By: Hannah Paige Michels ~Head Photo Editor~

Xavier’s Digital Innovation Film and Television (DIFT) majors have just wrapped up castings for senior films, but the process has only begun.

While students in other programs write senior thesis papers, DIFT majors script, produce and screen short films as their capstones. Casting for the projects began on Oct. 27 and ran until Nov. 6, with this begin the biggest year yet.

DIFT Program Director Blis DeVault explained that this is the largest senior class the program has seen so far, with a record-breaking 14 student films to screen in late April.

She said that the DIFT senior thesis is different than other programs because students are “making films to be seen, and not just read.”

DeVault also emphasized the importance of the program’s community saying.

“It’s not something you can do by yourself,” DeVault said.

“What’s most interesting is the fact that students throughout the program help each other out with their respective projects, making the experience just as much collaborative as it is creative,” senior DIFT and public relations major Corey Resich said.

Senior Louis DeVito just switched to the major this year. While the transition has been tough, with the community of the major, DeVito said, “I feel like I’ve been doing this for four years.”

While students help with the production of each other’s movies, the pre-production and scriptwriting process is collaborative as well. DeVito painted a picture of people surrounding a long table, discussing each other’s scripts.

“You have an idea and you think it’s unchangeable,” said DeVito, “but then someone throws in their thoughts and twists your idea into something better.”

DeVito said there is a lot of trust involved in the major, especially when casting actors.

While larger programs have just a few films that result from seniors’ final projects, DIFT majors are able to see their’s come to fruition on the night of Senior Screening.

The date is still tentative, but keep an eye out late April for a Friday night under the silver screen.