El Camino Real High School students' films to be shown at Cannes Film Festival

LOS ANGELES -- Novice filmmakers from El Camino Real High School in Woodland Hills are taking their films to one of the most prestigious festivals in the world - the Cannes Film Festival.

A high school wrestler struggling to overcome difficulty to win a title is the theme of "Pride," a short film by El Camino Real High School seniors Garrett Dunn and Rory McClellan. The film was chosen to be shown at the famous Cannes Film Festival.

"I was pretty excited. Right when I found out, I found out first and didn't tell Rory because I kind of wanted to surprise him. So I waited until we got to school and then I surprised him with the news, and it was pretty exciting," said Dunn, the film's cinematographer.

"It's just an honor because Cannes is one of the biggest international film festivals in the world, so that was like just a big honor, you know, because it was our first serious attempt at a film," said McClellan, who directed the film.

For McClellan, "Pride" is a story he knows well. The 18-year-old is a city champ wrestler. He says his teachers and coach at El Camino were key to helping him find his two loves.

"Wrestling is something that has taught me definitely a lot about life. Wrestling is why I was inspired to do this film in the first place," McClellan said.

McClellan and Dunn are part of the high school's Careers in Entertainment Academy. They're not the only students with a prized Cannes invite.

"Delirium," directed by senior Noah Kentis, will also be shown at the famous film festival. These two movies are giving these young filmmakers a taste of success.

Unfortunately, they won't get to hang out with the rich and famous in France, as school and finances come first. But they say this is just the beginning of their careers.

"It would be a pretty awesome experience going to Cannes, but I know that if we all team up together, we can definitively get another film in there next year," Dunn said.

There were two other films by former El Camino students that were also selected to be shown at Cannes.