Billings Central’s Film, Editing, and Design class is preparing to begin shooting for one of their major films this year, called Man-Bat. Under teacher Shane Fairbanks’ direction, the class has been spending time reading the script and discussing roles, settings, props, and other important factors. Man-Bat, one of this year’s annual feature films, was written by seniors Matthew Rah and Jacob Burmeister as a comedic twist on a classic superhero story. Both writers are excited about seeing their ideas come to life on the big screen this spring.
When asked about where the inspiration for the film came from, Burmeister shared that “last year for the semester final, Seth Benge and Logan Hughes….pitched the original concept of Man-Bat.” Burmeister and Rah immediately liked the pitch and decided to develop the idea for this year’s project.
However, it takes more than a good storyline to transform an idea into a film and, as these two writers have discovered, there is a lot that goes into creating a quality motion picture. Rah pointed out the importance of lighting while filming, saying it’s the “little things that really help sell it, [and] if you look at the difference between a big feature film and most student films, you can tell immediately which one is which, just based off of lighting.”
Because the film is a comedy, Rah shared his wish to make people laugh, saying “I want people to watch it in the theater and enjoy it, not just because it’s a student film that their friends are in but because they actually think it’s good.” With the addition of physical stunts and amazing costumes, these young film writers will likely achieve their goal of creating both a funny and successful film.
You can look forward to seeing the Man-Bat Premiere, along with other film class projects, this spring at the Babcock Theatre on May 8th.
