‘Scarecrow' wins best student short film award

Vernon native wrote and directed film Vernon — Vernon native Patrick Knipe’s film “Scarecrow” won the Best Student Short Film award at the 28th annual New Jersey International Film Festival held at Rutgers University. It was among 38 finalists chosen from the more than 250 films submitted from around the world. Knipe wrote and directed “Scarecrow,” a 17-minute film, as his graduate thesis while at the University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts where he was the recipient of the Mary Pickford Foundation Scholarship. He graduated Vernon Township High in 2003 and received a bachelor’s degree from Boston College. Set during the Civil War, “Scarecrow” is the story of a young Confederate soldier named Jack who goes off to war to be a hero, and is so horrified by what he encounters in his first battle that he runs away. Ending up in a nearby cornfield, he meets two runaway slaves en route to the North and freedom. In them he witnesses a different source of courage and discovers a battle worth fighting for. “Scarecrow” is making the rounds of film festivals nationally and internationally. It has been honored as an official selection at 16 festivals and has received eight awards, including as an HBO award finalist and the 2009 Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library Award at the Route 66 Film Festival held in Springfield, Ill. Knipe has been encouraged to develop “Scarecrow” into a feature-length film. More information about the film, including cast and production crew is available at www.scarecrowfilm.com