Faculty & Staff News

SCA Presents: An Evening with Matthew Weiner
Part of the Fall '09 semester of CTCS-467: Television Symposium
November 04, 2009
SCA events presented An Evening with Matthew Weiner and AMC’s MAD MEN as part of the Fall '09 semester of CTCS-467: Television Symposium.

It’s All in Fun
Mel Brooks Speaks at Jack Oakie Masters Lecture Series
October 20, 2009
USC School of Cinematic Arts students were treated to an afternoon with Oscar, Emmy and Tony Award-winning writer/producer/director/actor and master cat-screech expert Mel Brooks, as part of the Jack Oakie and Victoria Horne Oakie Masters Lecture Series.

Next Generation
Akira Mizuta Lippit Is New Critical Studies Chair
October 17, 2009
Thirty years ago, it was a different Lippit teaching at USC. Noriko Mizuta Lippit taught East Asian languages and culture and comparative literature, while her son, Akira Mizuta Lippit, a self-described "SC kid," got the lay of the land. He’d be back before long and now has the chance to further cement his family’s USC legacy as he continues his first semester as chair of the critical studies division.

Trojan Teamwork
First Team Brings SCA Alums Together
October 16, 2009
In an industry where countless opportunities come down to who-you-know, a new program has been introduced that will help Trojan alumni cultivate connections - First Team.

In Memoriam: Anne Friedberg
Internationally Renowned Visual Studies Scholar
October 12, 2009
Anne Friedberg, historian, theorist of modern media culture and School of Cinematic Arts professor, whose work pioneered the field of visual studies, passed away Friday, October 9, following a long struggle with colorectal cancer. She was 57.

In Memoriam: Pierre Cossette
Legendary Producer, Father of the Grammy Awards
September 11, 2009
Innovative producer, philanthropist and USC alumnus Pierre Cossette, whose career included successes across the entertainment spectrum, died Friday, September 11 at the age of 85.

Reality Ends for Old Instructional Building
First George Lucas Structure Gives Way to a Park
August 14, 2009
The George Lucas Instructional Building, cinematic home to thousands of students from 1984 until 2008, did not go quietly into that good night.

Animation Alumnus & Single Dad
Jose Olmos ’09 Makes Most of SCA
August 03, 2009
Jose Olmos ('09) is and isn't your typical Trojan. He is 41 and a single parent.

SCA Alumnus Wins Student Oscar
Film Addressing Slavery Takes Home Gold Medal
July 07, 2009
Writer/director Gregg Helvey, M.F.A. '09, has turned bricks into gold with his film Kavi, which won the gold medal for narrative short film at the 36th annual Student Academy Awards on June 13.

East Meets West
Celebrating the Japanese Publication of Squire's Book
June 18, 2009
East met West in terms of education, entertainment, global technology and a shared interest in their future when SCA Instructor of Cinema Practice Jason E. Squire traveled to Tokyo for two days of lectures and events celebrating the Japanese publication of his work "The Movie Business Book."

Interactive Showcase
M.F.A. Thesis Works Forge New Boundaries
May 28, 2009
When the Interactive Media Division presented its first master of fine arts thesis showcase in 2005, student projects set the precedent for challenging and propelling the bounds of game, immersive and mobile content. Taking place from May 9 to 15 on the Carson Sound Stage, ten titles in this year’s Look and Feel exhibit pushed those bounds to new creative frontiers.

Simply Mar-velous
Elepano Wins USC President's Award
May 21, 2009
In honor of over a quarter century of outstanding service to the school and the university, USC has bestowed one its highest honors upon Mar Elepaño,production supervisor in the John C. Hench Division of Animation & Digital Arts.

Pomp and Circumstance
SCA Students Receive Hard-Earned Degrees
May 19, 2009
The energy couldn't have been much higher at the Shrine Auditorium on May 15, as the School of Cinematic Arts, with the help of industry greats Frank Price, Shonda Rhimes and Laura Ziskin, lauded its most recent graduating class and celebrated the next generation of entertainment artists and professionals.

A Lasting Impression
Mary Beth Fielder wins 2008-2009 Mellon Mentoring Award
May 13, 2009
According to Greek mythology, when Odysseus left for the Trojan War, he entrusted the safety and upbringing of his son Telemachus to his wise friend Mentor. Though thousands of years have passed, the spirit of nurturing and inspiring others to succeed lives on in the USC Mellon Award for Excellence in Mentoring, which the university has conferred upon SCA Senior Lecturer Mary Beth Fielder.

