Ak-Chin Indian Community Library 2016 Movie Club Film Festival

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Jeff Stoffer

Each year, the Ak-Chin Indian Community Library hosts a film festival to showcase movies made by young members of the library’s Movie Club.

The Ak-Chin Indian Community Library Movie Club started as a summer program in 2011 to encourage tweens and teens to continue reading. For the past 5 years, a little over 150 youth have participated in the Movie Club. There are currently about 30 Movie Club members ages 8 and up who come to monthly club meetings at the library. To date, Movie Club has more than 150 videos on its YouTube channel, AkChinLibrary. These videos include a movie club montage, short films like “The Picnic” and library commercials. Check out “A Very Ak-Chin Indian Community Library Christmas,” where movie club members wish Merry Christmas to the community.

Ak-Chin Indian Community Vice Chairman, Delia Carlyle

The film festival provides an opportunity for families of Movie Club members and all of the Ak-Chin Indian Community to learn more about the Movie Club and its achievements. Genres represented at the film festival include comedy, horror, animation, science fiction, thrillers, and drama.

This year’s Movie Club film festival was held on Wednesday, September 28, at the UltraStar Multi-tainment Center at Ak-Chin Circle. The festival was complete with a red-carpet entry for the young movie stars. Speakers included Ak-Chin Indian Community Vice Chairman, Delia Carlyle, who announced each member of the club, and Librarian Jeff Stoffer with his assistant Cecily Peters. Movie Club members received Oscar-like statues and posed for lots of photos on the red carpet.

This year’s festival was especially meaningful because the Movie Club was recognized earlier this year by the American Library Association Young Adult Library Services Association (ALA-YALSA) as one of the Top 10 summer learning program. This special recognition spotlights programs around the country that use creative ways to keep youth interested in reading.

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Carolyn Sostrom

Carolyn Sostrom is a long-time Arizona resident who loves desert sunsets, warm weather, Zumba, and the Western lifestyle. She attended Saguaro High School in Scottsdale and then Arizona State University, earning a bachelor’s degree in journalism. Similarly to the protagonist in *The Devil Wears Prada*, Carolyn moved to New York City right after college. She started working for the fashion magazine company Conde Nast but never transitioned to the dark side. After a few years, she left New York in the rearview mirror and returned to her home state, taking a reporter job at the *Apache Junction Independent*. With over 30 years of freelance writing experience, Carolyn especially enjoys writing about community events and profiling individuals who are making a difference in their communities. She had the pleasure of interviewing a variety of cowboy personalities for an article she wrote for the *Scottsdale Independent* about the history of DC Ranch and its roots as a working ranch. Now, her Western adventures with CLN have her diving into the rugged automotive scene, exploring the trucks and rigs cowboys rely on for work, home, and play, a niche where grit meets horsepower. She works at Raising Special Kids, a nonprofit resource center for families of children with disabilities and special healthcare needs. Carolyn also volunteers with the Autism Society of Greater Phoenix. Carolyn believes that everyone has a story, and she loves connecting with others to hear their stories. She’s dedicated to ethical journalism and accurate reporting, which shines through in her storytelling.