Cuba Documentary Nominated for Student Academy Award

The University of Nebraska-Lincoln College of Journalism and Mass Communications' 2003 documentary, "Cuba: Illogical Temple," is one of 29 student films selected to compete in the 31st annual Student Academy Awards. The documentary was produced by then-students Lindsey Kealy and David Pittock as part of a depth-reporting class trip to Cuba in January 2003.

Kealy received her bachelor's degree in 2003 and Pittock was a graduate student and received his undergraduate degree in broadcasting in 1999. Adviser on the project was broadcasting professor Jerry Renaud.

"Cuba: Illogical Temple" will represent Region II in the documentary category in the Student Academy Awards judging at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in Los Angeles. Four other documentaries were selected for the competition, which also includes narrative, animation and alternative film categories.

Kealy and Pittock's Cuba documentary was shown April 28 in Chicago at the Gene Siskel Film Center at the School of the Art Institute in Chicago, as part of the regional competition. Final voting by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts will be conducted and awardees will be notified later this month. The award ceremony is June 13 in Los Angeles.

The Student Academy Awards is a national competition conducted by the academy and the Academy Foundation. Each year, more than 300 college and university film students from all over the United States compete for awards and cash grants of up to $5,000. An outstanding student filmmaker from outside the U.S. is honored each year as well. The presentation ceremony is a popular event that is annually attended by a capacity audience in the academy's Samuel Goldwyn Theater. Through the Student Academy Awards, the academy recognizes and encourages this country's most promising new filmmakers. Past winners include Spike Lee, Gary Nadeau, Bob Saget, Trey Parker and Oscar winners John Lasseter and Robert Zemeckis.

The honor for the documentary is in addition to those received by news-editorial students who published the depth report magazine "Cuba: An Elusive Truth," which was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. The projects concluded a semester of study and an 11-day trip to Cuba by nine journalism students, followed by another semester to complete the broadcast and magazine projects.

CONTACTS: Jerry Renaud, Assoc. Professor, Broadcasting, (402) 472-3056; and Dave Pittock