Every concert is usually filled with wonderful music played by talented musicians. Do you ever wonder where that music actually comes from, and who writes it?

Colton McCracken / Equinox Staff

Oftentimes, you never will have the chance to meet the composer. However, on Friday, Dec. 8, each and every piece performed in the concert that night was composed by someone who was in attendance of the Student Composer showcase.

The composition students of Dr. Heather Gilligan, Christopher Swist and Dr. Andrew Smith put on a diverse performance.

Sophomore music composition and vocal performance major Tyler Martin opened up the show with his piece titled “Alleluia.” This was his first piece in a composition recital, and he said opening the show was a little nerve wracking, but he thought it went very well overall.

Martin said the inspiration behind “Alleluia” was to blend old styles of music with more contemporary styles. “I sing a lot of old music in my voice lessons and ensembles and I really like it,” Martin said. “But I also really like modern and contemporary stuff, so I thought that I would try to combine them both, by using melody that sounds really old, but on top of really modern chords.”

Martin, a tenor, performed his composition alongside Matthew McGinnis, tenor, Geoffrey Edwards, bass, Christian Terry, bass and Kirsten Becker, who played the piano. He said the choice to perform his own composition was because he knew he could sing the parts that he wrote, as well as the limited amount of male singers available in the program.

Following Martin, nine other student compositions were performed. Audience member and senior trumpet performance major Joseph Conti thought the night’s performances were amazing. “I always love to see what the students are doing here, especially because there are students that you didn’t even know composed,” Conti said. “Then you find out they have these amazing talents to actually write music.”

Conti said the last piece, “Blood of Moon and Thunders’ Echo,” composed by student Alex Wilderman, really stood out to him. The piece was broken into two parts, and used lighting and percussion to convey its’ story. Wilderman said it was inspired by his viewing of a blood moon over a lake, followed by a thunderstorm rolling down the mountains over the lake.

Dr. Heather Gilligan, who taught some of the students who had pieces in the composition recital, thought the performance went great.

“The students performed well, it was an interesting variety of pieces,” Gilligan said.

Gilligan explained that while students can write compositions for instruments they themselves play, as a few of the student composers did, they are encouraged to write compositions for instruments they do not play as well. “What we teach in the composition classes or lessons is the orchestrations associated with essentially characteristics of instruments,” Gilligan said. “Whether you play them or not you should be able to write for them, so sometimes they purposefully write for instruments they don’t play so that they can branch out.”

Meridith King can be contacted at mking@kscequinox.com

To many, percussion is a unique part of music. From feeling the beats of a drum in your chest, to hearing the sounds of the vibraphone in your ears, percussion performances can be involved with more than one of the senses.

Anna Magee / Equinox Staff

On Thursday, Dec. 8, the Keene State College Department of Music presented the Percussion Ensemble, which was directed by Keene State College Resident Artist Christopher Swist, as well as Music Lecturer and Percussionist Amy Garapic.

The performance started off in a non-traditional way to that of most ensemble performances, with all the spotlights off and the stage illuminated only by colorful swirling projections.

Four percussionists performed a piece titled “Mångata,” written in 2016 by Kyle Krause.

The title is a Swedish word for the “road-like reflection of moonlight on water,” something portrayed in the swirling lights that were used to illuminate the musicians.

The performance began with three different pieces performed by three different combinations of musicians and percussion instruments in the first half of the performance, then a short intermission, followed by three more pieces and an encore piece.

Each piece performed was unique, varying in style and composition, often employing everyday found objects as instruments, such as keys on a keychain, various tin cans and ceramic bowls and plates, alongside more traditional percussion instruments.

Swist said the sustainability of percussion is special. “Some people just don’t have money to buy instruments, so young percussionists in countries all around the world need to resort to [creating instruments out of found objects],” Swist said.

First-year Cailyn Brochey was the only female in the percussion ensemble and said the performance went “great.”

“Everyone gets super into it, they’re just having a good time,” Brochey said.

Brochey said she is drawn to the hands-on aspect of percussion and how she can get into the rhythm.

In each performance within the ensemble, the musicians were constantly moving between instruments. “It’s a lot of fun,” Brochey said. “It always keeps you on your toes, I’m never bored. You’re always busy and always going.”

Swist mentioned how this was not always the case in the past.

“In the far past, percussionists specialized more. You would have a cymbal player, a xylophone player and they really didn’t move around,” Swist said. “But in this era of multitasking, it’s pretty common.”

