Ithaca Student Wins Festival For Film Shot With Cell Phone

An Ithaca college junior who filmed a 30-second movie using a cell phone camera has won first place at the first annual CellFlix Festival. Mike Potter, a triple major from Bloomfield, CO was one of 178 entrants in the festival.

Potter won $5,000 for his film, titled "Cheat," a comedy involving an endearing interaction between his grandparents. "When I heard that I had won the competition, I was really excited," says Potter. "I put a lot of thought and hard work into my piece, so it was great to have that recognized. I thought the diversity and the quality of the entries made the festival a real success. It certainly made winning that much more of an honor. The best part for me was telling my grandparents."

Potter says the idea for the film came from sitting at dinner with his grandparents. "I saw something in their interactions, how much fun they have together, that was so powerful that I knew it would jump out in something as quick as a 30-second piece, even if it was made on a cell phone. Actually, especially if it was made on a cell phone. My hope was that if I had fun with it, other people would, and that if my grandparents could make me laugh, they could make other people laugh."

The winning film "Cheat" can be viewed here.

Additionally, the other films in the running can be viewed here.