0 8 - The Michigan Daily - Monday, June 5, 2006 'Golden popcorn' evades 'U' filmmaker With his first feature film, LSA senior Jarrett Slavin receives national attention By Kimberly Chou Daily Arts Writer Jarrett Slavin thought "The Spiral Project" was just a high school pipe dream - it turned out to be something more, earning a MTV Movie Award nomination. The LSA senior premiered his first feature- length film, "The Spiral Project," at the Michi- gan Theater this past March. Slavin completed the first draft of the script in high school and spent the past two and a half years filming and editing it with the help of his former Resident Advisor-turned-producer Sultan Sharrief, a University alum. Shot entirely in Ann Arbor and metro Detroit,the film features 60 University student actors and cost a tidy sum of $100,000 - the majority obtained by the Slavin family's fundraising efforts. Based on the basic "wretched excess" plot- line, "The Spiral Project" tells the story of a promising high school playwright seemingly caught in a prostitution ring. Produced on 35- mm film - standard for Hollywood fare but rare for student filmmaking - the movie was also the first high-definition film shown at the Michigan Theater. Angeles," he said. The icing on the proverbial cake would have The "mtvU Student Filmmaker," a new addi- been national recognition by MTV's college- tion to the awards show this year, is presented centric sister channel, mtvU, at the MTV Movie during the taping alongside other unorthodox film Awards in Los awards, includ- Angeles. ing "Best Slavin was . Fight Scene" nominated and "Best On- for the "mtvU Screen Duo." Student Film- Joshua maker" prize. Caldwell, a But as Slavin student at found out, he Fordham Uni- would not be versity in New in thecompany York, won for of past winners his film "A like Selma Beautiful Lie." Blair and "I knew my Sarah Michelle film was the Gellar ("Best cortesy at salten shorwt only feature Kiss") or Jared "The Spiral Project" focuses on Chase Addison, a high school film and only Hess, whose senior wearied by life in suburbia and the pressure to produce a hit 35-mm film in quirky "Napo- new play. A crew of more than 60 students were hired to act in the the competi- leon Dyna- film, shot over a span of five weeks. tion," Slavin mite" cost little said. "I thought more than "The Spiral Project" to produce. that would make it either a shoe-in or eliminate me. Slavin did not attend the awards ceremony, There's two sides of the coin." taped Saturday night and set to broadcast this Either the judges would see Slavin as a Thursday on MTV, because he was told in moneyed filmmaker with more resources, he advance that did not win. reasoned, or as someone who simply strove to "We're not celebrities yet," Slavin said with reach greater heights. a laugh. "They only fly the winner out to Los "I guess they saw it as the former, but I'm not really bitter about it at all," Slavin said. Instead, Slavin is in talks to bring his soph- omore script, tentatively titled "Frat Star," to celluloid life. Although a screen arts and cul- tures major, Slavin did not consult professors or other departmental resources when making "The Spiral Project," nor does he plan to when "Frat Star" gets underway. As actress-host Jessica Alba was taping the MTV Movie Awards Saturday, Slavin was meet- ing with a "pretty big Hollywood producer" to discuss budgeting and casting for the new film. The greatest windfall to the attention "The Spi- ral Project" has garnered is Slavin's new leverage. "('Frat Star') will be a much more profes- sional shoot," he said. "It's going to be a lot different than the last film." Slavin's ultimate goal is to submit "Frat Star" to major theaters nationwide. Slavin also plans to shoot the film on location in Ann Arbor. "It's lighter but it definitely has a dramatic aspect to it," he said. Slavin has his eyes set on bigger endeavors, but for other University student filmmakers, MTV's elusive "golden popcorn" suddenly seems more attainable. "I do know there are a number of produc- tions that are currently being attempted along the scale of 'The Spiral Project' that wouldn't have been attempted previously," Slavin said. "People are thinking, 'Oh, I can actually do this,' " he said. CENTER Continued from Page 1. national average of nearly 27 percent. In Washtenaw County, about 53 percent of residents have at least a bachelor's degree. But simply increasing the number of young people entering colleges and universities will not be enough to diversify the state's economy, said Rebecca Blank, Dean of the Ford School of Public Policy. In a paper presented at the conference, Blank argued that Michigan faces a tougher challenge than other states trying to build a skilled workforce because a large number of the state's young college graduates leave after graduation. Michigan currently has the third highest level of "out- migration" of young educated people in the nation. Power's Center