My name is Owen Nipper, and I am a third year Film Production major at Penn State University, where I am also the President of Penn State’s Student Film Organization. I’ve lived in Chardon, Ohio for nearly 15 years, where I live with my parents and younger brother.

Ever since I was young, I have always loved films and filmmaking. In Elementary and Middle School, I would spend hours writing scripts and making little shorts with my friends, from stop motion comedies to found footage horror. My favorite movies, including La La Land and the original Star Wars, have always just driven me to love filmmaking more. Nowadays I spend a lot more time working on my own movies, whether it be in my classes at school or with my friends at home.

I want to be an intern at the GCFC because it’s always been so interesting to me how prevalent film production is so close to my home, despite being hundreds or thousands of miles from New York or LA. Even the smallest opportunities in filmmaking feel so beneficial to me and are such amazing learning experiences. In the film industry, my big dream is directing and writing films, but I can’t ever expect to do that if I never take the time to learn everything I can behind the scenes. Being an intern with the GCFC is the perfect opportunity to learn so much about some of the most important aspects of getting films made, especially in my home town of Cleveland.