Jennifer Ward is a Central RA, a Journalism Major and Literature Minor, a Writer for the Purchase Phoenix, and most unexpectedly, frequently an actor and crew member on film sets around the Purchase community.
She comes from a background of theater, but prior to college had never done any for-camera acting, and didn’t come to college with a major which would put her in the position to do such. Having seen some of her work, I was curious about what was motivating her and where she found her inspirations for film.
We met at the on campus Purchase starbucks for a brief chat.
A photo of Ward on film set (Courtesy of Ward)
Photo of Ward acting on set of Vignette (dir Jamie Simiele, 2022) Courtesy of Ward
A photo of Ward operating Boom on a film set (Courtesy of Ward)
Ward has an older cousin in the film industry who applied to Suny Purchase for the Film BFA. This is what introduced Ward to Purchase, and provided an auxiliary knowledge of the industry. Ward shares that he became a director at Nickelodeon, but did not enroll at Purchase.
Ward had shown an interest in musical theater growing up, enjoying shows like Glee (FOX, 2009-2015) Starting her acting career in theater, Ward intended to only be an actor for the stage, and began performing at the age of 8. However, through enrolling at Purchase and becoming friends with students such as Jamie Simiele, Ward expanded to acting for the camera. Ward believes it allows her to practice her acting skills and keep in touch with her theater background.
Vignette, dir. Jamie Simiele (2022)
Vignette was Ward’s first forray into acting for film and cites it as a pleasant experience with a small crew and cast. It was a “safe and chill environment” and “A good introduction” to the film culture of Purchase. Since then, Ward has participated in acting and crew for the second rendition of Overall Suspicious Persons (Jamie Simiele, 2022) and *Hallowed Ground (*Jamie Simiele, 2022) which Ward wrote an article on, for the Purchase Phoenix.
Ward described Overall Suspicious Persons as a fun enviornment with a quick filming schedule of only two days, as the second rendition of it was a part of the school’s annual POVFest. Ward participated in crew for Hallowed ground, as lighting operator. “So much fun filming at our friends house” where “We sat around after and had pizza.” On set, Ward was dedicated, so much so that “for two straight days I sat in that pit, holding it up. But I was taking breaks, I could rest.”
“I like to joke around about it, but it was really fun.”
Ward on set operating lighting for *Hallowed Ground (*Jamie Simiele, 2022) (Courtesy of Ward)