Courtesy Beau LeLand
Former student Beau Leland has returned to OCCC to help with post production on the movie “Just Crazy Enough” which was partly shot on campus

Although Beau Leland graduated from OCCC in 2004, he has been back on campus during July, working on a feature film that was shot here.

Leland said he is working hand-in-hand with professors from the program, as well as currently enrolled students.

His path to OCCC began at the University of Oklahoma.

“After spending three semesters studying film theory at OU, I came to OCCC in the spring of 2002 so that I could learn the craft of filmmaking,” Leland said.

“It was one of the most important decisions I ever made. I wouldn’t have the career I have today had I not [attended] OCCC,” said Leland.

Leland currently owns his own post-production company called Invisible Arts, where he edits and occasionally shoots, videos for various clients.

He said he edits using Apple’s Final Cut Pro 7, a professional editing software used in the film industry.

His company takes footage, sound and music from his client, and edits them together to create a finished product, Leland said.

Lance McDaniel, the director of the comedy “Just Crazy Enough,” brought Leland on as editor.

McDaniel and Leland know one other through the deadCENTER Film Festival in Oklahoma City, Leland said. McDaniel is currently the festival’s executive director.

“I really wanted to work with Beau Leland because his sense of timing as an editor is tremendous,” McDaniel said.

“I have seen several different types of film that Beau has edited and they all have a great flow to them.

“Plus, he is a pleasure to work with and that is critical in an editor since you spend so much time sitting at a computer with them.”

Leland said the editing lab he is using for to edit the video for “Just Crazy Enough” is new to him since it did not exist when he was a student at OCCC.

“I was blown away by all of the equipment OCCC had back in 2002, particularly in the editing labs,” he said.

“At the time, there were about 29 edit stations in the two different classrooms.

“It was in those two rooms I discovered my love for editing,” Leland said.

“The new facilities at OCCC today are even more impressive.”

Film production was a class offered to any student in the Film and Video Program program.

Leland described himself as an example of how the experience learned in this hands-on program can have a huge impact on students’ future career.

“I must say it’s been pretty cool being back at the college working on ‘Just Crazy Enough’ as the lead editor,” he said.

“This is where it all began for me, and I hope that the students involved with the project are able to take something away from the experience that will shape their career paths as well.”