By Katherine Morrison
A student recording in a studio at the Gordon Center for Creative and Performing Arts. A basketball dropping into the net with a smooth swish. A group of students holding up True Blue signs in front of Miller Library.
This year’s True Blue video campaign went beyond raising funds for the future of students on Mayflower Hill. It featured a new twist—the videos were created entirely by students. Behind the lens, the three Colby students were doing something they never imagined they’d get to do: tell a Colby story, their way.
United by their passion for filmmaking, the students took charge of the project from concept development to the final edit, which provided them with opportunities to be creative and opened potential pathways.
A creative spin
Meet Josh Kaplan ’25, Clint Macy ’26, and Yiyun Mao ’26, students who never imagined they’d be behind the video camera telling a story about Colby for an annual campaign. Although each has a unique path to filmmaking, their journeys were ignited by curiosity, supported by mentors, and shaped by their community.
Kaplan, a statistics and music double major and varsity tennis player, came into filmmaking through a 2022 Jan Plan class taught by Los Angeles director David Mackay, a Colby parent. “That was my first real hands-on experience,” Kaplan said. “I’ve always loved movies and TV shows but never imagined I’d make anything.”
Since then, he has been a teacher’s assistant for that same course and has taken on different roles for student-led films. All while balancing his college tennis career.
For Macy, an economics major and Nordic skier, filmmaking started as a hobby. “I grew up making little iMovie videos with my sister,” he recalled. But it wasn’t until he took a documentary course with Erin Murphy, instructor of cinema studies, that it clicked. “I’d never used anything more than an iPhone. Then I made a documentary about an artist in Lubec, Maine—and I was hooked.”
Mao, a philosophy and economics double major minoring in cinema studies, grew up in Beijing and arrived at Colby thinking filmmaking might be out of reach at a small liberal arts college. “I came here and was surprised by how many film opportunities I found.”
She connected with Annie Kloppenberg, director of the Lyons Arts Lab and associate professor of performance, theater, and dance, in a moment of frustration after a collaborative project fell apart. That conversation changed everything. “She told me I could use the Lyons Art Lab, and she’d help take care of it all,” Mao said. A whirlwind of screenwriting sessions with a former Oscar-nominated actress followed, and a team of professional mentors came to campus to help Mao shoot a short film.
Lights, camera, community
Each February, the Colby community comes together for the True Blue Challenge to demonstrate its commitment to being “Always True, Forever Blue.” The True Blue initiative emphasizes the importance of community and how alumni can collectively support Colby students. It highlights the strength and unity of the alumni community in paving the way for future generations.
The idea of having students lead the annual True Blue video campaign began after the student filmmakers spoke at an Alumni Council panel about their experience with the Lyons Arts Lab. From there, the Office of Advancement saw an opportunity to let the students tell a story about Colby with creative control.
Kaplan took on the director role, Mao was the producer, and Macy was the director of photography. “We wanted it to feel real,” Macy explained. “We incorporated alumni voices alongside students and filled it with dynamic b-roll from around campus.”
It wasn’t always smooth sailing. “I thought finding the right music would be easy,” Kaplan laughed. “I’m a music major. But I spent hours digging through free stock music.”
Scheduling was another challenge. Accessing classrooms, practices, and labs required last-minute texts, emails, and connections. “It was chaotic,” Kaplan said. “But I’m very happy it worked out.”
Mao said the editing process was both exhilarating and humbling. “We needed to fulfill a certain expectation for the video on top of our creativity,” she said. “It showed us how the real world would operate while still having creative control.”
Real-world education
For this trio of students, the experience has sparked new possibilities. Unexpected interests can become lifelong passions, friendships form in late-night editing sessions, and one conversation with the right professor can change everything.
For Macy, it’s opened professional doors. Last summer, he worked as a film production intern for Tower 3 Productions in Wyoming, and this summer, he will intern with another film company that works with Montana PBS, Disney Plus, and National Geographic. “I’m trying to make the most of what I have for resources and connections at Colby, where there’s a bit of a safety net,” he said. “I’m just excited to have opportunities that bring me to cool places and new connections.”
Mao is focusing on building a portfolio and exploring roles in storytelling. “I’ve learned I’m more spontaneous and like coming up with creative ideas,” she said with a grin. “Filmmaking is predictable but also unpredictable. Most of the time you have to figure out the solution on the spot.”
While Kaplan is open to new opportunities, he is longing for a hands-on career after completing the True Blue videos. “Someone told me this is the only time in your life that you can take a big risk,” he said. “It’s true. That’s been leading me to pursue film.”
