Baylor Filmmakers Win Awards at BEA Festival of Media Arts
Three Baylor University film & digital media representatives -- two recent graduates and a current graduate student –– have won awards at the 2025 BEA Festival of Media Arts. In the annual competition, the original films created by the Baylor winners competed from among a pool of 2,285 entries representing more than 300 colleges and universities. The entries were judged by a group of 800 media arts professionals.
“We’re really delighted to see our students do so well in a competition that is specifically designed to allow them to compete against their peers –– namely, other students in film and media programs across the nation," said Chris Hansen, chair and professor of film & digital media in the College of Arts & Sciences. "Baylor Film & Digital Media students consistently make compelling and thoughtful films, and we’re proud to see them being rewarded for their work at high levels like the BEA’s Festival of Media Arts.”
"We are so excited and honored for our students to be awarded at this prestigious event," said Maverick Moore, senior lecturer in film & digital media. "All three of the students being awarded have taken several of my short film production classes, beginning with a class where they made their first collegiate-level short film. To witness and experience their artistic growth and progression firsthand over the years makes what I do worthwhile and meaningful. To see their short films now awarded at this level is the cherry on top. And I have a feeling it’s only the beginning. I am so grateful for what they have already achieved and so thrilled for what’s all to come."
The annual BEA convention, held in conjunction with the National Association of Broadcasters Show in Las Vegas, attracts more than 1,200 educators and students who take part in more than 200 educational sessions.
The Baylor filmmakers who won awards as part of the 2025 Festival include:
Shaler Keenum (MA '24): For the film “to write the ending,” third place in the Graduate Student Narrative Film category.
Jordan Ochel (MA '22), associate director of digital strategy for the Hankamer School of Business: For the film “Healing Hands,” first place in the Graduate Student Narrative Film category, as well as the “Best of Festival” award for all categories in the Graduate Student Competition.
Addison Cendejas (BA '24), MFA candidate in film & digital media: For the film “Counterfeit,” an Award of Excellence in the Undergraduate Student Narrative Film category.
ABOUT THE COLLEGE OF ARTS & SCIENCES AT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY
The College of Arts & Sciences is Baylor University’s largest academic division, consisting of 25 academic departments in the sciences, humanities, fine arts and social sciences, as well as 11 academic centers and institutes. The more than 5,000 courses taught in the College span topics from art and theatre to religion, philosophy, sociology and the natural sciences. The College’s undergraduate Unified Core Curriculum, which routinely receives top grades in national assessments, emphasizes a liberal education characterized by critical thinking, communication, civic engagement and Christian commitment. Arts & Sciences faculty conduct research around the world, and research on the undergraduate and graduate level is prevalent throughout all disciplines. Visit the College of Arts & Sciences website.