Fast Talk
Students Make Most of First Pitch ’09
May 12, 2009
Representatives from 41 of the industry’s leading agencies, management firms and production companies got first crack at the latest scripts from SCA writing students on May 4, as 52 writers showcased tales from every genre during the eighth annual First Pitch event.

CU: Rian Johnson
A Filmmaker in Bloom
May 11, 2009
Rian Johnson, who seared his way into noir fans’ hearts with his award-winning debut film Brick, has sought inspiration in a new kind of criminal in his sophomore film, The Brothers Bloom starring Adrien Brody, Mark Ruffalo and Rachel Weisz.

Reality Ends Here Special Offer
Limited Edition Book
April 27, 2009
Don’t miss your chance to grab a piece of history. The School of Cinematic Arts has published Reality Ends Here: 80 Years of USC Cinematic Arts, an exquisite, limited edition coffee table-sized book celebrating SCA’s 80th anniversary.

Transcending Text
Students Use Sound and Image to Shape New Meaning
April 20, 2009
Creating good cinema has always required extensive teamwork, but students enrolled in a new course at the Institute for Multimedia Literacy [IML] are taking collaboration to higher levels as they use sound, images and database materials to construct new endings (and new meanings) for a partially shot documentary about doctors in wartime Iraq.

Fest Bests
Top Animation & Digital Arts Projects Unspool at Adobe First Frame
April 20, 2009
A young girl wanders into a forest and meets a satyr, who becomes her best friend for life. Salome seduces an ancient king into beheading John the Baptist. A woman discovers the secret of her Aunt Nell when she finds an old, mechanical peep box. These stories and others were among the short animated films screened at Adobe First Frame 2009, engaging the audience that packed the Directors Guild of America Theater on March 5 with bold narratives and imaginative visuals.

Doe Mayer Honored
Veteran Professor Accepts USC Award for Excellence in Teaching
April 15, 2009
For the past 22 years Professor Doe Mayer has been at the forefront of using the cinematic arts to educate, inform and entertain. She's taught film, been a pioneer in employing media as a tool for social change, and worked in various philanthropic fields. On April 14, that legacy of dedication landed her one of USC's most prestigious forms of recognition, the Associates Award for Excellence in Teaching.

World Premiere
Cinematic Arts Celebrates 80th Anniversary With All New Campus
March 31, 2009
With 80 years of history-making experience behind it, the School of Cinematic Arts celebrated the past and launched itself into the future with the unveiling of its new campus at a March 29 gala attended by university leaders, students, faculty, alumni, supporters, including filmmakers George Lucas and Steven Spielberg, Dean Elizabeth M. Daley and USC President Steven B. Sample.

Outside the Box [Office]
New SCA Screening Series Exposes Unexposed Films
March 11, 2009
It’s one thing to tell people “think outside the box,” but it’s another to actually show them how to do it. Thanks to the creation this semester of the Outside the Box [Office] screening series, students, alumni, faculty and other guests have that chance as they take in a unique roster of first-run films from around the globe that they might otherwise never see.

Steel Reels
Art Transcends the Ages at Rolling Stones Film Fest
February 08, 2009
In the 1960s, young people lamented the "generation gap," but four decades later the distance between the artists of that generation and the one currently learning the cinematic arts was clearly bridged during the school’s two-day film festival, The Rolling Stones On Film, held February sixth and seventh at Norris Theatre.

Digital Cribs
SCA Teams Get Real-World Experience In Cisco Contest
February 01, 2009
If you think delivering a term paper on time is a challenge, try creating a mini-documentary that goes from concept to creation to global distribution in four months.

And Action!
New Cinematic Arts Complex Opens
January 16, 2009
The past, present, and future of Hollywood converged on January 10, 2009 as faculty, staff, and students got their first look at the brand-new School of Cinematic Arts complex. Over 400 guests attended the beginning of the semester open house and took the opportunity to comb through the George Lucas and Steven Spielberg buildings, which comprise the main components of the new complex.

CU: Josh Comen
VFX Magic On An Indie Budget
January 12, 2009
Is the economic downturn getting in the way of nailing that perfect traveling matte shot in the film that’s going to catapult you to fame, fortune and a three-picture deal? Meet your new best friend, Josh Comen.

Play-Tester Number One
Tracy Fullerton Installed As EA Endowed Professor
December 16, 2008
It was a typical night at the Interactive Media Division workspace: tiny men with umbrellas stopped time, white gardens were splattered with black paint, and samurais ventured through the middle kingdom. The special part of the evening came as Associate Professor and Director of the Electronic Arts Game Innovation Lab Tracy Fullerton was named the holder of the Electronic Arts Endowed Chair in Interactive Entertainment.

