New York Film Academy (NYFA) Filmmaking alum Irving Franco debuted his first feature film, Cheerleader, produced in collaboration with two fellow NYFA alumni, brothers Dario and Fabián Vejarano.
Irving, who grew up in Brooklyn, graduated from NYFA’s 1-Year Filmmaking conservatory in 2008 at NYFA’s New York campus. There he met fellow 1-Year Filmmaking student Dario Vejarano, who originally hails from Spain and who shot Cheerleader as director of photography. His brother Fabián attended NYFA’s 8-Week Screenwriting workshop in July 2014.
“My time at NYFA was really important to me,” says Franco. “That’s where I met some great friends and long-term collaborators. That’s where I had the chance to try things, experiment, mess up, and learn. Filmmaking is not easy, but it is a deeply rewarding experience. NYFA is where that started for me.”
Franco’s hard work, networking, and experimenting paid off as he was able write and direct a feature film, Cheerleader, which has gone on to perform well on the festival circuit since its premiere.
The film tells the story of Mickey, a promiscuous teenager reeling from heartbreak who seeks calculated revenge on her ex-boyfriend. To date it’s been an Official Selection for a dozen film festivals across the country—including the New Orleans Film Festival, Atlanta Film Festival, and Florida Film Festival—picking up several nominations and awards along the way, including two special jury prizes and a top 40 ranking out of 7,500 Slamdance Film Festival submissions.
New York Film Academy congratulates NYFA alumni Irving Franco, Dario Vejarano ,and Fabián Vejarano on the success of Cheerleader and encourages everyone to check out the film, available now on iTunes and Amazon video.
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