On using those non-traditional found items as instruments, Brochey said, “It’s more challenging than most would think, you really don’t think it’s that hard until you actually get to it, but after awhile it all becomes a lot of fun and you learn a lot from it.”

First-year Music major Siobhan Cooper loved the performance.

“It was a lot of fun. It definitely got me moving in my chair,” Cooper said.

In the last piece before the encore, in La Samba, a circa 1983 piece composed by Ray Obiedo, the percussion ensemble was joined by flautist Callie Carmosino.

During this piece, tin cans were passed out among the audience to make their own music with the ensemble.

“I was super impressed with the percussion ensemble. They always do a good job but this was a great concert.” Carmosino said.

Carmosino said working with the Percussion ensemble involved a lot of “goofing around” and fun, but ultimately the group pulled it together come showtime.

“It’s like a combination of having fun but also making great music,” Carmosino said.

Meridith King can be contacted at mking@kscequinox.com

In the many departments found across Keene State College, you will find a lot of different professors who help to guide students in best honing their respective crafts through advice, guidance and criticism when needed. Occasionally, however, these roles can be reversed.

Emily Perry / Equinox staff

A KSC film curating class helped put together and present films created by faculty who had backgrounds in film and art. Held on Thursday, Nov. 30, the 80-minute screening Faculty Projects showed works from seven different faculty members. The films spanned across the genres, from animation, documentary, comedy and experimental film.

KSC film professor Dr. Irina Leimbacher oversaw and taught the curation class, noting how this semester was only the second time the class had been taught. Leimbacher said she created the class in part to start a course that was associated with the Film Society on campus, and to professionalize it in a way.

“For production students, I think it is really important to understand the exhibition aspect of film, and that part of the film is how you see it,” Leimbacher said, when asked what it was like to work with students from all different branches of film study to coordinate the event. She stressed the importance she held in having students view films in a group on the big screen, to experience them in a different way than they would at home on their computers.

KSC senior and double major with critical film studies and film production Colin Acker was one of the students in Liembachers’ film curating class who helped to set up the screening, and said the night went wonderfully. Acker said the class helps to set up screenings in the Putnam Theatre on campus each week, organize advertising in the form of posters, WKNH advertising or fliers, and to also help run the reception and events the night of.

When asked about how curating events such as the Faculty Projection has helped to push him further in his majors, Acker said, “It kind of defines how we view our films…it’s about the experience of viewing a film, and how to make that better for an audience. That’s what curating is.”

Acker expressed his happiness with the screening, and noted that the night’s “packed house” was the highest attended event he had noticed yet.

Acker also said how he appreciated the feedback that faculty film makers where seeking from the film students prior to the event. “For once they were asking us about their films instead,” Acker said, “It was interesting to have that role-reversal. It was a novel feeling.”

KSC film professors Ted White and Debra White-Stanley were just two of the professors who had films in the screening.

Ted White shared his comedic film “My Three Cocks,” a film done in almost a home-video kind of way, starring the macho showdowns between himself and the three roosters, whom he had raised alongside his hens at home, all the while collecting video footage over the years.

White-Stanley begun to delve in the medium of film only in the past year and a half or so. Her film, “The Bowl People,” a documentary-esque style film on a business that hand makes wooden bowls, was in the screening.

“It’s quite a learning curve,” White-Stanley said. “There quite a lot to learn. I could be studying this intensively for decades there would still me more to learn… It’s brought me a lot of joy.”

Meridith King can be contacted at mking@kscequinox.com

The Keene State College Latin American Ensemble, Cotopaxi, and the KSC Guitar Orchestra brought a myriad of diverse music and sounds to the stage last Wednesday, Nov. 8, for their performances.

One piece Cotopaxi performed was named “Huasipichay,” a étude for panpipes in the Andean style, composed by KSC Coordinator of Guitar and Latin American Music and Professor Dr. José Lezcano. The purpose of this tune was to introduce students to “the dialogue or interlocking style of panpipes performance” that is typically found in the South Andes. The panpipes themselves traditionally consist of one or two rows of tubes of gradually increasing length, that, when blown into, can create a sound. The instrument used in the performance is native to the Andes.

Colton Mccracken / Equinox Staff

“Music is a bonding experience for everyone,” Lezcano said.

A first-year music education major, Grant Desmarais, was a part of the performance. He said the class had been preparing for the performance over the course of the whole semester.

“I thought it went very well,” Desmarais said. “I’ve been pan-piping in class very frequently.”

