A short film produced by Texas A&M University’s Virtual Production Institute will make its Texas premiere at the Austin Film Festival on Oct. 31.
The five-minute film, titled "Chase Your Dreams," combines dance, music, and computer-generated environments created using an LED wall. It brings together award-winning filmmakers with faculty and students from across the Texas A&M College of Performance, Visualization and Fine Arts.
Directed by Academy Award winner Brandon Oldenburg and Emmy Award winner Limbert Fabian, the film follows an aspiring dancer from childhood to young adulthood as she pursues a whimsical creature carrying sparkling ballet shoes. Four performers portray the dancer at different ages as the pursuit continues through six environments, including a forest, theatre production, and dance club.
Except for a school scene, all environments were created and filmed on the Virtual Production Institute’s stage at Backlot Studios in Fort Worth. The institute operates three virtual production stages on Texas A&M’s Bryan-College Station and Fort Worth campuses.
Faculty members in the College of Performance, Visualization and Fine Arts led the choreography, performed music, and created visual effects. Riley Emler, a senior earning a minor in the Dance program, plays the young adult version of the dancer.
"It’s a film for all audiences," said Wayne Miller, executive producer and head of production for the institute. "We get to show the world what the Virtual Production Institute can do, and what virtual production as a tool in content creation can achieve."
