Carly Storro, a senior at ConVal Regional High, New Hampshire, was recently recognized for her seven-minute documentary “The Life of Stephen Dominko,” concert musician and world champion accordionist. Her film was a jury award finalist at the annual N.H. High School Short Film Festival in May 2017.

Excerpts from an article by Ben Conant, Monadnock Ledger-Transcript: The film festival’s lineup consisted of 24 films picked from 66 entries, submitted by students at 16 high schools and technology and career centers in New Hampshire.The festival was presented by the N.H. Division of Film and Digital Media and screened at Concord’s Red River Theatres May 20.

Storro’s finishing as a jury award finalist will be included in the “awards list” in the credits of upcoming screenings of the festival’s films, according to Matt Newton, director of the N.H. Division of Film and Digital Media. Additional screenings are being organized and will be finalized next month.

Stephen Dominko was Carly’s piano teacher for five years before he revealed that, at the time at the age of fourteen, he was the youngest person to perform at Carnegie Hall.

“He’s so humble about it and it’s not a big deal to him,” Storro said. “He lives in this small town, away from everyone, and he has this amazing successful career.”

Stephen Dominko had performed on the Lawrence Welk Show and as part of Leonard Bernstein’s Young Persons’ concerts, among many other achievements.

Carly was very impressed by her teacher’s story and decided to create a documentary film about his life. Storro had made several short films already, but her first documentary, “The Life of Stephen Dominko”, was selected as a Jury Award Finalist at the New Hampshire High School Short Film Festival.

Carly hopes to study at a film school in Austria next year. She is working on a longer documentary about Stephen since her film had to fit within the time frame of the competition.