Three Columbia Films Screen at South By Southwest 2021

Three Columbia Films were selected to screen at the South By Southwest (SXSW) film festival this year. They are: The Chuj Boys of Summer, a film assistant directed by alumna Victoria Rivera '20, Lily Topples the World, directed by Columbia College alumnus Jeremy Workman (CC ’94), and executive produced by Columbia College alumni Scott Black (CC ’92) and Jane Lee (CC ’94), and Mau, produced by Theatre alumnus Karol Martesko-Fenster ’88. 

Founded in 1987 in Austin, Texas, SXSW is best known for its convergence of the interactive, film, and music industries. An essential destination for global professionals, the event features sessions, showcases, screenings, exhibitions, and a variety of networking opportunities. SXSW is launching SXSW Online as their 2021 offerings from March 16-20. 

The Chuj Boys of Summer is about a Guatemalan teenager who begins a new life in a small Rocky Mountain town, speaking only his indigenous language. The film was an official selection for the Aspen Shortsfest, Hamptons International Film Festival, Busan International Short Film Festival, Cork International Film Festival, and the winner of the National Board of Review Student Award, and the NYU Graduate Film Wasserman/King Award. The trailer for the film is available here. 

Victoria Rivera is a New York-based writer/director who hails from Colombia. Her award-winning short films have screened at Telluride Film Festival, Tribeca Film Festival and Palm Springs Shortfest, where she was awarded a Jury Award in 2019 for Night Swim. In 2018, the Directors Guild of America awarded her the Student Film Award for Verde. She’s currently developing Malpelo, her first feature, which in addition to receiving recognition from Film Independent was awarded a screenwriting grant by the Sloan Foundation.

Rivera will also be the subject of The High Line Nine's Females in Film Showcase from March 22 - 28, 2021. Night Swim, directed by Rivera, co-written by Rivera & Neda Jebelli, and produced by Camila Zavala '19, recently won the Booooooom TV Award for Best Short Film of the Year, and was awarded Special Mention for Best Drama in the Short of the Week Short Awards.

Lily Topples the World follows 20-year-old Lily Hevesh - the world's greatest domino toppler and the only woman in her field. The film is directed by Jeremy Workman, who studied in the Film BA program with professors like Annette Insdorf, Richard Peña, and others. Filmed for over three years across countless cities and featuring appearances by Jimmy Fallon, Katy Perry, Will Smith, YouTuber Casey Neistat, and a steady stream of Gen-Z creators, Lily Topples the World is a coming-of-age story cloaked within a unique portrait of an artist, a story of how passion and creativity can make dreams come true, and an unlikely American tale of a quiet Chinese adoptee who transforms into a global artistic force with over one billion YouTube views. 

Jeremy Workman is the director of the documentaries The World Before Your Feet, Magical Universe, and others. The World Before Your Feet played in US theaters for nearly six months and currently sits at 100% on Rotten Tomatoes.  A two-time Emmy Award nominee, Workman is also known for his editing as the creative director of Wheelhouse Creative.

Mau follows the unlikely story of design visionary Bruce Mau and his ever-optimistic push for massive change—from social movements in Guatemala to the future of Mecca to all of our lives. The film will have its world premiere at SXSW. 

Karol Martesko-Fenster is an Austrian-born American entrepreneur and media industry innovator with broad motion picture, publishing, broadcast, event and Internet backgrounds. He has produced over a dozen award-winning films and his career spans two decades including leadership in the American independent film industry. Martesko-Fenster is COO & Partner of global theatrical distributor and rights management enterprise Abramorama and Chief Content Officer of Thought Engine Partners.  Previously, Martesko-Fenster was the President of Film for Michael Cohl’s S2BN Entertainment, President/Publisher of Silicon Alley Reporter, and Head of Film at Chris Blackwell’s Palm Pictures.