“Coraline”, a vibrant film beloved by many, was chosen as the film to screen at the American River College Arts HomeBase to assist students first hand with changing their major or as an option to learn more about the Arts major, giving students a hint of what the arts major can offer on Oct. 31. 

The stop-motion picture follows 11-year-old “Coraline,” who moves into a new home and discovers a secret passage to a parallel, idealized reality of her world—only to find it’s not as perfect as it seems, as she embarks on a mission to save her world. 

It continues to be celebrated for its artistic merits and mysterious story driven plot. Several movie critics and fanatics of the film consider the picture faithful to the adaptation of the same name. Even now, it remains the subject of numerous theories due to the complexities of the plot and characters, which has viewers going back.

A project long in the making was organized by hosts Laci Fugler and Eireann Rodriguez, both peer mentors at the ARC Arts HomeBase. Their adoration for the stop-motion picture Coraline helped them to bring this event to light.

“My co-worker and I have loved ‘Coraline’ since we were children,” Rodriguez said. “One day, my co-worker looked at me with a grin on her face and just asked [Do you want to do a ‘Coraline’ event?] and I thought it was the greatest idea ever.”  

The event featured “Coraline”-themed activities and snacks such as crossword puzzles, coloring pages. 

Further, a cake that was a nearly identical replica to the cake in a scene in “Coraline” that read “Welcome Home,” in red frosting, set alongside other snacks for students to enjoy. 

Furthermore, students were given creative freedom to draw a character of their choice from Coraline that will be hung around the room. Students could then fill in the blanks between drawings which will create a portrait of “Coraline” herself composed of every student’s drawings, according to Fugler. 

Additionally, they implemented the choice for students to change their major before the deadline of Nov. 24, as well as learn more about the Arts major for new and returning students. It was all about convenience, according to Fugler.

“As a student, I recall how hard it was for me to figure out how to change my major, having to sit in a meeting for over an hour,¨ Fugler said. ¨It shouldn’t be that complicated and I can imagine now that we’re closing in on Thanksgiving break, students might be considering the same, thinking [I want to change my major]. So we thought it would be convenient for students to take advantage.” 

Afterward, the staff celebrated by each cutting a cake for their efforts as the screening was deemed a success.