And the winner is...FSU's Film School, which claims its 25th Student Emmy

With the latest Hollywood success of its alumni, the Florida State University College of Motion Picture Arts has burnished its reputation as one of the nation’s leaders in film education.

A short film cowritten and directed by recent Film School graduate Ken J. Adachi and produced by former classmate Stephen Bell was a winner in the Comedy category at the 31st Annual College Television Awards, or “Student Emmys,” held recently in Hollywood, Calif. “Picture Day” won an Emmy for third place, ranking it as one of the three best student comedies in the nation.

The black-tie awards gala is hosted each year by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.

“We are always honored to receive a national recognition from the Academy, but this one is pretty special,” said Frank Patterson, dean of the College of Motion Picture Arts. “For our students to have won 25 Student Emmys in fewer than 20 years in competition is a remarkable feat and a testament to the hard work of our faculty.”

“Picture Day” was the MFA thesis film for cowriter/director Adachi, who earned his master’s degree from Florida State in 2009 (as did Bell). The 17-minute film, shot in March 2009 at Tallahassee’s Sail High School, tells the humorous tale of high school freshman Miles Dufort (portrayed by real-life high school student Benjamin J. Papac), who will risk everything to take a perfect school picture and avoid the humiliation of previous years’ school photos.

Adachi explained that his own childhood provided much of the inspiration for the film’s storyline.

“I was a chubby and awkward child sporting a bowl cut for most of my youth,” he said. “There is a priceless picture of me in third grade, trying my hardest to smile and failing, and it stands on my grandparents’ mantel to this very day.

“I like to believe that I’m not alone and everyone has a picture like this in their past,” he said. “’Picture Day’ was a chance to tell a story that I felt was relatable and also maintained my voice and offbeat humor.”

As Patterson pointed out, this is the 25th time in just under two decades that current or recently graduated students of The Film School have been awarded a Student Emmy. In 2003, the school also became the first in the history of the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences to place first, second and third in the Comedy category, and in 2004 it was the first to win five Student Emmys in a single year.

With its College Television Awards, the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences seeks to spotlight the role of the producer in the filmmaking process, though all the major players, including the director, are honored. After the gala awards ceremony each spring, the Academy screens the winning films for industry bigwigs, film students and faculty, as well as the general public. Along with an all-expenses paid trip to Los Angeles, each winner receives a cash prize, a product grant for film stock, mentoring from television professionals, and the opportunity to pitch his or her work to a development executive.

Calling the Student Emmy “an amazing honor,” Adachi credited the education he received at Florida State for the film’s success.

“We owe our biggest thanks to The Film School for providing us with the support and guidance to produce the film,” he said. “Even though that cushion does not exist in the real world, I feel that my education has prepared me for my goal to produce/direct a low-budget feature in the near future. This goal would seem unattainable without the experiences and friendships gained from my time in the program.”