First–Ever Iona University Film Festival Celebrates Student Talent and Storytelling
New Rochelle, N.Y. - Iona University recently hosted its inaugural film festival highlighting the creativity of student filmmakers across campus. The festival featured documentaries, music videos and narrative shorts, each competing for awards across multiple categories.
Organized and created by Professor Jaime Iglehart Frasson, clinical lecturer in the Media & Strategic Communication Department, the festival served as a celebration of student achievement and artistic expression within the classroom and beyond.
“This festival was a culmination of year-long film classes, critiques, problem solving and watching every student work through all that it takes to make a film,” said Frasson.
A distinguished panel of guest judges from the fields of film production, media and academia lent their expertise to the selection process. Thank you to the following judges:
- Nigel Xavier, film producer (Netflix, Tom Ford)
- Dr. Dean Delfino, director of film studies (Iona University)
- Terri Prettyman Bowles, writer, curator and media scholar (Time, Vibe)
- Bryan Ribeiro, founder and programmer (Mount Vernon Film Festival)
“Deliberating as a judge was a wonderful experience,” said Ribeiro. “Everybody wanted to see the right people get the award, but also, everybody thought what we saw, each and every one of those films, was excellent. Well done to all who participated.”
Congratulations to this year’s winners:
- Best Music Video: A Heart for What - Kristen Guelcher '25
- Technical Proficiency: Libra - Elizabeth Riccio '26
- Best Narrative Short: The Chudd - Hayden Cusanelli '27
- Best Documentary: Bases to Bases - Eddie Virgil '25
- Best Performance: Inside My Mind - Joseph Gierer '26
- Audience Choice: Insane Asylum - Remy Ickes '25
Elizabeth Riccio ’26, a media & strategic communication major and one of this year’s winners, said the film festival was "an amazing and inspiring day. I definitely know there are some filmmakers here I’m going to pick their brain for my next piece.”
The next Iona University Film Festival will take place at the end of Spring Semester, 2026. Submissions to the festival will open in January 2026.
To learn more about the Iona University Film Festival, please see IUTV's coverage of the event here or contact Professor Iglehart Frasson at jiglehart@iona.edu to get involved.
Credit: IUTV coverage – Elizabeth Riccio and Mia Valle.

ABOUT IONA
Founded in 1940, Iona University is a master's-granting private, Catholic, coeducational institution of learning in the tradition of the Edmund Rice Christian Brothers. Iona's 45-acre New Rochelle campus and 28-acre Bronxville campus are just 20 miles north of Midtown Manhattan. With a total enrollment of nearly 4,000 students and an alumni base of more than 50,000 around the world, Iona is a diverse community of learners and scholars dedicated to academic excellence and the values of justice, peace and service. Iona is highly accredited, offering undergraduate degrees in liberal arts, science and business administration, as well as Master of Arts, Master of Science and Master of Business Administration degrees and numerous advanced certificate programs. Iona students enjoy small class sizes, engaged professors and a wide array of academic programs across the School of Arts & Science; LaPenta School of Business; NewYork-Presbyterian Iona School of Health Sciences; and Hynes Institute for Entrepreneurship & Innovation. Iona also continues to be recognized in prestigious national rankings. Most recently for 2025, Iona has been named one of the nation’s best colleges by The Princeton Review, The Wall Street Journal, Forbes and others. Additionally, U.S. News & World Report recognized Iona as one of top for social mobility in the country, while Georgetown University's Center on Education and the Workforce (CEW) ranked an Iona degree in the top 5 percent nationally for long-term return on investment. Iona’s LaPenta School of Business, meanwhile, is also accredited by AACSB International, a recognition awarded to just 6 percent of business schools worldwide. In addition, The Princeton Review recognized Iona’s on-campus MBA program as a “Best Business School for 2024.” Iona also offers a fully online MBA program for even greater flexibility. In July 2021, Iona announced the establishment of the NewYork-Presbyterian Iona School of Health Sciences, which is now principally located on Iona’s Bronxville campus in collaboration with one of the nation’s top hospitals. Connecting to its Irish heritage, Iona also opened a new campus in County Mayo, Ireland, located on the historic 400-acre Westport House Estate. A school on the rise, Iona officially changed its status from College to University on July 1, 2022, reflecting the growth of its academic programs and the prestige of an Iona education.