CU: Eric Nazarian
USC Filmmaker Wins Nicholls Fellowship
December 10, 2008
Try to imagine 5,200 bound screenplays: if you figure about an inch per screenplay, that’s a stack of brass-brad-bound dreams about 433 feet high. Now imagine being one of the five screenwriters in that 36-story pile to be recognized as the best of the bunch. If you’re having a problem picturing it, Eric Nazarian, B.A. Production ’99, winner of the prestigious 2008 Nicholls Fellowship for his screenplay Giants, can help.

Nina Foch Obituary
Hollywood Icon, SCA Lecturer, Mentor
December 08, 2008
Nina Foch, a widely respected lecturer at USC for the last 40 years and a veteran actress, whose credits stretch back to the golden age of Hollywood film noir, passed away on Friday December 5. She was 84.

Tracy Fullerton Named EA Endowed Chair
Electronic Arts CEO John Riccitiello to Keynote Installation Event
December 05, 2008
Associate Professor and Director of the Electronic Arts Game Innovation Lab Tracy Fullerton will be named the holder of the Electronic Arts Endowed Faculty Chair at a formal ceremony featuring a keynote address by John Riccitiello, CEO of Electronic Arts Inc.

SCA Strikes Back
Alien Robots Descend On The New SCA Complex
November 21, 2008
Though workers are still putting the final touches on the new School of Cinematic Arts Complex, the place is already being targeted by invading hordes of massive robots—virtually speaking, that is—as Visiting Associate Professor Eric Hanson gears up for a new live-action/visual effects class next spring.

Digital Youth
Online Time Important For Teen Development Finds USC/Berkeley MacArthur Study
November 20, 2008
Results from the most extensive U.S. study on teens and their use of digital media show that America’s youth are developing important social and technical skills online—often in ways adults do not understand or value.

PowerPoint Counterpoint
Pecha Kuchas Rip Across The Screen At IML Event
November 10, 2008
For many people, PowerPoint has become the bane of their existence, with long, often tedious, presentations causing their eyes to glaze over. But as students and faculty learned during a recent Institute for Multimedia Literacy [IML] event, rapid-fire pecha kucha slide shows can be eye-opening indeed.

Hollywood Hero
Weekend Fest, Major Exhibit Honor John Wayne
October 03, 2008
A century after his birth, one of the great icons of Hollywood and America was back on center stage when USC celebrated the legacy of John Wayne with a three-day film series, panel discussions and the kickoff of a four-month exhibition of the Duke’s life and times.

Alternate Endings
SCA alumnus Greg Townsend’s high-def interactive movie bridges distances
September 24, 2008
On Monday September 15, SCA treated the attendees of a networking conference at the University of California, San Diego to a cutting-edge cinematic experience — a student-made interactive HD movie entitled Alternate Endings that was streamed live from Trojan Vision over a long-distance network.

TV Trojans
Ten Alumni Win Emmys
September 22, 2008
School of Cinematic Arts alumni cleaned up at this year's Emmy awards, with ten Trojans taking home a total of 12 statuettes. To date, USC alumni have amassed 119 victories, and 2008 marked the 33rd consecutive year that members of the Trojan Family have received the nod for television's highest acclaim.

Virtual Worlds
Second Life Takes SCA to New Frontiers
September 12, 2008
For current SCA students, the four R’s have become reading, writing, arithmetic, and rendering virtual worlds. When it comes to developing this new literacy, Linden Lab’s Second Life — an internet-based platform that enables to users to interact and communicate with each other as avatars in a metaverse — has provided the school with unique opportunities for international exchange, collaboration, and experimentation.

Semper Filmmaking
Wounded Marines Train to Enter Film Industry
September 10, 2008
For service members returning from combat in Iraq and Afghanistan, the transition to civilian life can be both physically and emotionally daunting. To aid in this process, SCA screenwriting instructor James Egan has brought his extensive background in documentary filmmaking to the Wounded Marine Careers Foundation, an organization dedicated to providing injured veterans with the skills and job placement assistance needed to find jobs in the entertainment industry.

Cinematic 70th
SCA Celebrates Herb Farmer’s Incredible Seven Decades
September 09, 2008
In 1938, a mere nine years after the USC cinema program was founded, Herb Farmer arrived on campus and began a lifelong association that continues to this day. At an anniversary celebration held in Carson Television Center Sound Stage on September 3, Farmer's colleagues, friends and family gathered to celebrate his 70 years of ongoing service to SCA as a student, alumnus, professor and archivist.

