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Collin Masteller
sfcc.collin.masteller@gmail.com
When you walk in the doors of The Riverside Place, you are met with gleaming white marble floors and a welcome desk. You sign in and that’s it, you are now a part of the shootout and better have your weapons ready.
Spokane Falls Community College Photo Arts Club, in conjunction with the photography program, has been staging a weeklong student run photographic shootout competition featuring professional photography applications and film productions at the former Masonic Temple. This event is designed to give students an opportunity to hone their craft in a larger space that is rich with background visuals. This also gives the opportunity for deep space lighting techniques. The event is funded by the PAC and facilitated by faculty and staff. These productions are incorporated into curriculum in the photography program.
“Our goal here is to provide the students with greater opportunity and real world application,” PAC advisor Erik Sohner said. “We are hoping that this adds to their experience and their portfolio.”
Multitudes of students scurry around the endless hallways taking in the splendor the building has to offer. Giant open auditoriums with balconies and carvings of figures in the walls leave students stunned.
“It is a really cool thing the PAC does here,” first year student Lexi Greenwood said. “I have lived in Spokane my whole life and never been in the building. The 6th floor was amazing, the lighting was so unique.”
The 111-year old building was built and formerly occupied by the Masonic order, a secretive fraternity tied to American history. The building was sold in 2013 to local businessman Greg Newell. Newell rents out ballrooms and conference rooms for area events. SFCC students are allowed unprecedented access thru the bowels of the building that not everyone gets to see.
Musky dark dressing rooms and narrow steep stairwells will keep new students amazed for hours. Staircases are built over windows and crawl spaces large enough to stand up in are hidden within the walls. Balconies with no doors or entry point keep the mind endlessly entertained. Student Raymond Morales enjoyed his 3rd time in the building.
“The building is as old as the town itself,” he said. “Pre-modern architectures peek interest to anyone who comes through the doors. Even though some aspects of the building show modernized structure, the building’s iconic rooms still maintain their timeless elegance and antique furniture. It’s definitely a great place for our photo program’s creative mind to use.”
It is not all fun and games for some students. There is a tight schedule kept for large and small production shoots. Students can spend up to 4 hours staging and directing models across a whole auditorium. One production used 20 students help moving and adjusting lighting. Others only take up a few seats or a corner of a stage to shoot. These only require 2-3 people helping.
“For me it took 6 assistants. All of their advice helped me tremendously. We had fun and kicked ass ,” student Skye Alvarez said.
Professional hairstylists and makeup artists from the Paul Mitchell Academy provided their services to help the models look their best. Costumes were provided by the Spokane Civic Theater. This year’s shootout was considered a success by head of productions Marc Harvey.
“Once again it was an absolute success,” he said. “I would venture to say a greater success than previous shootouts . Our theme this year assigned to the students was a rediscovery of the tableaux art movement and I think this subject matter really got the student’s and instructors creative juices flowing.”
Those interested in participating in next year’s event can do so by enrolling in any photography class for spring quarter. Students may also join the PAC to become involved. Information about classes and the PAC can be acquired in the photography equipment cage located in building 11 at SFCC.
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