Nate Daniels lives life a little more dangerously when filming movies.
For seven weeks of his past summer, he and Greg Adaline could be found darting in and out of karaoke bars and riding around downtown Detroit on the People Mover at 2 a.m.
"I ran in and got as much footage as I could before they kicked me out," the underage Daniels said about filming in karaoke bars. "This is a problem I have - I don't like to get permission."
For his project "15 Mile," Daniels, a general business administration and pre-law freshman, was willing to do anything to get the right shots.
This movie, which Daniels describes as "'8 Mile' meets 'Zoolander' meets 'Karate Kid,'" is just one of the films that will play this weekend at MSU's first Student Film Festival at Wells Hall, sponsored by the Residence Halls Association and University Activities Board.
"15 Mile" will be shown on Saturday night as the feature film in the 9 p.m. spot. The '80s-themed spoof of Eminem's "8 Mile" tells the story of a regular guy's determination to become a karaoke all-star in the name of love, centering on the karaoke scene of 15 Mile Road in Sterling Heights.
Adaline, a 24-year-old Sterling Heights resident and karaoke fan, thought it would be fun to feature the characters he sees at the clubs and bars, so he and Daniels collaborated on the idea.
"Instead of rapping, we wrote it about karaoke," Daniels said.
"15 Mile" is the product of years of classes and work with video and film for Daniels.
"It is something I've always done," he said. "I've always had a camcorder in the house."
In high school, Daniels took seven semesters of film classes and filmed several shorts with Adaline before creating "15 Mile."
"He knows exactly what he is doing," Adaline said. "It is always good working with him. He is really good with equipment and knows exactly what everything will look like on camera."
Today, he keeps busy running a video team at Campus Crusade for Christ, where he creates short videos shown at the Christian student group's weekly meetings. He also does free-lance work for Media Design Group in Detroit. He tapes weddings or compiles highlight videos of his high school's football team.
"He definitely has all sorts of potential," Adaline said. "He is so talented at such a young age."
Daniels has hopes of owning his own production company someday and is excited about potential opportunities he might have to work with professionals.
He has made a couple of different contacts, including director Dallas Jenkins. Jenkins and his father, Jerry B. Jenkins, author of the best-selling "Left Behind" book series, started the production company Jenkins Entertainment. Daniels said he hopes one day he could get a position on the set of one of Dallas Jenkins' movies.
"It would be awesome to see how a movie is made from a director's perspective," Daniels said.
Daniels also is excited about the new opportunities that await him in East Lansing.
"East Lansing is very open to young filmmakers," Daniels said. "It is definitely a hot spot."
MSU is opening up to student filmmakers as well. This weekend, students are taking over one of the theaters at the Campus Center Cinemas. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings, the festival will be held in conjunction with three regular major motion pictures.
When Daniels saw a flier for the festival, he had been trying actively to get "15 Mile" played. He made a phone call and made sure the committee had the DVD.
"I wanted people to see my work, (learn) what they thought of it and see their reactions," Daniels said. "If I get my video played, it will open other opportunities for me."
On Friday and Saturday, two showings, at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m., will present a mix of shorts and feature-length films similar to "15 Mile." Earlier this year, RHA and UAB decided to include a Student Film Festival as part of their programming. Fliers were spread across campus calling all student filmmakers to send in their tapes for the festival. After receiving about 20 entries, a judging committee sat down to pick the films that would be shown at the festival.
"We got a decent crop for our first year, considering we only had it open for a month to advertise and submit," said James Henderson, RHA Campus Center director.
While some entries didn't make the cut, they will be shown on campus TV's Channel 58 this coming week.
All the movies will be competing for best overall film, which will be presented Sunday night. The winner will be determined by audience members, who can cast votes for their favorite movie. According to Henderson, a mathematics junior, there is a wide variety of films on the program.
"There is a lot of comedy and some more serious films," Henderson said.
Sci-fi, music videos and silent films are just some of the genres that will showcase the young talents of student filmmakers in the area, such as Daniels.
Daniels thinks that opportunities like the festival will open doors for him as a filmmaker. While he doesn't expect a lot to come out of the festival, he is excited for any possibilities.
But fame and rewards are not why Daniels spends all of his time on movies. He finds a creative outlet in making movies.
"I am no good at drawing; movies and photography come naturally to me, being behind the lens or viewfinder," Daniels said. "I love how everything is put together. I can take real life and put it on DVD and then TV."
