One of our favourite things at Vancouver Film School is celebrating the successes of our talented graduates. Recently, Film Production alumni Gabriel Souza Nunes and Aries Ceta were named among the recipients of this year’s Voices With Impact grant for their film I absolutely hate this place. 10 total films were selected for the 2025 grant, with 16 diverse filmmakers participating.
“This is such an amazing opportunity and it’s such an honour to receive this support,” shares Gabriel. “Voices With Impact is an amazing festival and initiative uplifting emerging filmmakers and shining light on mental health stories and topics.”
“I’m truly grateful and honoured that our project has been selected for this grant,” adds Aries. “Being part of this initiative, alongside so many talented international filmmakers, is incredibly gratifying. It feels like a step closer to the kind of work I want to create, expanding beyond Vancouver and reaching a wider audience.”
Behind the scenes with the crew of I absolutely hate this place during production. GET TO KNOW THESE DIVERSE FILMMAKERS
Gabriel is an award-winning gender-queer Brazilian filmmaker based in Vancouver, BC. Their work is frequently inspired by Latin American folklore, Magical Realism and gender expressions, exploring themes like nostalgia and diasporic relationships.
Since graduating from VFS, Gabe’s been hard at work building up his career, with 7 shorts under his belt and a Production Design Leo Award-nomination for Shallots & Garlic. In 2024, he was selected to participate in VIFF’s Catalyst program, and his work has been recognized at acclaimed international festivals, including Whistler Film Festival, Vancouver Short Film Festival, Inside Out.
Aries is a multi-award-winning producer and assistant director with a passion for visual storytelling across genres. She’s committed to fostering collaborative environments where teams can thrive and create their best work.
A four-time Mighty Asian Movie Making Marathon Award winner, Aries has produced a range of successful projects, including the top 6 Crazy8s short film Passiflora, the ultra-short Ah Boy Ya, and the 10-minute short Stand In, which garnered significant recognition in the indie film community.
BEHIND THE SCENES OF I ABSOLUTELY HATE THIS PLACE
I absolutely hate this place is an experimental mixed media animation short film exploring the body-image challenges impact queer men and their day-to-day life. Gabe wanted to highlight these issues in a unique, out-of-the-box way. As he began devising a method of telling this story through a mix of different techniques, textures, and colors, it brought him to a light-bulb moment: the film needed to feature animated elements to fully bring it to life.
Though the idea temporarily stalled (it happens to the best of us!), applying for the Voices With Impact program reignited Gabe’s love for his concept. Being selected for the initiative propelled the project into production in February and featured a crew comprised solely of VFS alumni (Film Production, Sound Design for Visual Media and Makeup Design for Film & Television). The film is currently in post-production, with the animation starting in early March.
“Printing the entire film on paper and then making physical interventions on each frame brings an entire new level of intimacy to this work,” comments Gabe on trying his hand at animation – a brand-new creative medium for him. “As I usually write my scripts from personal experiences, having that time by myself to animate on paper without having to necessarily think about ‘animated perfection’ is what excites me the most about this project: I get to find beauty in imperfections, scribbles, textures and stretch marks, which is ultimately the message behind the film".
Gabe and Aries on-set with lead actor Diego Arciniega (left) during the production of I absolutely hate this place.THE IMPORTANCE OF THE VOICES WITH IMPACT GRANT
Each year, Voices With Impact provides a select group of filmmakers with funding and mentorship as they work towards bring their 5-minute short films to life. In addition, 10 industry professionals – including Edmund Stenson (Finding Fukue), Pixar Animation Studios Story Artist Mitra Shahidi, and Emmy-winning filmmaker Nancy Schwartzman (Victim/Suspect) – will personally mentor the grant recipients throughout the process.
For the 2025 grant, the organization sought pitches that met a specific theme: ‘the seen and unseen of mental health.’ The mandate for submissions was “honest, intriguing, humanizing, authentic stories inspired by lived experience of mental health.” No genres were off-limits, with comedy to horror, experimental to documentary, and even westerns on the table.
Voices With Impact is one of many examples of production grants that help make great art possible and continue the important discussion of mental health. As with organizations like Sundar Prize (where three VFS alumni are currently serving as mentors, these opportunities are crucial for supporting filmmakers, especially those with diverse backgrounds, in their creative journeys.
FROM VFS STUDENTS TO ACCOMPLISHED FILMMAKERS
We were fortunate enough to chat with Vancouver Film School graduates Gabe and Aries about their time at VFS, their diverse perspectives, and advice for aspiring filmmakers:
Can you share your experience as a VFS Film Production student?
