A series of BYU connections in Hollywood yields extraordinary opportunity Every Christmas season since 2006, The Killers have released a new single. In tune with the season of giving, the proceeds from sales go entirely to charity. This year, Killers frontman Brandon Flowers went to personal friend, BYU alum and director of Napoleon Dynamite Jared Hess to produce a music video to go with the song. Hess pointed Flowers to BYU, suggesting students could create it. Despite a window of just three weeks to plan, shoot and edit a live action animation video, BYU animation program director Kelly Loosli couldn’t pass up the opportunity. “With the high-profile nature of the project and the value that it would bring to students, plus the chance to participate in raising money for charity, we just couldn't pass this up,” Loosli said. Loosli turned to his first-year animation students who had been in the program for less than a semester, and even some pre-major students, to work on the video. He couldn’t afford to pull junior and senior students away from other large group films, so it was the youngsters who found themselves with the chance to work on a music video for a platinum-record rock band. “Working on a Killers music video was pretty surreal, especially because the opportunity came in my first semester,” said BYU animation student Josh Poulsen. “It was a lot of work, and we put in some crazy-late hours. It was the funnest and most enthusiastic group I’ve ever worked with, and the process was exhausting.” The majority of man-hours for the production of the video took place in Provo. BYU media arts and animation students worked tirelessly on the postproduction. It was a meticulous process for the students to comb over video, transforming filmed elements into animated elements and transitioning within the video from live action to animation. “Seeing the end product, it was really rewarding,” said BYU film student Cassie Hiatt. “When we were in the process, we thought it was something that was never going to end. It really took a lot of work and managing our time well. But now that it’s done, it’s awesome to look back at and think ‘Wow we did that.’” Before the project got to the BYU campus, the actual filming took place in Los Angeles. The team had one day to shoot the video, and three hours with the lead character, Owen Wilson. Wilson’s involvement in the project came because of a relationship with Flowers. Loosli needed to pull together a crew to shoot the video in LA quickly. He started by calling a few former students and some of his former classmates who are now working in the industry. Those calls immediately paid off and the crew came together quicker than expected, thanks to the BYU connections. All of the BYU students, professors and alums donated their time on the project. Even the record label, iTunes, the band and the actors donated their time and resources, meaning 100 percent of the proceeds from sales of the single go to (RED), a charity founded by Bono which is supported by numerous musicians and works to fight against AIDS in Africa. The cinematographer on the project was BYU alum Bengt Jonsson. A number of BYU faculty were involved: Mike Warner and Seth Holladay did visual effects; Cynthia Hogan was heavily involved in the animation; and Brent Adams, Tom Lefler and Kyle Stapley helped manage the project and resources. Key students involved in the project were Hiatt, Poulsen, Nick Dixon, Jordan Hunter, John Jackson and Stephanie Tse. Source: BYU News Back to Magazine Home

The life of popular minister Peter Marshall is dramatized in “A Man Called Peter,” which will be featured at a one-time screening at Brigham Young University’s Harold B. Lee Library auditorium on Friday, Dec. 6, at 7 p.m.

Brigham Young University’s Jazz Voices will perform its fourth annual “Joyful Noise” concert Wednesday, Dec. 4, at 7:30 p.m. in the Madsen Recital Hall.

A BYU student is using Kickstarter as a way to raise money for his documentary, which is about reaching his goal to find love and get engaged in six months.

