CHICAGO — Morgan Park High School senior Franshay Lopez lost her cousin to gun violence three years ago.
The 18-year-old Beverly resident said the tragic incident had an impact on her life. She’s not alone in her experience, which is why Lopez and three other teen girls will be screening their documentary film "Rise Up" on Friday night.
“The documentary is about me and three other girls, and how gun violence impacted us, and how we overcame it,” Lopez said. “We chose that [topic] because we thought it was important and to get our voices out.”
"Rise Up" will be shown at the Windy City International Film Festival this year. The 7 p.m. screening will be held at the Mercury Theatre, 3745 N. Southport Ave. Tickets for the opening show are $25, or $15 for Saturday and Sunday screenings. They can be bought online at www.windycityfilmfest.com.
The teens participated in a six-week documentary filmmaking program for girls last summer. It was led by DePaul University’s School of Cinematic Arts and sponsored by the Chicago Housing Authority.
“The program is student-motivated, and we had no idea what they wanted to pitch,” said Lilliane Calfee, the program director and an accomplished documentary filmmaker herself. “They could have done it on makeup videos, but they didn’t. They really went to the heart of what mattered to them as young people and what mattered to their communities.”
Lopez said that prior to the film program the only experience she had was recording with her cellphone at family events. She said she thought it would be fun to learn how to do it with a professional camera.
“The main takeaway I learned was that I can do more than what I thought I could, and I learned that I just have to stay focused,” Lopez said, adding that she wants to pursue film while joining the Air Force after high school.
Group member Tay'rece Wise, 17, lives in Riverdale and attends Young Womens Leadership Charter School. She said she was looking for summer jobs last year and came across the program.
“This one gave me the chance to tell my story,” she said. “The story I tell is me losing my [15-year-old] godbrother in 2014.”
She too said she plans to study film after high school.
Both of the young women encourage people to come support their film.
“This shows that not all teens are out here being reckless; I'm doing something productive with my life,” Lopez said.
