Tony Lau

Tony LauUWindsor professor Tony Lau produced an ad that has won recognition from the Canadian Society of Cinematographers.

Grad comes out on top at national film awards gala

Communication, Media and Film graduate Matt Bendo (BA 2014) was recognized by the Canadian Society of Cinematographers with the 2017 award for Best Cinematography in the category of Branded/Corporate/Educational Cinematography.

Bendo received the honour April 1 in Toronto at the society’s 60th annual awards gala for his work on Storm, an ad for custom Lamborghini exhausts created by YST and Armytrix.

His former University of Windsor instructor, Tony Lau, produced the advertisement through his company, Film Loft Productions, with cinematography by Bendo.

Tony Lau with students and other crew membersProfessor Tony Lau, producer of the Telefilm-funded feature “Stand Up Man,” consults a member of the crew during a shoot in Dillon Hall last week.

Professor sharing film production experience with students

Film professor Tony Lau has engaged students in the production of a feature film, currently shooting in locations across Windsor.

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Student film follows boxer’s transition from amateur to professional

Film student Samuel Pollock was uncertain when his classmate Matt Bendo first pitched the idea of making a documentary about Canadian boxer Justin Hocko.

But after meeting Hocko, says Pollock, he realized: “This is a story that has to be told.”

The two third-year communications majors started work on the project and watched it grow into something much bigger than they originally thought. Their 30-minute documentary, Rise of a Champion: The Justin Hocko Story, will enjoy a test screening Saturday, January 19, at Lakeshore Cinemas.

Communications grads wearing red for women in the film industry

Bright red lipstick is the first thing you would notice about Daniella Bumbacco and Catrina Franzoi while they are on set working as LadyMeta Movement, the production company the two UWindsor communications, media, and film grads started over a year ago.

“The first rule of LadyMeta is, at all times red lipstick must be worn on set,” said Franzoi. “We started it on our first set in 2011 and have kept it going, almost like our identifier.”

The pair has found that running their own company gives them the power to maintain artistic freedom.

Prof's potentially controversial documentary to screen at film festival

If the role of a documentary filmmaker is to focus the lens on provocative and potentially incendiary subject matter, then Kim Nelson perfectly fits the part.

However, rather than imposing her own personal opinions on the controversial topics of immigration and multicultural assimilation in Germany, she takes a back seat in her film Berliner, allowing instead for the characters’ own personal stories to define the fundamental conflict there.

Filmmaker headed to Reel Asian festival

After getting several rejection letters from festival organizers, Tony Lau was beginning to second guess his ability as a filmmaker.

“As an artist, you work so hard to make a film and you want it to have an audience,” said Lau, a sessional instructor in Communications, Media and Film and director of a short documentary called Left Behind Woman. “You don’t just want your friends and family watching it. You want to bring awareness to your topic.”

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