Another first-year music education major Claire Fifield played the saxophone and panpipes for the Latin American Ensembles performance. Both Fifield and Desmarais had never used pan-pipes before, but said they enjoyed the experience of learning to use them.

“As far as I know, nobody in the class had experience with them but the majority were making a sound and doing pretty well,” Fifield said. “There is always room for improvement but overall, I think it was a success.”

Fifield was not a new face in performing with the Music Department, performing previously with Concert Band earlier this month and will be performing with the Jazz Ensemble and Saxophone Ensemble later this year.

After a short intermission, the KSC Guitar Orchestra took to the stage, with an extremely diverse repertoire spanning France, Haiti, Bulgaria, Austria and the United States.

Colton Mccracken / Equinox Staff

Senior music composition student, Andrew Brace, composed the first piece in the second-half of the performance, the Guitar Duo, as well as performed in the Guitar Orchestra.

“It was just neat to perform my own music,” Brace said.

He also chose the repertoire for the second three movements from composer Ivan Shekov. Brace thought the performance went “really well.”

Brace said, “All the players did a good job, they all work really hard to get the music learned.”

On what drove him to start composing, Brace said, “I think inevitably most players end up writing their own stuff. If you’re not hearing what you want to hear, you have to write it yourself.”

For Lezcano, he said it was great to work with students under different liberal arts disciplines, alongside music majors.

“We’ve got safety majors, exercise science, I have a microbiology student in the group,” Lezcano said. “I teach them to play the panpipes, which is a community instrument played in Andean rituals.”

Many of these interdisciplinary students had not been on stage since junior high, Lezcano said.

“The students grow. They grow through learning challenging music and developing greater rhythmic acuity,” Lezcano said. “The guitarists are learning how to follow a conductor, which they never have had to do usually.”

Overall, the performances were a “great success” according to Lezcano.

“It’s one of the best groups I have worked with. They really came through,” Lezcano said. “I feel very fortunate.”

Meridith King can be contacted at mking@kscequinox.com

Monopoly, The Game of Life, Chutes & Ladders and Clue are board games that almost everyone has played before. People always have at least one of them tucked away in their back closet or under their coffee table. However, no one ever wonders how games like these classics came to life.

Photo contributed by Randall Hoyt

Keene State College graphic design Professor Randall Hoyt sheds some light on the process of creating, publishing and selling a board game, after recently attending Spiel, the largest board game trade fair in the world, held in Essen, Germany. Over 100,000 people come to the convention to play and learn about different games.

Hoyt brought along his own creation this year, “Road Hog,” a game he started to create in 2007.

The game centers its focus around literal in and outs of traffic, and breaking the road rules you might have to follow in real life.

There are many white car and truck “traffic” game pieces, five colored player cars, a deck of varying action cards, two die and interchangeable board tiles that create the “road.” Players try to get to the exit first, moving traffic cars to strategically block other players while getting ahead themselves. Between the dice and the differing cards players draw, different actions can be made within the game.

Hoyt said over the course of the four-day convention, he played over 60 games of Road Hog with convention attendees, of all ages, some who did not even speak English. At every convention and event Hoyt has been to and brought the game to, Road Hog has sold out. With over 10,000 copies in circulation throughout the world, Road Hog has been purchased by people from as far away as Germany, Australia, the UK, even New Caledonia. Before having the game picked up on by a publisher, Hoyt faced a lot of skepticism from peers on whether a game based on traffic would ever be successful.

One of Hoyt’s Advisees and graphic design student Joseph Miffitt took a Board Game Design class with Hoyt over the summer. Miffitt said he is a self-proclaimed board game geek, and knew right away he had to take that class.

Photo contributed by Randall Hoyt

“It definitely is the world I want to go into as far as graphic design is considered,” Miffitt said.

The final game created by Miffitt was called “Blood and Iron,” a tank combat simulator game.

“Mechanics and aesthetics are the keystones in a successful board game,” Miffitt said. “Gamers all have a very very unique taste for aesthetics.”

This upcoming semester, Miffitt will be working again with Hoyt in an independent study to further tabletop game design.

“Since about middle school I’ve always sat down and made up silly little games for me and my friends to play,” Miffitt said. “Under his advising, I’ve learned how to actually produce a game. Though his experience in producing Road Hog, I’ve learned how to produce my game, Blood and Iron.”

Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) graphic design major Gavin Schlerf also took the Board Game Design class over the summer, creating one game called Mosh Pit. The game focused on crowd dynamics in a concert, with a player’s objective to force their way through the crowd to reach the front of the stage. Schlerf said the process of creating board games can really help a graphic design major learn how to create working designs.

