I’ll Be There—an avant-garde short film written, directed and scored by CIA senior Josh Willits—focuses on themes of grief and acceptance through the lens of a masked character experiencing loss. It follows these themes through three characters as they experience loss in their own ways.

I’ll Be There premieres at 9pm Tuesday, September 29 at the Mayfield Road Drive-In Theatre (12100 Mayfield Road, Munson Township). Admission is free to this one-night-only screening.

Willits, who's studying Sculpture + Expanded Media and Printmaking at CIA, created masks, props and costumes using various methods, from 3D printing to sewing to papier-mâché.

The film was shot over the course of four days at three different locations including Hiram, Ohio, and East Harbor State Park in Lakeside-Marblehead, Ohio. Characters in the short film are played by Willits as well as CIA Animation students Grant DeSart and Sabi Nagiyev.

I'll Be There was created through the Creativity Works program, which is made possible by the generous support of the Fenn Educational Fund and the G.R. Lincoln Family Foundation. Creativity Works is a self-initiated internship program with the goal of supporting a student's professional development. Participating students create proposals that align with their long-term professional goals.

Image: Film still from I'll Be There.

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