GSN: All of my fondest memories involve the people I met. The way we bonded quickly, the hunger to try harder, the meetings usually starting with “hey, I have a crazy idea” – we had a safe space to try and to explore what we wanted to do in the future, and that was really important in our journey in film. All these relationships started when I was just a student, fresh off the plane from Brazil, and they are still strong to this day.
AC: My time at VFS is something I’ll always carry with me. It wasn’t just about learning filmmaking, it was about collaboration, problem-solving, and understanding how to work with people. It pushed me to grow, both professionally and personally, in ways I didn’t expect.
Some of my fondest memories are the late nights on campus, working on projects with my classmates (many of whom I still collaborate with today). The process was exhausting but incredibly rewarding, and those experiences shaped not just how I work, but why I love what I do.
In the making of his film, Gabe – a VFS Film Production alum – drew upon his diverse background as a gender-queer filmmaker.How has your background shaped your vision as a filmmaker?
GSN: I think it gives me a different voice – not necessarily louder, but different. My stories come from places of honesty, vulnerability, and acceptance, an oddly global-yet-individual place where I can talk about singularities to a general audience. Tapping into this voice is still something new to me; I used to separate my work and my identity a lot in my early projects, and I’ve noticed a lot of my current scripts are showing elements of healing, ownership, accountability and re-signifying old habits and ideas. Once you’re brave enough to be vulnerable and honest, nothing can stop you.
AC: Working in different countries has given me a variety of perspectives on filmmaking. It’s opened my eyes to the unique ways different cultures and industries approach storytelling. This experience has made me more adaptable and resourceful, enabling me to find creative solutions in any production environment. It’s less about a single approach and more about recognizing that the best way to make a film depends on the story and the team involved.
What advice do you have for emerging filmmakers and artists in general?
GSN: Don’t wait for permission! Want to film something? Reach out to your peers and go for it! You have to practice your craft as much as possible, put in the hours. Make sure you surround yourself with people with a similar hunger and find your core team of collaborators.
Filmmaking is already so hard, so also make sure you’re having fun! Take care of yourself and your team. Once you bond with someone on set, that connection can be for life – that is literally how Aries and I started working together and became friends. Don’t forget to uplift your friends and their work just as much as you want them to uplift you.
AC: Filmmaking is hard, and surrounding yourself with the right team makes all the difference. Work with people who inspire and challenge you and build relationships that will carry you through the toughest projects.
When you’re starting out, it’s easy to focus on stacking up big credits. But don’t do it just for the credits. Focus on building a solid reputation. A good reputation and a strong work ethic are far more powerful than a long list of credits. The relationships you build and the respect you earn will take you much further in your career than the number of projects you’re on. Finally, there is no greater teacher than experience.
THE POWER OF DETERMINATION
Gabriel and Aries’ successful careers are proof that with hard work comes great reward. These talented alumni started their journey at VFS – and you can too! If you’re an aspiring filmmaker who’s ready to train in an intensive, production-focused environment, explore Vancouver Film School’s Film Production program today! All it takes is 1 short year to be fully trained and ready to conquer the entertainment industry.
FAQ
1. What is the Voices With Impact grant, and who is eligible to apply?
Voices With Impact is an indie filmmaking grant program supporting shorts that explore mental health storytelling in film. It provides funding, mentorship, and industry support to emerging filmmakers. Eligibility typically includes filmmakers with a compelling, personal, or authentic perspective on mental health.
2. What is I absolutely hate this place about?
I absolutely hate this place is an experimental mixed-media animated short film that explores the body-image challenges queer men face in their daily lives. The film combines various textures, colors, and animation techniques to visually represent these struggles.
3. Who were the VFS alumni that worked on the film and what program(s) did they take?
- Gabriel Souza Nunes – Film Production
- Aries Ceta – Film Production
- Rachel Constant – Foundation Visual Art & Design and Film Production
- Nicholas (Keddy) Kedrock – Film Production
- Helen Wong – Film Production
- Nadine Widjaja – Film Production
- Sam Huang – Film Production
- Bruno Peter Puente – Film Production
- Samantha Dawes – Makeup Design for Film & Television
- Hila Eliyassi – Film Production
- Shiva Gohari – Film Production
- Troy Reimer – Sound Program for Visual Media
- Carolina Mazo Correa – Film Production
- Daniel Martinez Perez – Film Production
- Adrian Kurbegovic - Film Production
- Ysuke Sato - 3D Animation & Visual Effects
4. How can I apply to Vancouver Film School’s Film Production program?
VFS offers an intensive one-year Film Production program that fully trains students for careers in the entertainment industry. Learn more about admissions, program details, and application deadlines by visiting the official program page: https://vfs.edu/programs/film-production.