Schlerf said, “I have to say, Randall Hoyt is probably one of the best professors I have had throughout my college career, just because he was able to really critique anyone in anyway possible… that’s really important in the design world.”

Hoyt said his own inspiration for the Road Hog came from his own time spent driving in Connecticut and studying traffic, driving from New Haven to New Hampshire every other weekend. He originally was going to make a book on passive-aggressive driving, but then just started making it a game instead.

“I learned how to drive like a shark,” Hoyt said.

Hoyt said the game’s reception in Germany was in high regard. In fact, a German man Reme Kramer has taken it into his own hands to translate the game cards from English to German. The ideal for Hoyt would be to have the game made in German too.

“To have a player say ‘I’d like to share this with my gaming group. Can I translate all your cards, please send me images,’” Hoyt said. “That was this morning. By this afternoon he had already translated them.”

Hoyt and Road Hog (then named Turnpike) was featured in a documentary 3 years ago, where it picked up traction. Hoyt is also in the process of filming an epilogue on what the processes are like for an already published game, and where Road Hog is heading in the future.

“I wanted to make an experience that was fun to play,” Hoyt said. “My idea is that if you can make something that people hate fun then that’s a big win.”

Meridith can be contacted at mking@kscequinox.com

Every year in Park City, Utah, over 40 thousand attendees gather for the largest independent film festival in the United States, the Sundance Film Festival. This year, from Jan. 18-28, two Keene State College Film students, Kevin Aruilio and Megan Lummus, have the opportunity to intern at the festival for its 10 days.

Jacob Paquin / Equinox STaff

Aruilio, a senior film and production major, said he literally handed in his application hours before it was due, and felt honored to have been chosen. He is most excited to “just get there.”

“Just knowing that it’s a big deal and knowing that I’m doing something bigger than anything I’ve done [is exciting],” Aruilio said.

Aruilio said he has never traveled alone, and said that is something he has some trepidation towards, but he is excited for what he will learn.

“I feel like if I don’t do it, I won’t learn and I feel like this is the perfect thing to learn from,” Aruilio said. “I guess I am just excited, but also scared, but being scared is normal.”

Debra White-Stanley, a film associate professor at KSC, remembered the first day she had Aruilio in her Introduction to Film Analysis class. “He was always so bright and so thoughtful in his responses, and yet he would always be shy on what he had to say,” White-Stanley said. “I remember paying special attention when he had something to say, and making sure that he got it said and trying to give power to his voice, trying to acknowledge his voice.”

Lummus, sophomore majoring in film production and theatre directing, will be working with companies that distribute the film for the festival. Lummus said she appreciates the storytelling aspect of filmmaking, and always loved to write but got interested in film through a high school film class. “Something about it just drew me in and I absolutely loved it,” Lummus said. “That year I was like, ‘This is what I want to do with the rest of my life.’ I know I want to make films and I want to tell stories.”

Lummus said she also really enjoys the medium of film and how impactful it can be on people.

Both Lummus and Aruilio are hoping to gain experience and networking connections from the internship. “A huge part of the industry is networking,” Lummus said. “So being able to meet people who are actively in it and to make those connection that we can use after graduation [is important].”

KSC Assistant Professor to the film department Jo Dery said she also felt excited for Lummus and the opportunity. “Megan is an excellent student. She came to Keene State knowing exactly what she wanted to do,” said Dery. “She is very in touch with her ambitions and really good at setting a goal and taking steps to achieve it. I’m really excited for her!”

“This is tremendously constructive, for both Megan and Kevin,” White-Stanley said. “I am just tremendously pleased that these two students took advantage of the opportunities that present themselves, move ahead pro-actively, and will have this wonderful chance to get to meet other people and see how things are done in the world of film.”

Meridith King can be contacted at mking@kscequinox.com

The weekly student assembly meeting began with two budget requests.

The first request was from the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA), for a total of $2,880 for the fiscal year of 2018, from two club representatives. The budget requested would go mostly towards travel and food expenses for about six members of the club to Atlanta, Georgia, for the National Science Teachers Association Conference. The budget would also go towards community outreach with the club and local schools. The complete budget for NSTA was motioned to carry and granted.

The second budget request was from the Physical Education Club, requesting a total budget of $4,500. The PE Cub was granted a total of $1,120 to send members to a conference this year.

