Three students from Loyola Marymount University were among 56 semi-finalists selected after first-round viewing and judging in the ninth annual Angelus Awards Student Film Festival.

LMU's Charles Chilinda, April Garcia and Jung-Jin Ahn were included among the semi-finalists selected from some 400 entries, representing 22 countries. The semi-finalists' efforts include 30 live action films, 10 animation, 16 documentaries, representing some 30 university-level film schools in the United States, Australia, Germany, Ireland, Israel and Russia.

"Production values were stellar this year, and the judging was difficult, in all categories," said Monika Moreno, Director of the Angelus Awards. For a complete list of semi-finalists' names and film schools, see www.angelus.org.

Finalists will be announced the first week of September, and the seven winners of the $25,000 in prize money will be announced at the Finalist Luncheon, Sept. 24 at Family Theater Productions. The 2004 Angelus Awards screening and awards ceremony will be held Oct. 23 at the Directors Guild of America, Hollywood.

The Angelus Awards honor undergraduate and graduate student films of the highest caliber that explore the complexity of the human condition with creativity, compassion and respect, reflecting such themes or values as triumph of the human spirit, hope, dignity, spirituality and peace.