I first met Alex Federman at last year’s Capital Fringe preview because we were both writing for this blog. We hung out then and a couple of times during the festival, and our paths crossed on a few other occasions in the past year. Alex also worked at the AFI Silver Theatre, and when I was there, I would stop and say hello and talk with him about film. I had liked Alex immediately, and we had many of the same interests, so every time we spoke I told myself I ought to get to know him better.

On June 28, Alex was killed in a car accident. He was 23 years old.

This is an unthinkably tragic loss for Alex’s family and friends. It’s also a loss for those who knew him professionally and who followed his writing. Alex was a regular presence in the Maryland/D.C. film scene (he worked as a casting assistant on House of Cards, among other gigs) and was a serious TV and movie buff who kept a blog and an active Twitter account. He was also an enthusiastic Penn State alumnus and former staffer for the alternative news site Onward State, which has established a scholarship in his honor.

You can read Alex’s Fringeworthy reviews from last year here. City Paper sends our condolences to his family.

Photo courtesy of Onward State