For Michigan is not alone in its effort to find new solutions to Michigan's economic woes. Other moderate groups, such as Detroit Renaissance and Michigan's Future, are tackling similar issues within the state. The continued decline of the state's manufacturing sector has created broad consensus that something urgent needs to be done to revitalize the state's economy. But in an increasingly partisan election year, it is unclear just how great an impact a group of self-described centrists will have. the michigan daily FOOD BARTER: TAKE veg. which come SCOREI from an organic farm each week, cook 'em, floor take some for yourself, leave some for me, Brin cleanup afterwards! Soundsgood?Amy, 310M aos@umichkedu SCOREK INDIVIDUALS NEEDED FO RE- AAssistant, sional we SEARCH STUDIES: The Pfizer Research Econ. Ma Clinic in Ann Arbor is seeking healthy men orapply @ ages 18-55, for participation i upcoming drug research studies. Study participation re- WANTED quires a stay of 10 to 20 days in the Research weeding. Clinic. Individuals will be paid for participat- 734-665-69 ing in study activity. Payment for study par- ticipation ranges from $1800-$2500. You must not take daily prescription medications or have any chronic illness. You must be a non-smoker or light-smoker to be eligible. A pre-screening process is required. For more informtioncalt the Research Recaniter at U -l800-567-8804. Pfizer Research Clinic 28(1 PlymouthRd.,AnnArbor,MI48105. BABYSHT is a must P/T RECEPTIONIST/SECRETARY activities an NEEDED for downtown A2 law firm. Call 517-414-7890. CHILDC /wk for quired & PART-TIME EARLY CHILDHOOD posi- Emailresu tion avail., Mon-Fri, 3:30-5:30. Fall semester openings. Fun working environment, great EARLY A for psych students, teacher ed, or anyone days/wk. who likes kids. Call director at 668-0887. references. KEEPERSISNOWhiringcooks and men for the Spring/Summer Terms. g in your schedule and apply today! MaynardStreet,AA. 734-995-0100. EEPERS IS NOW Hiring an Office available mornings and the occa- ekend. Great for Accounting and jors. Contact Reid @ 734-995-0100 310 Maynard St.AA. D - SOMEONE to do garden work - $8-$10/hr. Flexible Hours. 924. TER NEEDED FOR 8 yr old. Car . Pick up from school and drive to nd babysit wknds. Call 222-8515. 'ARE NEEDED FOR approx. 10 hrs.- 2 & 3.5 yr. old. Transportation re- previous childcare exp. preferred. moes totasha@umich.edu .M. CHILDCARE for 2-3 hrs., 2-3 Own transportation, reliable, and Call 769-1462. AFRAID OFAPH.D. IN A MINISKIRT? If so, ignore this. I'm 30, an outgoing, fim- loving, energetic, enthusiastic, svelte, 5'5" an- mantic brunette with illegal lashes, never manied, new to Ann Arbor, seeking her match (read: 25-40, enjoys the outdoors, movies, the occasional museum, fine dinning, and hanging out). Email personal description and phototo: phdineiniskirt@hotmail.com. H EALTHCARE Continued from Page 2 making coverage unaffordable for many. These factors often make college students among Michigan's unin- sured population. Robert Winfield, director of Uni- versity Health Service, said students are generally aware of their health- care coverage status, but unexpect- ed emergency medical bills often catch them off guard. "People on the edge financially are making conscious decisions about their risks," Winfield said. Winfield also said the University has considered requiring all stu- dents to purchase health insurance, but has not yet moved forward with those plans. The University worries the extra cost might discourage students from attending, he said. Currently, the University only requires international and medical students to have health insurance. In its preliminary stages, Gra- nholm's plan, while applauded by some, was met with criticism from political opponents. Republican gubernatorial can- didate Dick DeVos has criticized Granholm's approach, saying that rather than creating new healthcare programs, existing plans should be streamlined. Granholm defended the program, saying that research shows that providing basic healthcare reduces costs over time by eliminating cost- ly emergency visits that could have been prevented if the patient had received care earlier. DeVos has also pushed for exten- sive reforms of Michigan's Medic- aid program. McLaughlin said DeVos is justified to want more control over the health- care system, but that as governor, Granholm has little power to over- haul the program because of its sta- tus as a joint state-federal program. "Her hands are tied pretty tight by the federal government," McLaugh- lin said. Talk of universal healthcare has been building in Lansing for months. In April, Lansing activist Melissa Sue Robinson launched a petition drive to have a provision guar- anteeing universal healthcare in Michigan added to -the state's con- stitution. The initiative will be added to the November ballot if Robinson collects the nearly 320,000 signa- tures necessary. - Brian Mok and Candy Chu contributed to this report.