Not short of a good time at Extremely Shorts

As June comes to a close, another Aurora anniversary passes (13 years and counting) and Aurora staff put away the karaoke mics, picnic tablecloths, and voting ballots for our annual Extremely Shorts festival. We'd like to send out a special thanks to our juror Donald Harrison from Ann Arbor Film Festival who endured the sauna-like Houston weather, a surprisingly loud visitor at 1 a.m. Saturday, and sing-a-long peer pressure (resulting in a great rendition of "Common People") for this year's fest. All that and he still left the Aurora staff brownies. And congratulations to this year's Audience Choice Winners of Extremely Shorts: (1) La Pinata by Manuel Arija, (2) Short Stitched by Jenalia Moreno (2) and (3) Bulldozer by Melissa Hung (who also happens to the curator behind Aurora's annual Slant Film Festival). Your checks are already in the mail. Thanks to Aurora's ever-kind sponsors for the event including Saint Arnold Brewing Company, Ruggles Green, Whole Foods Market Houston, Tony Mandola's, Brasil, Carlos Lama, Molly Gochman, and Aztec Rentals. See you all next year - we are already plotting for more shorts, more songs, and more beer, naturally.

Meet our Summer Interns

Each semester, Aurora Picture Show recruits aspiring media arts leaders through our internship program. Interns are integral to the Aurora team and provide much needed support for the many programs that we host. In exchange, Aurora offers hands-on experience and guidance for their ambitions beyond the time in our office.

This Summer, we invited three interns to join our ranks and they have already proven themselves worthy by helping us with all kinds of projects ranging from administrative duties to curatorial assistance. Come and meet Ariana Reyes, Ashley Powell and Tara Roach at an upcoming event where they will be learning the "nomadic-cinema ropes."


ARIANA REYES

Ari Reyes is a quirky writer and digital media artist. She roams the halls of the School of Art at the University of Houston as a Photography/Digital Media student. When not laboriously designing sets for her films, she is found chasing neighborhood cats and hunting down new coffee and tea houses around town. She spends her working days as an academic advisor at Lonestar College and can always be found awake, at the hour that most choose to sleep, catching up on the latest bestsellers. Her work in stop motion animation is her excuse for why she must watch cartoons; her addiction to cereal is just inexplicable. When she heard about the Aurora Picture Show, she quickly grew an attachment and was encouraged by many to apply for an internship, which she was thankfully awarded.








ASHLEY POWELL

My name is Ashley Powell, and I am a Senior at the University of Houston at Clear Lake. My major is Public Service Leadership, which is a fancy name for Non-Profit and Governmental Agency Management. The choice to study under this program has given me many wonderful opportunities, like getting the chance to work as an intern here at the Aurora Picture Show. I absolutely love working here! My skills within the areas of management, marketing, and interpersonal relations are flourishing! I also get to learn a lot of awesome things about the film industry from our awesome staff members! I feel so lucky to have this internship with such an amazing organization with a sush a strong mission and dedication!!





TARA ROACH

Having spent the majority of her childhood in such diverse locations as Scotland and Virginia, Tara recently came to rest in Houston, which is warmer than the other places she has called “home”. She is in her senior year at the University of Houston, studying Photography and Digital Media, and she has a deep and abiding love for video art. When she is not assisting Aurora with sorting, cataloging, and other vital tasks, she loves to cook, swim, hike and take photos. Her dream is to one day run a bunny rescue.