AMES – Iowa State Assistant Teaching Professor Tony Moton graduated from film school at UCLA in 2004. His goal: to change lives and empower others through film. When Moton was hired at Iowa State in 2023, that goal remained unchanged.
Thursday was special for Moton and a handful of Greenlee School of Journalism students. A year-long documentary titled “TWINdeszoon: The Kris Cut” was shown in the Sun Room of the Iowa State Memorial Union.
“I’ve seen other filmmakers show their films at festivals and theaters,” Moton said. “I finally got a chance to experience that feeling. Having people emote to your work was the best feeling in the world.”
Under Moton’s direction, seniors Liam Brennan and Blake Petersen served as videographers and editors for the film. The documentary follows twins Myles and Marijke Mendeszoon’s journey to Iowa State. Myles, a defensive lineman who wears number six on the field, has his academic and athletic journey showcased alongside Marijke, who works for Cyclones.tv.
“This is what Iowa State is all about,” Moton said. “I have a day job and teach three classes, but I found a way. Liam, Blake, everyone found a way.”
The Mendeszoon family, originally from Cleveland, Ohio, never envisioned Iowa State. They never even toured the place. For mother Kris Mendeszoon, she feared a world that never saw her son touch the field.
“This is big-time football,” Kris Mendeszoon said in the film. “[Myles] knew there was a chance he would ride the bench for five years and never play.”
Seeing the documentary come to life was everything for the Mendeszoon family, who made it their goal to assist and empower the crew during production.
“It was really touching to see a group of young college students come together and make something like that,” Myles Mendeszoon said. “It was raw, beautiful, touching and heartfelt. The documentary blew me away.”
The process of filming was anything but smooth sailing for Moton and his crew. The year was full of ups and downs, sleepless nights, long hours, airports and the occasional fight.
“Whenever we got frustrated, we used the word team,” Brennan said. “Even when things got frustrating, we grew together. That’s something I’ll never forget about the process.”
Funny enough, the highlight of the process was when Petersen got sick on the last day of the season at the Pop-Tarts Bowl in Orlando. While he was throwing up in a hotel room, Marijke Mendeszoon got the call to go field-level and capture the biggest moment of her brother’s career.
Without any prior behind-the-scenes knowledge, she captured Myles Mendeszoon’s celebration after the Cyclones’ 42-41 victory over the Miami Hurricanes.
“It was amazing,” Kris Mendeszoon said. “[Marijke] being an athlete and unable to move to the next level was hard, but those two support each other. It was extraordinary to see them both enjoying the moment.”
For the graduating class, this one-of-a-kind project serves to boost resumes and provide the experience needed to make it in a professional setting. Both are expected to graduate in three weeks.
“Sometimes it can be difficult to trust another person in an area you’re super involved with,” Brennan said. “We trusted each other, asked questions and it was an intimate film to make.”
“There have been times that [Moton] has gotten on me during filming,” Petersen said. “He has pushed me on this project because he cares. He cares about me and tries to push me to do more.”
After the screening, Moton and his audience analyzed the film. He humorously hinted at a couple of mishaps during the production.
“The film format that we shot in was complicated and required a lot of space,” Moton said. “We learned, but at the end of the day, there’s software that fixes frame rates and other small mishaps.”
Pending approval from the Greenlee School of Journalism, Moton intends to continue production on a year-to-year basis. He aims to give Greenlee students the same opportunities as Petersen and Brennan.
Other Greenlee students involved in production include assistant producers Sylvi Hanson and Taya Melendez, videographers Marcus Williams and Haesung Lee, production assistants Jackson Haugh and Dylan Fobian and video graphics specialist Tri Luu.
