Perhaps one of the great documentary filmmakers of the next generation, William Conlin lives passionately while trying to make a difference in his work.

“I have a lot of ideas that I keep in a notebook for a potential future,” said Conlin, President of the Film Reviews Club this year.

Conlin, a 23-year-old student in the film production program, is a director, producer, writer and editor.

He won Best Documentary Film in 2009, and the 2010 School of Media Arts Showcase for “The Morning the Ground Moved” and for “SBCC@100.”

As a producer and editor, he was also the winner of the 2008 WAVE Award for the TV program “Discover Lompoc.”

“He is conscientious, creative, and thoughtful,” said Curtis Bieber, who also esteems his willingness to go the extra mile.

Last year, the faculty of film production department chose Conlin as one of the two students to make “SBCC@100,” a centennial documentary about the history of City College, which was premiered at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival in January 2010.

Conlin’s family runs a local production business so he’s been around cameras his entire life, and he likes using them to film his hometown of Santa Barbara.

“I chose Will because he has a passion for historic documentary,” said Candace Schemerhorn, an instructor at the film and TV production department. “I saw that he had an eye for it.”

“We spent hours at the historical society at the Santa Barbara Library,” Conlin said. “[We] checked every microfilm, newspaper, photograph, negative…everything. It was quite an adventure.”

Conlin’s next documentary projects include “Santa Barbara 1925 Earthquake,” “The 1912 Election” and “The Assassination of William McKinley.”

Last spring, Conlin became the President of the Film Reviews Club, which continues to grow as a blog-style website, even in Europe.

Nico Maestu, department chair of film studies and administrator of the site, said it has over 1,100 reviews and counting.

“It’s an online club where class meetings are not necessary,” Conlin said. “Members don’t need to be currently enrolled in any class.”

The club is introducing changing themes each month, such as interactive documentaries, horror films, and silent films.

By the end of the month, all reviewers will deliver their all-time top-ten list. Conlin, however, is skeptic about this.

“Oh, boy!,” Conlin exclaims. “You cannot put ‘Gone with the Wind’ next to ‘Psycho’ or ‘The Wizard of Oz’ next to ‘Taxi Driver’ because they are just not like each other.”

The club members receive invitations to watch films for free, but it requires them to also write a review on the film.

Being a good reviewer is a challenge, but standing as a film buff requires time and effort. One must start seeing a lot of movies with a critical eye, and that’s what Conlin has been doing.

“There’s a book called ‘1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die’,” Conlin said.

“I went through the list. I counted them off, and I realized that I’ve seen about 400 of these films.”

Conlin is planning to transfer to UCSB to the Media Studies Institute and he is confident about the work he is doing at City College, which fits perfectly with his long-term goals.

“If I could make films my whole life, I’d be happy,” Conlin said. “I don’t need to be a giant filmmaker. I just want to make the stories that I want to make.”