“Knives Out,” “Smile” and “The Truman Show” are just a few of the movies the East Film Club has watched this year.
Meeting once a month in Room 243, co-presidents and sophomores Shania Khasraw and Kate Maciel run the East Film Club, a new addition this year.
In the club, interactive activities and group discussions with the 30-some members based on the movies they have watched together provide an opportunity to celebrate their common appreciation for cinematography.
“We do quizzes based on the movie. We always have a slideshow and have questions on the movie,” Khasraw said.
As a part of the club, members get to vote on a movie, talk with club members about it, and share a passion for film together.
“We really like that there’s a group of people that we can share this with… Everybody gets to watch new movies they haven’t seen before,” Khasraw said.
Whether you want to study the cinematography and art of film, or just hang out with friends while watching a movie, the film club is a great place to be.
To join, you can email slkhasraw@students.chccs.k12.nc.us or kmaciel@students.chccs.k12.nc.us.
In Chapel Hill, a place where only 2.2 percent of residents are Indian Americans, East’s Indian Culture Club hopes to serve as a platform to promote and strengthen Indian culture.
“It’s hard to relate with people,” said co-founder and co-chairman Atchuthan Rangarajan. “We wanted to make a place where we can strengthen our culture at school, where people can relate to others who share the culture… and promote cultural education.”
With this goal in mind, meetings feature presentations and activities relating to certain aspects of Indian culture, from music and movies to food and sports.
The Indian Culture Club was created last year by five co-founders. Since then, it has grown to include 20 members and has participated in several events, including the 2023 Asian Night. However, according to Rangarajan, these activities are only the start.
“We’d like to connect Indian culture from East right out and into the community,” Rangarajan said. “We’re trying to educate people of other cultures about our culture.”
In the future, they aim to have Diwali recognized by the school board and host an event to celebrate it, as well as run food drives to support local communities relating to Indian Culture like the Hindu Society of North Carolina.
If you’re interested in joining, you can send a message to @indiancultureclub_echhs on Instagram or email arangarajan@students.chccs.k12.nc.us. Meetings are held Wednesday at lunch in room 239 in Upper Quad B.
There is undoubtedly a stigma around periods. Even in ancient times, periods were seen as a curse, able to destroy crops and sour wine. But now, awareness around the subject of periods has become more prevalent in society.
The East Period Club, run by seniors Tatum Cubrilovic, Yae Young Kim and Susannah Bartlett, aims to bring awareness and destigmatize periods.
“We want to make people aware that this problem is going on,” Kim said.
Co-president Cubrilovic says the club’s main goal is to “reduce the stigma of periods at East and create more outreach to the community of Chapel Hill, while also advocating for period products in school bathrooms.”
Meeting every Wednesday in the ceramics room, the club discusses how to make the community more period-friendly.
“There’s products available in the nurse’s office… we understand that that’s not enough. So I think the next step would be to somehow reach out to an external collaborator about getting actual dispensaries in bathrooms,” Cubrilovic said.
The club has hosted bake sales and donated to homeless shelters, and is currently working on selling programs—customized letters to ask somebody to prom—to raise money.
To join you can reach out to tvcubrilovic@students.chccs.k12.nc.us, ykim@students.chccs.k12.nc.us and/or sgbartlett@students.chccs.k12.nc.us, or join using the link in their Instagram bio @period.echhs.
Photo courtesy of East Period Club
