Jadyn Cash, Special to The Denisonian–

“I came into class not knowing it was a pitch day. I had nothing in my head,” Tyler Nguyen ‘27 recalled, a nostalgic look on his face as if he were letting me in on a secret. 

Charlie Stocker ‘27, Nguyen’s partner for the project, sat to his left, shaking his head with a roll of his eyes and a smile. 

Nguyen remembered pitching for his film final all too well. It was a warm day in November, and his Advanced Cinema Production class had gathered on South Quad to take advantage of the sun’s balmy rays. 

However, Nguyen felt anything but appreciative. As he watched three groups pitch ideas for their finals from the uncomfortable plastic of his Adirondack chair, he knew his time to present was rapidly approaching—and his film idea was ultimately nonexistent. He felt stuck.

But then, inspiration struck Nguyen in the form of a favorite quote: “The most unique stories are the most personal.”

Nguyen immediately understood he had a cinematic story to tell.

“This film is literally about me and my journey with filmmaking,” he said. “Filmmaking has been such an integral part of my life, and it’s become such a big piece of my identity.”

In this moment, Nguyen and Stocker’s award-winning short film, “Stuck in Frame”, was born.

“We are creating something entirely new, and “Stuck in Frame” was one of the most beautiful experiences of my life,” Stocker said. Nguyen nodded in agreement with his friend. “The whole process. And I genuinely mean that.”

“Stuck in Frame” is a colorful short film that follows a young Nguyen as he discovers his love for cinematography—but not without obstacles. As Nguyen speaks with his school counselor, he realizes that cinema may be his only defining quality since he feels that he has never known anything outside of this passion. However, as the film progresses, Nguyen’s character realizes that he is more than his own expectations as he navigates both figurative and literal settings that shape what the cinematic experience means and looks like to him.

Nguyen began conceptualizing this film immediately after presenting his pitch, undertaking the roles of both writer and director. He quickly realized he was creating a story that went beyond himself and would need help producing such an intricate film. 

This is when Nguyen decided to recruit Stocker, who is a Creative Writing major and employee of the Writing Center and had a lot of experience with writing fiction.

Stocker recalled the experience with enthusiasm. 

“Yeah, I was just at work one day, and Nguyen came in. He was like, ‘Yo, you wanna help me with this scene I’m trying to write for my film?’ And I was like, ‘Of course, of course.’ And so he scheduled an appointment, and instantly, like, it was just clicking,” Stocker said.

Not only did Stocker take on the new role of co-writer, but he also found himself as the leading man of “Stuck in Frame”—something that both intimidated and intrigued him. 

He said that he “was able to click with this character so well… because it represents… something that we all struggle with… this sort of problem that young people face of not really knowing what they [want to] do… I think it explores trying to conquer those fears and anxieties.”

Later in November, Nguyen and Stocker found themselves beginning the rapid but tedious filming process.

“The first thing we shot was the void scene,” Stocker said. “I don’t know how to put it any other way than it set the tone.”

Nguyen pointed to this particular scene as his favorite to have filmed.

“At first, there were so many problems with where to put the lights and stuff like that, but it was so much fun doing that with so many people, and then they get to see, ‘Oh sh*t, wait, we shot that together.’ And I think it looks really good.”

That is not to say the duo did not run into problems while filming. 

In particular, Nguyen remembered filming the scene between Stocker’s character and his parents, during which the Ohio winter weather was anything but predictable.

“It got really stressful because it was the one day where the light kept changing and the snow kept changing. Which caused issues with continuity in the filming process,” Nguyen said.

Stocker recalled how, at one point, Nguyen’s hands were even purple from the cold, forcing the team to halt their filming while Stocker retrieved a pair of gloves from his room.

As filming wrapped up, the editing process began for Nguyen. Many sleepless nights were spent working on the film, which had to be completed within a week of his final’s due date.

“It was just me going to class, and then the class usually ended at 12:00 [p.m.], and I’d have lunch and then immediately go down to the Mulberry mixing room. I just lived there,” Nguyen said.

Stocker was no stranger to wakeful nights, as he was there alongside Nguyen through the good, the bad, and the ugly, making as many creative decisions—about technicalities such as sound and lighting—as possible within their very limited time.

Eventually, the moment came for Nguyen and Stocker to watch “Stuck in Frame” in its entirety for the very first time. Stocker remembered the rush of adrenaline and joy he and Nguyen felt, jumping around Nguyen’s room once “Timeless” by The Weeknd marked the end of the film and cued the credits to roll.

After the film’s very successful screening and lots of encouragement from his professors, Nguyen was told to submit his film to festivals. He did, but not without hesitation. He hadn’t expected his film to be recognized in such a way and he was ultimately proud of the work he had done. However, he decided to take a chance and submit it to the Cinema Columbus Film Festival.

He remembered he had been talking in his International Studies class when he had received the deciding notification on his phone. Immediately, he stopped speaking in shock at the news. He had gotten into the festival, and he was ecstatic.  

Nguyen and Stocker have expressed their excitement and pride in being recognized for their work, as they have won both Best Cinematography and Best Film at the Virginia Emerging Filmmakers Festival. However, they acknowledge that this film has meant more to them than words can describe.

It was a “passion project.”

“I think of the late-night editing in the studio,” Stocker said. “I think of the times when I was jumping around to ‘Timeless’ in Nguyen’s room. I think about those times, and I don’t think I’ll ever forget the collaborative experience that this was because it coincided with such an important moment in my life.”