TWIN FALLS, Idaho — A hometown documentary about the College of Southern Idaho's cheer team will make its Magic Valley debut this weekend at the 9th Annual Twin Falls Film Festival, after already earning international recognition.
'Cheer Dreams,' directed by local filmmaker Jason Turner, has already screened internationally in Rome at the Prisma Film Awards and won an award at the International Movie Awards. Now, Magic Valley audiences will get their first chance to see the film that Turner spent a year creating.
"There's a lot of pressure, a lot of tears, a lot of sweat and a little bit of blood," Turner said.
HEAR MORE FROM LOCAL FILMMAKER ABOUT THE MAGIC VALLEY DEBUT OF 'CHEER DREAMS'
Turner devoted a full year to the project, shooting more than 50 hours of footage with the CSI cheer team for his first feature film.
"So you can see behind the scenes of what it's really like to be a competitive college cheerleader who was aiming to get their third national title win," Turner said.
The documentary offers an intimate look at the dedication required for competitive cheerleading at the college level. Turner said he chose this subject because of his personal connection to the team.
"I think the stories I can tell most deeply are stories that are closest to me, and that's what the cheer team was to me," Turner said.
"Cheer Dreams" has secured a premium time slot in the Friday evening film block at the festival. The film will share the screen with over 40 other productions screening Friday and Saturday at the Orpheum Theatre. A full schedule can be seen at the Twin Falls Film Festival website, and tickets can be purchased there as well.
"It's a mix of everything from two minutes to a half hour to an hour and a half," said Kevin Bradshaw, film festival director.
Bradshaw said the festival's selection includes work from local, regional and national filmmakers representing diverse backgrounds and perspectives.
"And this is an experience to find out how independent filmmakers create versus corporate media," Bradshaw said.
For Turner, the festival represents an important milestone in his filmmaking journey.
"I want to make a great art project and I'm excited to have Cheer Dreams be my very first one," Turner said.
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