With the four years of classes students are provided, the seniors have always maintained their mark on this school, ever since the day they stepped into freshman year. Many have strived to make themselves distinguished throughout their time here.

One in particular has had a humble start to his future career. Many may know him as a lively person strolling through the halls in his trademark New York Film Academy hat, but others know him as someone who has worked tremendously hard in his passion. Although, if you ask Ashton Shemet, he won’t find his accomplishments as a result of work.

Ashton has recently made his commitment to New York Film Academy official, even though his dedication towards the school has been alive since his freshman days. Even farther, his interest in cameras have been alive since before then. “In 2009, I recorded all of my family events. The interest has always been there, I just never knew you could make a job out of it,” he said.

Ever since those days, he has learned more about cameras and making movies. Although he has started with the interest in photography, he has added cinematography onto his list of interests and excelled in multiple events, such as Sydney Sheren’s film festival in April of 2016. His horror movie Armarium was filmed in black and white and exceeded expectations for the audience. He mentioned how he used a digital camera in the dark to create a better scene during the process. He would also rather not overthink the shots he takes, for it interrupts the tone that he’s trying to generate. “Every frame should be a painting” and with the beauty of each scene, comes the professional job of making the painting move.

Ashton has been influenced by film directors such as Stanley Kubrick and James Wan, who directed The Conjuring. The Conjuring (2103) was the movie that made Ashton decide to create other horror movies. Armanium was widely inspired by Stanley Kubrick.

With fame and awards, Ashton does not take interest in the “Hollywood” scene. “Little indie movies that don’t usually set out to make big budgets get better rewards,” he said. He strives to make his films unique, not popular. He strives to be original.

With the action of making a thought or vision into something on the big screen, the process is one of patience. This has entitled an interest to his name, and because of his triumph, he has been accepted into the New York Film Academy starting in the fall of 2017. Not only has this proved him as a hard-working student, but as someone who can easily earn the goals he sets to earn with his constant ambition.