True Blue TV premieres feature film created by Smyrna High School filmmakers

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Middle Tennessee State University’s television station True Blue TV is airing a professionally produced film made by a Smyrna High School teacher and his film production class.

Ty Whitaker, senior manager, True Blue TV, Division of Marketing and Communication — Ty Whitaker

A psychological drama about a troubled teen, “The Strings Attached” will premiere on Saturday, May 18, at 7:30 p.m., one day before students involved in the project walk across the stage at MTSU’s Murphy Center to receive their high school diplomas at Smyrna High’s graduation ceremony.

“We are thrilled to premiere this thoughtful and timely motion picture on our cable and streaming services,” said Ty Whitaker, senior manager of True Blue TV. “As part of MTSU, housing a most highly regarded College of Media and Entertainment, True Blue TV is always proud to support our young filmmakers throughout Middle Tennessee.”

True Blue TV airs on Comcast Xfinity channels 9 and 1096 in Rutherford County, on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV and 24/7 at mtsu.edu/truebluetv/stream.php.

**“The Strings Attached” movie poster was designed by Smyrna High School Digital Arts student Jacob Hertz.**

Work began on the student film project last August and included eight crew members and 11 cast members from Smyrna High teacher Kyle Dietz’s Audio Video Production 3 class. Around 30 extras were also part of the film.

Students were involved in every part of the process, from pitching ideas to outlining the story to developing the characters and starting the script.

“Once they had some character descriptions, auditions were scheduled,” explained Dietz. “We went through auditions and cast the four main roles, did some table reads and rehearsals with the actors and then production started.”

“The Strings Attached” was directed by Smyrna High students Alan Mata and Val Holbrook and stars Gavin Averhoff, Ciara Robinson and an ensemble cast of student performers.

Averhoff also wrote, performed and produced the soundtrack and main theme song in the film. The original psychological drama follows the story of troubled teen Ryan, who begins to see his fears come to life when an unexpected friend helps him get out of his head and back into the real world.

Production took place over six months with over 150 shooting hours at four locations.

Smyrna High School student actor Gavin Averhoff, center left, student director Alan Mata, behind camera, and student actresses Ciara Robinson, left, and Marcail Dlouhy, right, work on set during the six-month production of the film “The Strings Attached” that included 150 shooting hours and four locations. (Photo courtesy of Kyle Dietz)

“The school building was the main location, but also there were three other locations around Smyrna. Production went over schedule, not allowing much time for reshoots, overdubs and editing, but with some late nights and Saturdays,” said Dietz, who started at Smyrna High School in the fall of 2020 after leaving a career in film, TV and video production.

“This film has been a labor of love, and we can’t wait to share it with the world,” said Holbrook, who plans to attend MTSU to pursue a degree in video and film production, with a concentration in filmmaking, after earning a degree at nearby Nashville State Community College.

Smyrna High School teacher Kyle Dietz, center, who joined the school in 2020 after a career in film, TV and video production, works with student actor Max Tomlin, left, student sound recordist Jesse Villanueva, back, and student director Alan Mata, right, on the set of the student-produced film, “The Strings Attached,” which will be aired later this month on Middle Tennessee State University’s True Blue TV. (Photo courtesy of Kyle Dietz)

“The Strings Attached” premiered cinematically at Malco Theaters in Smyrna on April 25. Additional screenings were held on May 1 and 7, with the final screening set for May 13.

“This was an experience like no other. Feature films are meant for the theater, the big screen,” said Dietz, who served as producer on the film and oversaw all the pre-production. “There is something about experiencing a film with others, the community of it, responses from the audience, and applause. All these things have been lost from the experience in the streaming age.

“Having a film screen in the theater is the pinnacle of filmmaking, something many filmmakers work for years to achieve, and some never do, but these students have achieved that and are still in high school. A dream come true.”

“The Strings Attached,” a film created and produced by Smyrna High School students under the supervision of teacher Kyle Dietz, premiered at the Malco Theaters in Smyrna, Tenn., on April 25, 2024. Students involved in the project walked the red carpet before the film’s premiere on the big screen. Pictured, from left, are actors Marquise Martin and Gavin Averhoff, student director Alan Mata, and student actresses Ciara Robinson and Marcail Dlouhy. (Photo courtesy of Kyle Dietz)

MTSU’s Video and Film Production program is part of the university’s Department of Media Arts within College of Media and Entertainment and offers three concentrations — filmmaking, live production and motion design. Students learn the art of cinematic storytelling and how to apply those skills to any genre, like TV, music videos, commercials, web content, documentaries and more.

Learn more at mtsu.edu/program/video-and-film-production-b-s/.

— DeAnn Hays (deann.hays@mtsu.edu)