There is a Board of Trustees meeting Thurs. 19 to Fri. 20.

The committee also mentioned an open-forum event with Interim President Melinda Treadwell taking place from 6:00-7:00 p.m. on Nov. 15.

The committee also mentioned an opening for a 2018 representative spot, open to seniors.

Meridith King can be contacted at mking@kscequinox.com

Violence in the entertainment world is harmless right?  It is nothing more than smoke and mirrors, fake blood and special effects, but harmless in real life.

You would think so, but some people think that’s far from the case. In fact, studies as far back as the 1960s have suggested that violence in TV and movies can be harmful for children to watch.

In a day and age where acts of violence and terrible tragedy are almost not even shocking anymore, can we really turn a blind eye to any purported causes of this normalization of violence?

According to a study done by the University of Pittsburgh Office of Child Development, young people see an estimated number of 10,000 violent acts on TV annually.

Graphic by Meridith King / Arts & Entertainment Editor

Anything a child, or anyone, sees over 10,000 times a year, they are going to be desensitized to. The study outlines the issues in violent shows that children are watching, issues such as when the “hero” commits violent acts or when portrayed violence usually goes unpunished.

The study stated, “When children see violence without remorse, criticism or punishment they learn that doing bad things is okay – there are no consequences. But that is not true in the real world.”

When kids see that the good guy superheros are blasting bad guys left and right, each coming out unscathed, it can deceive children into thinking violent actions do not end too badly.

On the other hand, violent TV and video games can also make children think the world is a dark and scary place and exaggerate mental illnesses. CNN quotes, “While playing video games can be a coping mechanism for a child who’s already experiencing depression or anxiety, the study’s authors suggest gaming can also increase those problems.”

If a child is watching or playing on the TV for three or more hours a day, they aren’t developing social skills or experiencing and learning to react to real life situations.

We accept that our children learn counting and the alphabet from shows like Sesame Street and even Spanish from shows like Dora the Explorer; how can anyone even say that a child’s impressionable young mind isn’t affected negatively by constantly watching exaggerated violence being glorified on TV shows and in blockbuster movies?

CNN reported, “‘90 percent of movies, 68% of video games, and 60% of TV shows show some depictions of violence,’” according to Caroline Knorr, parenting editor for Common Sense Media.

It is doubtful violence will ever completely leave the entertainment world–people like it just too much. Rather than call for the complete extermination of all violence in TV and movies, perhaps parents should choose to more closely monitor and discuss these programs their kids are watching.

Open discussion about the real-life consequences of the violent actions portrayed in TV shows and movies between parents and their children could be very beneficial.

Teaching children the difference between fantasy and reality seems to be a key feature in keeping children aware that TV violence has no place in real life and is a practice that will continue to be so very important in times like today, where violent attacks seem to be in the news every week.

Meridith King can be contacted at mking@kscequinox.com

What an extravaganza eleganza! This past Friday, Oct. 6, Keene State College welcomed the talents of professional drag queens Mizery McRae, Destiny and Dusty Moorehead-Malletti for the show Glitterati and Glamazons. All three queens lit up the stage of the Mabel Brown Room, dazzling the audience with multiple glittering costumes, snatched wigs and a diverse song repertoire.

The event itself was hosted by KSC After Hours. Coordinator of Student Activities and Organizations Britany Gallagher was a key person in the organizing of the event. KSC Pride and Mentors in Violence Prevention both had tables at the show as well.

Photos by sebastien Mehegan / Multimedia Director & Benajil Rai / Equinox Staff

Gallagher has had experience with attending drag shows during her undergraduate and graduate college experiences and said she wanted to bring that type of experience to KSC students.

“I think [the show] was enough to kind of push some boundaries, maybe, and maybe push some students to get outside of their comfort zones and maybe start exploring different identities,” Gallagher said.

Gallagher prefaced the event with a brief history and movie covering some of the history and impact drag has had and currently has on the LGBTQ+ community. The movie shown featured Devlin Andrews, who performs as a drag queen.

Gallagher talked about how drag is a performance of how society views gender, and queens can identify as male, female, gay, straight, trans- there really are no limits to who can perform in drag. That was a constant theme throughout the show. Drag was described as being a commentary on the misogynistic nature of society, a parody of expectations of gender.

During Gallagher’s undergraduate studies, her and her friends frequented a local club, attending drag shows almost every weekend. Gallagher also said this was a time in her life that she was coming to terms with her own sexuality.

