University Heights (2004)

If I were born 20 years earlier, I'd be Scott Beck. Beck, the writer/director of the very successful microbudget film University Heights formed Bluebox Limited to produce and distribute his work along with fellow Iowan college buddy and film partner Bryan Woods.

I envy Beck's place in the cinematic time line. When I was his age, I was dying to make movies, but the technology was not there to make it available to the average person. So I had to wait. And while I waited for technology to catch up to my dreams, I got married, had kids and got a real job. All of these things are wonderful, but limit my ability to pursue my dreams because of the lack of free time. Appropriately, film making now comes in fourth, behind God, family and the job. So, I do what I can, when I can.

College student Beck, on the other hand, is blessed with immense talent and a DVX100 camera. He has made a ton of films and grew as a filmmaker with each project. The culmination of his efforts is a deep and multi-layered story in the feature University Heights.

Heights is a character piece that brings numerous characters on a college campus together in interweaving and intertwining story lines that converge into a very satisfying climax.

Scott Beck

The main characters include Grant, a semi-stoner college youth on the rebound and Katie, his new love interest who disapproves of his choices. There's Jake, a teacher teetering on severe depression who has struggled with relationships his whole life and now wonders about his own sexuality. There's Lou and his hapless buddy who warm their lives through hate and distrust. And there's Tom, a professor of ethics who's past life shows he did not live what he taught. The unexpected loss of his wife and a re-evaluation of his own life has straightened his path, but his past still haunts him.

This is the complexity of a story written by a 19-year old. If I was envious, I'd hate Beck, but he's too talented for that. :)

Heights is an impressive film made by an impressive team using all volunteers and a shoestring budget. The cast is very solid, especially considering its size. Beck is lucky to have access to so many resources with free time... thank you college! Use it before you lose it... it only gets harder from here.

I should also note that Beck and Woods were also finalist in the last Project Greenlight competition, ending up in the top 50 out of thousands of entries. These guys will make their mark in the industry, one way or another.

University Heights is a wonderful achievement for these young filmmakers. You can read more about this film and others, including the thriller Her Summer and the Neo-Western The Bride Wore Blood at their Bluebox Limited website. Since I bought all three films, I look forward to seeing the next two and will let you know my thoughts here.

Keep an eye out for these guys... they'll end up with a movie showing at a theater near you before you know it.