Over the past four years, senior Ben Kohler has taken on the challenge of being one of the best student film directors in the area. “I’ve learned a lot these past couple years at BSM,” Kohler said. “Going into each major project there’s a lot of stress and things to get in order. It takes a lot of planning, but when it’s done, it’s always worth it.”

On April 12, Kohler won the Best Director in the Midwest award for 2015. “It was a huge honor to be on the Emmy stage with several other qualified individuals,” Kohler said. “I had the opportunity to talk to prospective filmmakers, as well as give a speech to show my appreciation.” The ceremony was hosted by The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) at the Radisson Blu. Every year four student directors in the Midwest are nominated for the award, and the committee at the NATAS selects a winner.

This award, however, is just one of many that Kohler has won. “Out of everything I’ve been nominated for, this is by far the highest honor I’ve received,” Kohler said. “Last year I won an award for Best Documentary and Best Cinematography for my at the EDU Film Festival for my film on Christ Ballas and Honduras respectively. I was then invited to the Duluth Film Festival to have my film on Honduras shown with several other short films.”

Kohler’s win stems mainly from his most recent production: Circulate, a short film about a man who wakes up in an abandoned hospital confused about his whereabouts. “Circulate was by far the biggest film I’ve worked on thus far,” Kohler said. “That being said, I’m looking to keep up the pace with big projects in the future and continue improving the quality of my work.”