“It was actually some of the drag queens that made me realize that all of the discomfort that I had felt all of my life with the way that I performed my gender. At the end of the day, it is a performance. It’s okay to be different and it’s okay to challenge social norms and it’s okay to challenge people in your life about what they believe to be the social norms,” Gallagher said.

Mizery, Destiny and Dusty were diverse examples of what drag can be. All came out in almost larger than life costumes and hair, with fantastic and wild dance moves and skilled makeup. Performances ranged from dramatic Cher songs by Dusty Moorehead-Malletti, complete with her iconic mega-fro, to pop songs from Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj performed by Destiny, as well as interactive, energetic performances by Mizery.

All of the queens offered a range of talents and personalities.

First-years Jordan Richard and Sashana Campbell were just a few of the audience members who were pulled out front in an end performance by the queen Mizery to show their moves. Neither had ever been to a drag performance but had said they had always wanted to go to one.

When asked on her favorite part of the performance, Richard said without hesitation, “The split [Mizery did]. Oh my god, I was so close, I was not ready for that split at all”.

The queens also took the opportunity to take on a more serious tone within the show.

Mizery took a moment to ask the audience if anyone knew who threw the first object at the Stonewall Riots. The room went silent, and there were plenty of guilty, downcast stares as people avoided eye contact with the queen.

One student, Lea Nolette, was brave enough to offer the answer: Marsha P. Johnson. That moment made a big impact, and Mizery used it to explain the need for people in the LGBTQ+ community to know their history and use it as power to progress.

“History is power. Knowledge is power,” Mizery said. “If we want to move forward, we need to know our past.”

Meridith King can be contacted at mking@kscequinox.com

Sometimes during your college years, you might have some of those dreadful thoughts that cross your mind; “What am I even going to be able to do with my degree after school? What if I can’t find a job in my field?”  While that may be a very real fear for some,

Keene State Alumni Alex Cucchi, has been making strides in his respective industry since graduating from the KSC film production department in 2012. Cucchi began his career within the film industry when he signed on as an intern with Ken Burns and Florentine Films in the winter of 2012.

Photo contributed by Alex Cucchi

Through working with the company and Ken Burns, Cucchi has worked his way up from intern, to being offered an assistant editor position on the film The Address, a documentary film based on a small Vermont school for boys with learning disabilities who learned and recited Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address every year.

Cucchi has worked on various projects with Florentine Films, including The Roosevelts, The Vietnam War, The Address and Country Music. The 10 part documentary film series, The Vietnam War series recently premiered on PBS in September of 2017.

Cucchi and the team he worked with were responsible for 2.5 episodes out of the series. “It was just something I was always interested in growing up, you know I was always making movies as a kid,” Cucchi said when asked on why he chose the medium of film.

“I think my dad had a big influence on a lot of things because he is a musician and likes kind of all those media arts and stuff, so I think that played a big part in my decision [to pursue film].”

Cucchi admits to not always being sure that, although wanting to pursue a career in film, that he would be actually able to successfully pursue a career in it.

“It was something I always had a passion for, but I didn’t think it would get to be my job,” Cucchi said.

Cucchi named KSC professor emeritus, Larry Benaquist, as one of the most influential professors in his career at KSC, and in pushing him to attain that pivotal internship with Ken Burns.

Benaquist was a primary figure in starting the KSC film department in the first place.

“Alex, I think, like with all students, I think it took a little while for him to know his own abilities. He wrote beautifully and that was important,” Benaquist said.

“So it was a matter of just opening up a door. Some people you really don’t have to do more than that.”

Both Benaquist and Cucchi agree that film is a collaborative effort.

“With film its totally overwhelming,” Benaquist said. “You just have to trust other people.”

Cucchi’s brother, Max Cucchi, currently attends Keene State College as a Communications/Philosophy major, and holds his brother and his accomplishments in high regard.

“He doesn’t try to brag about any of it [his work],” Max said.

“Also, from Keene State, it’s kind of exciting to see somebody be successful in an industry like that.”

“I am super proud of him”, Max said. “A lot of my friends are history majors or they just know of Ken Burns so I brag, probably way more than my older brother does.”

Alex also offered the advice for current film students: to not get caught up in their own egos.

“Just stay with it and be flexible,” Alex said.

“If you stay with it, and you’re flexible, you have the passion for it and you have the talent, you should be able to make it work.”

Alex is currently working as an Assistant Editor on an eight part series on the History of Country Music, which will take him to the spring of 2019, with Florentine Films.

Meridith King can be contacted at mking@kscequinox.com