CMU prides itself on its tight-knit and welcoming community, with plenty of opportunities to interact with peers outside of classes, whether you live on campus or you’re a commuter student. One of the driving forces behind these events is the Arts & Entertainment committee.
As the title implies, the Arts & Ents committee is responsible for providing fun events all throughout the year for students to take part in at no extra cost to the students. One consistent event that has remained solid throughout the years is the coffeehouse, usually put on multiple times a year. Coffeehouses are a chance for students to showcase their music or any other forms of performance. As a university with a diverse demographic of students, it’s nice to see what kind of projects your fellow students have been creating in their free time.
Besides coffeehouses, Arts & Ents hosts at least two events per month. They’ve ranged from games nights to a professor PowerPoint night. “The PowerPoint night with the professors has probably been my favorite event so far,” says first-year student Paige-Elise Anderson. “A few students made funny PowerPoints and then the professors had to present them without knowing what they were beforehand. It was great! I’ve never seen the lecture hall so packed with students,” she continues.
Besides live entertainment, the artistic side of events often comes in the form of collaborative activities, such as painting on the lawn or tie-dyeing.
At the helm of the operation are Logan Nord and Aria Klassen, co-directors of Arts & Ents. Logan and Aria hold a weekly meeting that gives other students the chance to voice their ideas for events. This semester, the committee helped organize the annual sustainability festival. The festival runs for an entire week and aims to promote sustainable and environmentally friendly activities.
“We have a few [other] events we are looking forward to this year, including Film 60 and a mega coffeehouse. All are welcome to join our committee to see these fun, creative, and stress-relieving ideas come to life!” Aria explains.
It isn’t just the Arts & Ents team that provides entertainment for the student body. Among other groups, Hillary Jorgenson heads a film club with Dean of Student Life Charlie Peronto. Film club meets once a week in the Poettcker Hall residence building, using the TV in the basement lounge to watch movies. After the films, everyone spends time discussing them and the impact they had on them. “Charlie and I had been talking about it for a while because we have a shared interest in film…and I realized that watching movies in groups of people made me like [movies] more,” Hillary says. “I thought it would be wonderful for people to have a space to watch films they haven’t seen before.”
One important mission for both the Arts & Entertainment committee and film club is the unity of students who commute and students who live on campus. “One side quest of film club was getting both commuters and residence students in one place together, where they could talk to people maybe they haven’t talked to that much before,” says Hillary. “Everyone brings their own interpretations and their own lives to film club, and it’s really eye-opening and rewarding to hear other perspectives. It connects you better with the people you’re watching with.”
For Hillary, her passion for film has led her to Letterboxd, an app used to connect with friends and fellow moviegoers where you can rate and review movies, and display your top four favourite films on your profile. “In no particular order, Fire of Love, Before Sunrise, Universal Language, and The Apartment are my top four,” she says. Her passion for film in general and film club is palpable in everything she says.
She pauses to clarify something about the moniker, film club: “The word ‘club’ can be misleading, and I just want to reiterate that this club is just a group of people who enjoy watching films. You’re welcome to join in at any time, and you do not have to come every week. So many people come just to listen and be with people.”
As CMU students continue to host fun and meaningful events, it’s clear that the spirit of creativity, inclusivity, and collaboration will always remain at the heart of campus life.
Emma Williamson is a second-year Bachelor of Arts student, majoring in English.