Thursday, June 8, 2006 | 7:33 a.m.
When Francisco Menendez joined the UNLV faculty 16 years ago, there were seven students in the film department.
Today there are 650.
Many participate in CineVegas.
"For my students it's a great experience, competing for emerging filmmaker awards," said Menendez, chairman of the UNLV Film Department. "CineVegas is very generous in offering that to us every year."
And many former students help out with CineVegas.
"It allows them the opportunity to have contact with directors, writers and cinematographers that they otherwise would not have," he said.
Menendez has watched the festival change since it was founded in 1999.
"The original idea was to do something very Vegas, bring the best of other film festivals to Vegas," Menendez said. "That changed very quickly.
"When (programmer) Trevor Groth joined CineVegas, it became a much younger and hipper festival, and I think it works. What makes a festival a festival is to have a programmer with a strong vision."
Most of the films shown are ones fans won't get a chance to see until they come out on DVD.
Menendez agrees with others that what sets the festival apart from other festivals is that it is in Las Vegas.
"Film festivals have a tendency to be held in snowy regions, in distant regions used to buff up the local economy," he said.
"Here the film festival allows us to see great films in the early evening, go to some great parties, get up and go to panel discussions and see Sylvester Stallone be honored for the 30th anniversary of 'Rocky.' It's exciting to be able to have that kind of event in a place like Las Vegas."
Many film festivals overshadow its locale.
Not so CineVegas.
"It has become part of the Las Vegas experience," Menendez said.
Menendez says another important aspect of the festival is that it exposes filmmakers to the city.
"I think the brain trust behind CineVegas is very aware of the potential" to bring filmmakers here, he said. "The festival is not just a boutique item, but it makes filmmakers think of the town differently, and that's a good thing."
Menendez notes that there has been a lot of talk over the years about Las Vegas becoming another Hollywood.
"Eventually it might be a viable possibility," he said. "But I always have argued that for people to want to make full-length films here we have to create the filmmakers to do it.
"Just like (producer/director) Barry Levinson ('Diner') goes back to Baltimore to make films, you want to create filmmakers in Nevada, and those filmmakers will want to make films here."
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