Last cache: 18-09-2026 12:48:56
Applications for Spring and Fall 2027 are now open. Apply today!
September 17, 2026
![Mike Butz headshot.]()
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 17, 2026
Josh Willits, a senior in Sculpture + Expanded Media and Printmaking at Cleveland Institute of Art, wrote, directed and scored I’ll Be There, an avant-garde short film that will show for one night only at the Mayfield Road Drive-In Theatre.
I’ll Be There focuses on themes of grief and acceptance through the lens of a masked character experiencing loss. The film follows these themes through three characters as they experience loss in their own ways.
“As a chronically ill artist, I feel a degree of grief for the healthy body that I will never have,” Willits says. “It is through that lens that I created this film.”
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.
“We were happy to help Josh with his short film and look forward to seeing great things from him in the future,” says John Knepp, president at Cooperative Theatres Inc., the booking and buying agent for Mayfield Road Drive-In Theatre.
Willits created masks, props and costumes using various methods, from 3D printing to sewing to papier-mâché. I’ll Be There was filmed 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.
Contacts
Cleveland Institute of Art
Michael C. Butz, Director of College Communications + External Relations
mcbutz@cia.edu / 216.421.7404
Michael C. Butz, Director of College Communications + External Relations
mcbutz@cia.edu / 216.421.7404
Cleveland Institute of Art
The Cleveland Institute of Art is a private, nonprofit college of art and design that has been the training ground for countless students who have gone on to make important contributions to the fields of creativity and innovation since it opened in 1882 as the Western Reserve School of Design for Women. Its students have designed internationally recognized products, their artwork has been exhibited in major museums and private collections around the world, and their entertainment media has been enjoyed by audiences and game players for generations. It enrolls about 550 students nationally and internationally and has a faculty of about 100 full-time and adjunct members, all of whom are practicing artists, designers and scholars.
Related Articles
Cleveland Institute of Art Cinematheque hosts BAFTA-winning actor Will Poulter and other filmmakers for Union County advance screening, in-person Q&A
July 22, 2026The Cleveland advance screening of "Union County" takes place at 6:45pm Friday, August 7 at the Cinematheque; Q&A also includes writer-director Adam Meeks and co-star Annette Deao
‘It is for everybody’: New director of Cleveland Cinematheque says every film fan will find something to love
July 5, 2026In an interview with 3News, newly hired Cleveland Cinematheque director David Huffman explained his approach to curation and his future plans for the movie house.
‘Bitchy Vegan Homo’ is the new director of Cleveland Institute of Art Cinematheque
May 22, 2026‘Bitchy Vegan Homo’ is the new director of Cleveland Institute of Art Cinematheque