O’Mealy Family Endowed Graduate Student Fellowship in Literature
Chiyeon Hwang (East Asian Languages & Literatures) and So Yeon Kim (English) received the O’Mealy Family Endowed Graduate Student Fellowship in Literature in support of their dissertation research. Hwang and Kim are the inaugural award recipients.
The O’Mealys established this endowment to support expenses associated with attaining a PhD, such as research, travel, tuition, and books, thereby enabling students to focus more intently on their scholarly endeavors. Through this award, the O’Mealy family fosters academic excellence and contributes to the advancement of literary scholarship at UH Mānoa.
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Cinematic Arts Students, Alumni Shine At 44th HIFF
The School of Cinematic Arts (SCA) at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa is celebrating the impressive achievements of its faculty, alumni, and students at the 44th Hawaiʻi International Film Festival (HIFF). This year, their creative works earned prestigious awards, nominations, and widespread recognition, highlighting UH Mānoa’s influence on Hawaiʻi’s cinematic landscape.
“The faculty of SCA have done an amazing job throughout the years mentoring these talented students, so it is quite gratifying to see the success of the alumni and the level of talent in the upcoming group of students and recent graduates,” said Christine Acham, a professor and chair at SCA. [UH News]
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Marc Moody Places in The Academy Nicholl Fellowship and Other Top International Screenwriting Contests
Professor Marc Moody at The School of Cinematic Arts was a quarterfinalist at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences; Nicholl Fellowship International Screenwriting Competition. Considered the premiere international screenwriting competition, the Academy hosts its main events, The Governor’s Awards, Nicholl Fellowship, and The Academy Awards. Moody’s screenplay was one of only 354 entries to proceed from the 5,500 screenplays submitted.
Moody submitted four screenplays to Screencraft’s Best Feature International Screenwriting Contest, where all four made the quarterfinals. Another screenplay placed as a semifinalist, and another screenplay of Moody’s made the quarterfinals at Screencraft’s Best Action and Adventure category.
He was a Finalist at the Richmond International Film Festival’s Screenwriting Competition, one of the Mid Atlantic’s largest international competitive festivals and is Finalist at Final Draft’s Big Break International Screenwriting contest where its Grand Prize winner will be announced in December. He also won semifinalists at WEScreenplay Diverse Voices competition.
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Hula Icon Vicky Holt Takamine Honored With Prestigious Gish Prize
Victoria “Vicky” Holt Takamine, a retired University of Hawaiʻi dance lecturer and revered kumu hula (master hula teacher) was awarded the 31st annual Dorothy and Lillian Gish Prize, one of the most highly regarded arts honors in the world. Valued at more than $450,000, the award recognizes individuals who have significantly advanced the arts and created meaningful social change.
“I can think of no more deserving recipient than longtime faculty member Kumu Hula Victoria Holt Takamine,” said Donald Womack, professor and chair at the UH Mānoa music department. “Her contributions over the many years she taught continue to have a positive impact. We couldn’t be more proud that her lifetime of commitment to the art form of hula has been recognized.” [UH News]
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UH Mānoa double-reed musicians from left, Emily Fujii, Michael Martin, Lecturer Marsha Schweitzer, Erin Matsushita and JP Ovens.
Double-Reed Dreams Come True For UH Mānoa Musicians
For the first time in history, musicians represented the University of Hawaiʻi at the International Double Reed Society (IDRS) Conference held in Flagstaff, Arizona. Last summer, the event was attended by world-class musicians and featured performances by a double reed quartet from UH Mānoa.
The quartet—Erin Matsushita (oboe), Emily Fujii (English horn), JP Ovens (bassoon) and Michael Martin (contrabassoon)—performed under the guidance of their coach, UH Mānoa music lecturer Marsha Schweitzer. Their program featured an arrangement of Mozart’s Piano Sonata No. 7 in C Major and “Aloha ʻOe,” the beloved composition penned by Queen Liliʻuokalani. [UH News]
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UH Orchestra Premiered Powerful Tribute To Kalaupapa’s Past
The University of Hawaiʻi Symphony Orchestra (UHSO) performed on December 1 at Kennedy Theatre. Led by Joseph Stepec, associate professor of music at UH Mānoa, the 55-member orchestra presented a diverse program featuring a conductorless performance of Mozart’s Oboe Concerto, with UH faculty and internationally acclaimed oboist Alex Hayashi as soloist, and Dvořák’s New World Symphony. [UH News]
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Best Chapter Award
Congratulations to Alpha-Beta-Epsilon, the History Department chapter of the Phi Alpha Theta National History Honor Society, for being selected as Best Chapter of 2024 for Division V. The chapter has won this honor five times previously in 2009, 2014, 2016, 2018, and 2023, making the sixth (!) time that PAT Alpha-Beta-Epsilon has garnered the top prize for its division, which encompasses schools with enrollments of 15,001 to 23,000. Many thanks to faculty advisors Profs. Karen Jolly and Noah Dolim, current and past PAT presidents Kale Kanaeholo and Carissa Chew, and all UHM PAT members for creating such a dynamic and engaged community of graduate and undergraduate History scholars. For information about PAT-ABE or to join, contact patmanoa@hawaii.edu
