CSUN student Benny Wolde-Yohannes.

Most students entering their freshman year of college picture the end of their collegiate careers standing with diplomas in their hands and smiles on their faces. Sometimes, however, life gets in the way. For CSUN television and arts soon-to-be graduate Benny Wolde-Yohannes, what got in the way was the Cannes Film Festival, one of the most prominent in the world.

Wolde-Yohannes’s senior film project, “Pareto Principal,” was chosen to show at the festival’s short film exhibition, but the festival and CSUN’s graduation overlapped. What to do? Partake in the artistry and revelry along the French Rivera, of course — even if his mother wasn’t exactly thrilled with his decision to skip his graduation ceremony.

“I am the first one of her children to get a college degree, and I end up not taking part in the graduation ceremony; she was kind of upset,” said Wolde-Yohannes. “My dad understood, though, and convinced her that an invitation from Cannes was a rare opportunity that I could not pass up.”

For more: Northridge Film Student Invited to Show Senior Project at Cannes Film Festival; Is First Recipient of CSUN’s Sawhney Creative Excellence Award for $10,000 [CSUN Media Releases]

Arts and Culture, Awards, Benny Wolde-Yohannes, Cannes Film Festival, Mike Curb College of Arts Media and Communication, Ravi K. and Amalia Sawhney Creative Excellence Award, Students