Vann Fulfs (class of 2013)
Growing up as an only child left me
with a yearning for others that could never truly be filled. During my schooling I developed a curious and
wandering mind that helped me engage with other students. Unfortunately, that
curiosity didn’t reflect in my grades or hobbies. With no real talent in any sports or clubs and
less than stellar grades I was pretty directionless until I was urged to join
the Ballard High School Digital Filmmaking Program. There
I was pushed harder and my creativity finally found a constructive place to
grow.
After an all too brief three years in
the program I graduated equipped with the portfolio necessary to apply to film
school, as well as a variety of awards and honors for my films. Still neither I nor my family could find
higher education financially viable. To
my relief, the work I had produced in the Digital Film Program at Ballard
allowed me to win the J-Dogg Scholarship, making it possible for me to attend
the college of my dreams in Chicago.
Ecstatic to attend an art school I had
a jam packed freshman and sophomore year at Columbia College Chicago. All my free time was spent working on large
scale student projects with crew sizes ranging from 40‐120
students. The free time my scholarship
afforded me to score two great jobs as a screenwriting Teacher’s Assistant and
as an Arts and Culture Critic for the Columbia Chronicle. This very quickly led to
my internship with Kurtis productions working on the 9th season of American Greed. As a Production Assistant I
interviewed witnesses, put together graphics and acted in episodes 100 &
109. During the summer of 2015 I
volunteered with the National Parks Service and partnered with Ravenswood Media. Under the guidance of Academy Award nominee
David McGowan, I assisted in the creation of a series of productions sent to
congress to educate on environmental issues including climate change, avian botulism,
and habitat recovery.
As I saw my passions leading me towards
journalism and online content I focused my Junior year on documentary
production and worked to become the president of Viva Doc, our school’s documentary
club. I continued to work in smaller
teams and was hired by our schools advertising department making
commercials and online content.
Thanks to the good preparation I gained
during my years in Ballard’s stellar Digital Filmmaking Program, I was able to
complete my college degree program in only three years and graduate with High
Honors. After a short stint as a
freelancer in Chicago I was hired on by the UW Huskies as a content
producer. Here I lead in the
development, creation, and editing of entire advertising campaigns that reach
thousands of Husky fans. Now in my free time
I freelance with my mentor Chris Baron (the cinematographer for the award
winning “Food Inc.”) and take on smaller film projects in Seattle’s burgeoning
filmmaker community.
I’d like to say I was inspired by
amazing film directors who have created small masterpieces in worlds they
entirely control. In retrospect, however,
I realize my true inspirations are people who have looked at the world around
them. Those who make stories with little
to no budgets seeking to find the truth and connect with audiences. Above all I am inspired by my teachers who are
truly young at heart, who look to see the very best in everyone and the reality
in everything. I hope to continue in that tradition and pass on that passion
one day. Until then, I learn and impart
what little I do know through my movies.
You can see my work and check out current projects on my website at
www.vannfulfs.com .