Margaret Mehring
Considered the Best by Her Colleagues
September 03, 2008
Dr. Margaret Mehring, a renowned scholastic writer, film director, and humanitarian, as well as a long-time professor in the School of Cinematic Arts, has died at 82.

John Howe
Veteran Director/Instructor Passes at 81
August 27, 2008
Former production Associate Professor John Howe, who taught with SCA from 1983-1996, passed away on August 17 of natural causes at 81.

Launching Legends
Opening Day Reception Brings Newest SCA Talent Together
August 26, 2008
Entertainment history is replete with stories of partnerships that trace their roots back to the single moment when two people’s paths crossed. And so it was on August 20, when hundreds of new undergrad and grad students came together for the first time in Queen’s Courtyard to meet the faculty and staff who will shape their educational experience, and perhaps the teammates who will be with them throughout their careers.

EA CEO Joins Board of Councilors
John Riccitiello To Help Guide School
August 11, 2008
John Riccitiello, chief executive officer of Electronic Arts, Inc. (NASDAQ: ERTS), has joined the USC School of Cinematic Arts Board of Councilors. Riccitiello will play a key role in keeping the school’s artistic and academic initiatives at the cutting edge.

Bud Browne
Alumnus Made Surf Film History
July 28, 2008
Bud Browne, USC film school alumnus and surfing movie director, died July 25 at age 96. The creator of seminal surf films such as Gun Ho!, Going Surfin’, and Cat on a Hot Foam Board, Browne was renowned for both his athletic prowess in the water and his filmmaking skills, which brought surfing to the movie-going public.

Hitchcock Contribution
Director's Family Supports SCA Complex Construction
July 16, 2008
One of the greatest names in cinematic history is playing a major role in shaping the art form’s future with the Alma and Alfred Hitchcock Foundation donating $500,000 to help fund construction of the school’s massive new educational and production complex.

Student Oscars
USC Films Take Home Top Accolades
July 01, 2008
Students from the USC School of the Cinematic Arts were rewarded for months of late nights and hard work at the 2008 Student Academy Awards, where four Trojan films took home prizes, including two Gold Medals.

Wellness Partners Game
IMD Lands $200,000 Health Research Grant
June 11, 2008
A University of Southern California research effort co-lead by Marientina Gotsis of the Interactive Media Division has received a $200,000 grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) to explore how interactive digital games could be designed to improve players' health behaviors and outcomes.

Highly Animated
Experimental Animation Screening Crosses Divisions
June 05, 2008
If you think animators only spend their days (and nights) sequestered in dark cubicles toiling by themselves, think again. As students from the John C. Hench Division of Animation & Digital Arts proved during the recent “2008 Experimental Animation Screening,” collaborating with counterparts in the School of Cinematic Arts and Thornton School of Music truly brought their animations to life.

Commencement Day
School of Cinematic Arts Honors Over 500 Graduates
May 22, 2008
Despite searing temperatures outside, spirits were high at the Shrine Auditorium on May 16, as the School of Cinematic Arts, with the help of industry giants Robert A. Iger and Brian T. Grazer, lauded its most recent graduating class and celebrated the next generation of entertainment artists and professionals.

Oakie Masters Series
Comic Genius James L. Brooks Inaugurates Annual Lecture Event
May 13, 2008
USC students enjoyed a wide-ranging lecture and discussion with Oscar and Emmy award-winning writer/director/producer James L. Brooks on May 2 as part of the inaugural event of the Jack Oakie and Victoria Horne Oakie Masters Lecture Series.

Press Start
Interactive M.F.A. Projects Challenge Convention
May 13, 2008
This year’s Interactive Media Division (IMD) M.F.A. graduates challenged themselves to discover new technology mediated experiences that could keep pace with their imaginations. The result—an array of 11 projects that range from a videogame incorporating time travel to a new way to battle traffic congestion—are on display at the “Press Start” thesis show running from May 10 to 15 in the division’s atelier at 555 W. 23rd Street.

Hot Type
First Pitch 2008 Gives Industry Reps Inside Track On SCA Scripts
May 13, 2008
Representatives from 39 the industry’s leading agencies, management firms and production companies got first crack at the latest scripts from SCA writing students on May 5, as 48 writers showcased tales from every genre during the seventh annual First Pitch event.

