Two student films from the University of Hawai'i-Manoa's Academy for Creative Media will be screened at the Riverside (CA) International Film Festival April 11 through 20.

The films are "Atonement" by Seong Kyu Whang and "My Brother's Keeper" by Russell Blanchard, which earlier were shown at the 2007 Hawaii International Film Festival.

Films from the U.S., Spain, Lebanon, Australia and the Philippines are to be shown.

"ACM has enjoyed a solid relationship with the Riverside Festival, now six years old," said Tom Brislin, ACM chair. "They are very discriminating and accept only the top student films. This is the second year our students have received this honor."

Brislin said festival programmers enjoy the unique perspective on local life that ACM student films present, stripped away of stereotypes and tropical clichés.

Both films explore darker themes of poverty, crime and addiction but are balanced by redemption through character relationships. "These are dynamic stories," Brislin said. "The festival made an excellent choice."