Early registration is available and encouraged

December 2013 Arts Calendar Tickets are available at the Fine Arts Ticket Office, (801) 422-2981,byuarts.com/tickets. 3 — BYU’s University Orchestra and University Strings will perform at 7:30 p.m. in the de Jong Concert Hall. 3 — A String Chamber Night will be held at 7:30 p.m. in room 313 of the University Parkway Center. The center is located at 1650 N. University Ave., Provo. Admission is free. 4 — The BYU Symphony Orchestra will perform at 7:30 p.m. in the de Jong Concert Hall. 4 — A Flute Chamber Night will be held at 7:30 p.m. in room 313 of the University Parkway Center. The center is located at 1650 N., Provo. Admission is free. 5 — The BYU Jazz Lab Bands will perform at 7:30 p.m. in the Madsen Recital Hall. Admission is free . 5 — A Brass Chamber Night will be held at 7:30 p.m. in room 313 of the University Parkway Center. The center is located at 1650 N., Provo. Admission is free. 6 — The BYU Songwriter Showcase will be held at 7:30 p.m. in the Madsen Recital Hall. Admission is free. 6-7 — “Christmas Around the World: See the Wonder,” BYU’s popular holiday display of folk dance and music, will take place at 7:30 p.m. in the Marriot Center. There will also be a matinee performance Saturday at 2 p.m. Using a cast of more than 200 talented dancers, singers and musicians in colorful costumes, different cultures unite to give the message of peace on earth and goodwill toward all. Tickets can be purchased at the Marriott Center Ticket Office, (801) 422-BYU1, or at byutickets.com. 6-7 — THIS EVENT IS NEARLY SOLD OUT: The BYU Combined Choirs and BYU Philharmonic present the Celebration of Christmas, an annual event featuring the sounds of the holiday season at 7:30 p.m. in the de Jong Concert Hall. There will also be a matinee performance Saturday at 3 p.m. 7 — “Tuba Christmas” will be performed at 11 a.m. in the Madsen Recital Hall. Admission is free. 7 — The Harp Ensemble will perform at 7:30 p.m. in the Madsen Recital Hall. Admission is free and open to the public. 10 — The BYU Wind Symphony and the BYU Symphonic Band will perform together at 7:30 p.m. in the de Jong Concert Hall. 11 — Conductor Kory Katseanes will lead the BYU Chamber Orchestra in a performance in the de Jong Concert Hall at 7:30 p.m. 12 — BYU’s non-auditioned choir, the University Chorale, will perform at 7:30 p.m. in the de Jong Concert Hall. All month at the Museum of Art: “Sacred Gifts: The Religious Art of Carl Bloch, Heinrich Hofmann and Frans Schwartz.” Nov. 15, 2013, through May 10, 2014. “Simpler, Brighter, Stronger: Southwestern Art and Early Modernism, 1910-1960.” through May 2014. “e.g. Monika Bravo: Landscape of Belief.” through March 15, 2014. “Shaping America: Selected Works from the Permanent Collection of American Art.” through March 2018. “People in a Hard Land: Iconic Images of Life in the Southwest” through Dec. 28, 2013. “Golden Days: California Art and Artists from the Edenhurst Collection.” Dec. 13, 2013, through Aug. 14, 2014. Admission to all exhibits is free. Hours are Monday through Wednesday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Thursday and Friday, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.; and Saturday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Closed Sunday. For more information, visit moa.byu.edu. Source: BYU News

When Kelsey Nixon came to BYU in Fall of 2003, she had no idea that her studies would lead to a roller coaster ride through culinary school, national television appearances, an upcoming cookbook and a cooking show of her own.

The Utah District Auditions of the 2013-14 Metropolitan Opera National Council yielded four winners on November 16, all of which were BYU students or BYU alumni. The competition was held on the University of Utah campus in Salt Lake City and featured 18 singers.

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Multi Academy Award winning actress Bette Davis stars in 'The Letter,' the 1940 Warner Bros. film directed by William Wyler and adapted from Somerset Maugham's play. It will be shown at the Harold B. Lee Library auditorium Friday (Nov. 22) at 7 p.m. (doors open at 6 p.m.).

Juniors, Sophomores and Freshman! Are you interested in a career in business, NGOs, or government? Come learn about an industry that will give you experience in all of these areas and help you mark out a future career path: Management Consulting Info Session Wed, Nov. 20, 3:00-3:45 PM Brimhall Atrium

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