What began as a middle school hobby has grown into a professional filmmaking career for Sunnyside native and Central Washington University student, Gurdil Dardi.
While balancing full-time college coursework, operating his own production company and producing an independent thesis film, the 20-year-old filmmaker has recently earned recognition from industry organizations and film festival circuits as he works toward a career in motion pictures.
Most recently Dardi attended the Northwest Emmy Awards ceremony as a student nominee through the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS) Northwest.
Prior to attending CWU, Dardi found his love for directing during his time at Sierra Vista Middle School. Back in middle school, he enjoyed recording skits and creating videos to share with friends.
“I always enjoyed making people laugh and evoking emotions through the work I would create,” Dardi wrote in an email to the Sunnyside Sun. “Getting to watch their reactions, hearing them laugh, and seeing them smile made me feel happy knowing I was able to uplift someone else’s day.”
Despite his passion for filmmaking, pursuing it professionally was not always an obvious path.
Like many families, his parents hoped he would choose a more traditional profession such as medicine. It was during his time at Tri-Tech that he discovered filmmaking could become a career.
A pivotal moment came when Digital Arts & Filmmaking instructor Megan Cook met with his parents and encouraged them to support his ambitions.
According to Dardi, Cook expressed confidence in his abilities and future potential as a filmmaker. Her encouragement helped convince his parents to support his decision.
Years later, those efforts paid off.
Receiving a NATAS Northwest Student Emmy nomination and being named CWU's Student Employee of the Year served as important milestones for Dardi.
"At times, I honestly struggled with feeling like maybe I didn't deserve it," he shared. "However, after speaking with close mentors at Central Washington University, they reminded me that I should be proud of the work I've done."
The recognition became especially meaningful when shared with his family.
"What made it even more emotional was realizing that just four years earlier, my teacher Megan Cook had to convince my parents to support my dream of becoming a film director," he said. "Then, to stand on stage and see my parents smiling, proud and tearing up while cheering my name made me emotional too."
His latest project, an independent thesis short film titled TO GOD, explores themes of grief, loss and healing.
The film follows a mail carrier struggling with the loss of his mother who discovers a letter written by a child and addressed simply "To God." As he reads the letter, he learns the child is grieving the loss of his own mother and questioning why she had to die.
The story draws inspiration from a personal experience from Dardi. During his junior year of high school, his grandfather, Amarjeet Dardi, died unexpectedly while overseas. Family members often told him that "God needed him more," but he found himself feeling differently.
"I thought they were wrong," he said. "I needed him more. That's why I wrote TO GOD."
The project continues a theme present in his earlier films, Immiscer and Moments That Last, both of which explore grief and the challenges of moving forward after loss.
One of his proudest achievements to date came through Moments That Last, a Polaroid spec commercial sponsored by his production company, Arc Lens Pictures.
The film received recognition from judges at the Academy Award-qualifying Atlanta Shortsfest despite being only the second film he had directed.
"Receiving validation that our work competed in a professional division alongside film directors from around the world was an incredibly proud moment for me," he said.
In addition to his studies and filmmaking projects, he serves as founder and chief executive officer of Arc Lens Pictures. The company began in 2023 as freelance work with longtime collaborator Lanson Duncan before formally becoming established in 2024.
Initially intended to help fund college expenses through commercial production work, Arc Lens Pictures has since expanded its vision. The company now aims to use commercial projects to support the creation of narrative films capable of reaching audiences nationally and internationally.
For young creatives in Sunnyside who may be considering careers in the arts, he offers a simple message.
"You too can become a film director. You too can be successful," he said. “It doesn’t matter how small your town is or how impossible your dream may seem. If your desire is to create a better future for yourself and the people you love, then bear the adversity, fight through it, and keep those people close beside you.”