When one thinks of ogres, the first thought that comes to mind probably isn’t the idea of love or Valentine’s Day.  The Rio Mesa Film Club was able to change that when they decided to show Shrek for their Valentine’s Day Movie Night on February 10, a movie about an ogre named Shrek, who goes on a quest to find Princess Fiona where they end up falling in love for each others personalities, despite what they look like on the outside.

Every few months, the Rio Mesa Film Club hosts a movie night which is free of entry to all students, with help from their advisor Mr. Tierney, who also teaches a Film Analysis class to seniors on campus.  Past movie nights have included movies such as “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” and more.  When deciding on what movie to hold for February, the film club called a meeting to order during lunch.

“After picking out Valentine’s themed options such as The Notebook, Princess and the Frog, and other movies, our group finally drew a vote where Shrek ended up winning,” President Lyabel Corpuz told us. 

Once the movie was chosen, it was time to start planning the event.  While admission was free, the club knew they wanted to sell concessions in order to raise funds for the club to continue to hold events throughout the school year. They decided on selling popcorn, water, and hot chocolate so students wouldn’t freeze in the cafeteria while trying to enjoy the movie! President Lyzabel Corpuz and Vice President Alina Gacutno arrived to the cafeteria about an hour early to prepare the popcorn machine, set up the tables, and make sure the speaker was working for their movie.  The movie night had a small but comfortable turnout of over ten students!

Film Club stays true to its name as most of the meetings consist of watching or researching prominent films that have been made throughout history.  A typical meeting consists of watching movie trailers and discussing upcoming events, such as the movie nights.

“We encourage students and our friends to join our film club because it’s a fun way to bond over movies and we also like to watch movie trailers as well. We also encourage them to come to movie night because it’s a fun and chill after school activity to do with your friends,” Vice President Alina Gacutno shared excitedly.

If you didn’t get the chance to attend the latest Shrek movie night and you’ve made it this far into the article, I am sure you are highly anticipating when and what the next showing held by the Film Club will be.  The officers are currently planning an Easter movie night, and are looking even further down the road for a summer movie night.  

While it may seem small, supporting and joining Film Club can shift your perspective on so many aspects of life. Films allow us to consider the world from a multitude of characters and go on thousands of journeys from the comfort of our seats.  Or even a cafeteria bench.