By Clayton Kelley
News Reporter
In the aftermath of his production partner’s death, a Texas State professor has premiered his film to a student audience.
Professor Caleb Straus showcased the third installment of his trilogy, It’s Over. The premiere was met with an audience of over 25 students at the theater building. The trilogy was under his and his late partner, Dustin Johnson’s, self-run company, Snout Productions. It is a post-apocalyptic story which includes a secular take on themes and characters from the Bible.
Straus said working on this final installment was very difficult for him but that he can’t find a better homage to his deceased creative partner than finishing it out.
“It’s mixed feelings because the minute I got the news, I knew I had to finish it and I’ve been dreading nothing more than finishing it,” Straus said. “The biggest fear I had was sitting down and just looking at him, seeing him move and talk. The more I got into that, the more I realized there was comfort in that.”
Straus said he tries to keep students engaged in his creative process when he is teaching Beginning Acting and Directing 1.
“In this business, you really have to network and any opportunity I get, I try to teach people to sell yourself to the craft of acting,” Straus said. “If I get the chance, I’ll send students to auditions. You need knowledge in this business, but you also need to know people so I’ll give them opportunities when I can.”
George James, performance and production junior, said he played the character of Noah Azel in the film and he was glad to be under the direction of someone with experience.
“[Straus] was very invested in this, especially the story. He’s been working on this for a long time,” James said. “Coming to the third movie, there’s a lot of knowledge brought to the table.”
There have been talks in making this film series into a comic series, Straus said. However, he is on the fence as to whether it is a healthy choice to continue future installments without his friend. Those who are interested in watching the film series can do so on the Snout Production’s website.