Pursuing the Art of Post-Production
Some students wait a while -鈥� say, until their freshman year or beyond 鈥�- to determine where the professional winds may be blowing. But that鈥檚 not Aria Haley (class of 鈥�22). The Las Vegas native caught the filmmaking bug early. Middle school early.
鈥淚鈥檝e been creating clips, videos and stupid movies since I was in eighth grade,鈥� she says. 鈥淭he fact that I had made something that triggered some sort of emotional reaction was compelling to me. By the time I got to high school, my film classes were packed with projects to accomplish.鈥� She graduated with advanced honors and is a recent Fletcher Jones Scholarship recipient.
鈥淚 realized that what really appealed me was post-production,鈥� she says. 鈥淭he idea of putting the puzzle together — cutting the film and watching it take shape right in front of you 鈥� couldn鈥檛 be more satisfying.鈥�
In post-production, locating the balance between the technical and the aesthetic is essential, she says: 鈥淵ou have to be technical in order to find the aesthetic. There is an art within editing but you have to identify what works best for the mood you want to set for your film.鈥�
Having worked on film sets, Aria has applied that experience to assisting her film friends deliver some of their cinematography projects. 鈥淲e all collaborate and help each other out, and we tend to have specific roles for each other’s films,鈥� she says. 鈥淎nd acting as the director/cinematographer for my project, there鈥檚 nothing like having an entire crew.鈥�
Aria credits Sam Kim, her stage and grip lighting professor, for serving as her film program mentor 鈥� 鈥渢he first to teach me about all the basics of how to be/act on a set.鈥�
Filmmakers are, of course, also film buffs, and the common denominator for Aria is a work鈥檚 ability to achieve what she calls 鈥渢hat ah ha!鈥� moment, 鈥渨here you finally have a full understanding of how the plot happened.鈥� Perhaps not surprisingly, in the pantheon of directors, she ranks Alfred Hitchcock first, a place he has occupied, for her, since she first developed an appreciation for the art form.
鈥淚鈥檓 most influenced by stories with depth,鈥� she says. 鈥淲here Hitchcock, the master of suspense, is concerned, I鈥檓 always awe-struck.鈥� She also has a soft spot for 鈥淭he Haunting of Hill House鈥� on Netflix and Robert Zemeckis鈥檚 鈥淏ack to the Future.鈥�
Then again, perhaps it鈥檚 not surprising that this one-time middle school auteur is drawn to the Zemeckis film, the plot of which returns Michael J. Fox to, yes, high school.