Student and Alumni Achievement

Our students and alumni are presenting their work at film festivals and winning in juried competitions.

Film at Mason students and alumni are achieving recognition on a national level, from Student Academy Awards to regional Emmys.

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  Raul Rosado '12 is a Senior Producer/Writer for Prince William County Schools, and was recognized in 2024 by The National Capital Chesapeake Bay Chapter of The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences with an Emmy award for his video production work with the school division. While working at PWCS, he collaborated as a producer, editor, and videographer on internationally live broadcast educational programs in collaboration with CBS4 Denver, Canal 44 Noticias México, and the USDA Forest Service on topics such as Caves, Grasslands, Freshwater, Woodsy the Owl, and Smoky Bear.

• Kyle Finnegan's documentary short, MSG: Mysterious Savory Grains, is now streaming on PBS (2024). Kyle, a 2017 alumnus and 2022-2023 Young Alumni Commissioning Project winner, said "I've always admired PBS' commitment to distributing short form documentaries and it's been a dream of mine to add to that library. Major shoutout to Maryland Public Television for working with us to make this happen!" Read his story.

• Aaliyah-Janay Williams ’21 received a grant from The Create Fund for Supporting Invisible Illness, an award promoting artists who create visual stories and representations that challenge the stigma around mental health. In addition, she wrote the screenplay for Tale of Tarot, a romantic short film following two sisters who try to change their prophesied future. The film is available to watch on Amazon.

• Jada Salter '20 won a Non-Fiction Short Form Capital Emmy for her documentary, Behind the Notes. Made as part of her capstone project, the film follows the life and legacy of Jada’s grandfather Bill Salter, a three-time Grammy Award-winning songwriter, composer, and musician for songs including "Just the Two of Us." Jada’s project went viral on social media when she shared a video of her grandfather’s story. Currently, she’s making a feature documentary inspired by her short. To support this work, Jada won funding from George Mason University's College of Visual and Performing Arts Young Alumni Commissioning Project.

• Mohammed Saffouri '20 won a Capital Emmy for his documentary film The First from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. Saffouri’s film follows 24-year-old Libyan American Abrar Omeish as she campaigns for a seat on the Fairfax County School Board. Omeish was elected to the school board in November 2019, becoming one of Virginia’s youngest elected officials and the first Muslim woman to win a seat on the board.  
• Alicia Rodriguez '19 was awarded the highly competitive and prestigious Princess Grace Scholarship Award for her thesis experimental documentary film A Diasporic Boricua.
• Erblin Nushi '18 was a finalist for the Student Academy Award for his senior thesis film Bini—the only undergraduate in the field of finalists.
• Kauri George '18 received a Capital Emmy for her senior film, Close Call, in the short form fiction category, while Bini won the Capital Emmy in the long form fiction category.