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UNC alum to debut new music video at Argyle Film Fest

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UNC alumnus Riley Reid, known professionally as "Riley and the Starlights" returns to Chapel Hill to debut his latest short film/music video at the Argyle Film Festival in the Varsity Theatre on Friday, Jan. 31, 2025. Courtesy photo from Riley and the Starlights.

Riley Reid, known professionally as “Riley and the Starlights,” is a UNC alumnus with a success story straight out of the movies. Though he now lives in New York, his return to Chapel Hill is just around the corner. On Jan. 31, Reid will debut his latest short film/music video at the Argyle Film Festival in the Varsity Theatre. 

Reid was born and raised in San Diego, Calif. His musical interests began at the age of 5 years old when he started playing classical piano. As a teenager, he moved to Chapel Hill and at East Chapel Hill High School joined the rock band Right of Way, in which he sang backup and played keys. 

At 17, Reid wrote his first song, “What Is Going On?” on his piano at home.

“Ever since that moment, I knew that I wanted to one day write and record a project of my own and release it,” he said

After high school, Reid started college in Colorado but returned to Chapel Hill when he transferred to UNC for his sophomore year. At age 21, Reid happened upon a pseudonym while doing karaoke one night at He's Not Here.

“The MC asks me for my name and, out of nowhere, I just blurt out ‘Riley and the Starlights,’” Reid said. “That name went on to be my karaoke stage name for years to come.”

While a junior, Reid met fellow student Stuart Schrader. The two had an instant connection for their shared artistic inclinations. 

“He was a cool guy in a party setting,” Schrader said. “But I could tell there was more to him than that.”

The pair decided to collaborate on the short film “Of Princes” for Campus Movie Fest in 2015. After coming in first in the on-campus competition, the organization submitted the film to the Cannes Film Festival short film corner; the film was accepted. In 2016, Reid spent two weeks in Cannes during his film's debut networking with film industry executives. 

After graduating from UNC, Reid moved to New York City, where he worked in photography and videography before pivoting into the finance field — but he couldn't get that decade-old song out of his head.

“Here I was,” Reid said, “27-years-old, and I'm still thinking about that song I wrote at 17 and how I really want to record at least a solo project. So, anyway, I stopped making excuses and finally set out to start the project — this was two years ago.”

In 2022, Reid wrote a three-song EP that included “What Is Going On?” and reunited with his high school band, the members of which had previously gone their separate ways. With the EP, the band embarked on a reunion tour, recording the songs in Los Angeles along the way. 

Back in New York, Reid contemplated filming music videos for the freshly-recorded songs. Suddenly, he was struck with an idea: he would shoot each video so that, when played together, they would form a cohesive narrative, turning three separate music videos into a unified short film.

Reid wrote the script and contacted Schrader, who later flew to New York for the project. The pair shot the videos set to Reid's songs on the rooftops of NYC during an oncoming hurricane. Since then, Reid has been editing and finalizing these videos and has released the first two already. But when it came time to release the video for “What Is Going On,” there seemed only one course of action. 

When Reid learned that Michael Washington, who had previously been his boss during an internship at the Durham Performing Arts Center, was hosting the Argyle Film Festival here in Chapel Hill, the path was laid out perfectly. 

A decade after writing the song in Chapel Hill, Reid will debut it and the accompanying video this week at the Argyle Film Fest.

“We both share this idea that film is for everyone, everyone who has a story,” Washington said of his and Reid’s friendship. “And anyone who can pick up a camera and tell their story.”

@dthlifestyle | lifestyle@dailytarheel.com

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