhao; best out-of-the-box film, “Damaged” by Joshua June; best actress, Mirada Alvarado for her work in “Damaged and Shed of Red;” and best actor was Leo Lervold for “Gone.” Joshua June was awarded best director for his work in “Damaged and Shed of Red.”