Doniger Donation
Peyton Place Director Donates Archives to USC
May 07, 2008
Golden Globe nominee Walter Doniger, a creative force behind television classics like Marcus Welby, M.D., Ellery Queen and Night Gallery, has donated his personal archives of film and television memorabilia to the USC School of Cinematic Arts.

CU: Jon M. Chu
Stepping Up from SCA to The Industry
May 05, 2008
In Motion sat down with Jon M. Chu, director of "Step Up 2: The Streets" to ask him about USC, making a dance extravaganza in five weeks and the power of Miley Cyrus.

The World In 2050
IBM Research and Cinematic Arts Envision the Future
May 05, 2008
On the evening of April 30, five of IBM’s top research scientists joined with School of Cinematic Arts (SCA) students, alumni, faculty and members of the entertainment industry to brainstorm about the art of the possible—circa 2050. The reception and discussion kicked off a collaboration between SCA and IBM to inspire a new generation of film, television and interactive artists, as well as suggest creative directions for researchers.

TV Turns 10
Trojan Vision Celebrates A Decade Of Service
May 05, 2008
When it started 10 years ago, Trojan Vision was short on facilities, personnel and equipment, but long on the dream of what could be. A decade later, the dream has become reality, with the station serving the university, winning national awards and providing hands-on experience that has enabled students to launch their careers.

First Pitch 2008
Alumnus Matthew Weiner (Mad Men, The Sopranos) Hosts
April 21, 2008
The freshest film and television writing talent from USC will go one-on-one with reps from leading agencies, management firms and production companies during First Pitch, hosted on Monday, May 5 by alumnus Matthew Weiner, Dean Elizabeth M. Daley announced.

Screening Kudos
Industry Professionals At First Look 2.0
March 31, 2008
The School of Cinematic Arts hosted its annual student film festival, First Look 2.0, this weekend, incorporating for the first time an awards system to recognize top student films. Forty-six films debuted at the festival, which USC community members and entertainment industry professionals attended.

Shanty Town
SCA Faculty Member Heads Kenyan Film Workshops
March 26, 2008
Young people from an African shanty town making films may seem unlikely, but not to Senior Lecturer Mary Beth Fielder, who along with the Nairobi-based Hot Sun Foundation is leading a series of film workshops for forty aspiring moviemakers from Kibera, Kenya.

RKO Expert
Rick Jewell Lands Academy Grant To Examine Classic Studio
March 25, 2008
Critical Studies Professor and Hugh M. Hefner Chair for the Study of American Film Professor Rick Jewell has been named one of two 2008 Academy Film Scholars by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and is one of two recipients of a $25,000 grant from the Institutional Grants Committee of the Academy Foundation.

Art Against AIDS
Hench-DADA Students Help To Prevent HIV/AIDS Among Youth
March 19, 2008
Working in partnership with doctors from the Keck School of Medicine, students from the John C. Hench Division of Animation & Digital Arts (Hench-DADA) have put their creative powers to use by generating a series of public service announcements to fight against the incidence of HIV/AIDS in youth.

Hecho En LA
Alumni Produced MADE IN LA Doc Takes On Sweatshops
March 13, 2008
An award-winning documentary, produced by Stark alumnus Robert Bahar, about garment workers who take a stand against the retailer responsible for their low wages and sub-standard working conditions, made its SCA debut at the Taper Hall of Humanities on March 11, 2008.

Malvin Wald
Writer and Former Instructor Passes Away
March 11, 2008
Writer and former School of Cinematic Arts Writing Professor Malvin Wald, best known for co-writing the Academy Award-nominated screenplay for the 1948 film "The Naked City," died March 6, 2008 in Los Angeles. He was 90.

Critical Commons
Faculty Members Receive Grant To Promote Digital Fair Use
February 29, 2008
SCA faculty members Steve Anderson and Holly Willis have received a key grant from the from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation to probe one of the digital era’s most pressing issues: fair use of protected assets in support of learning.

Healthy Entertainment
Probing The Power Of Health-Themed Entertainment Media
February 20, 2008
From television programs like GREY'S ANATOMY and HOUSE, to films like JOHN Q and PHILADELPHIA, medical themes can make compelling entertainment.But they are also great educational opportunities, as students recently discovered in a unique joint course of the School of Cinematic Arts and The Keck School of Medicine.

First Look 2.0
Transforming SCA’s Premiere Festival
February 14, 2008
The hottest films to come out of the School of Cinematic Arts this year will hit the big screen during the First Look 2.0 festival, taking place at the Norris Theatre Complex from March 28 – 30. And for the first time ever in its history, the festival will present juried award winners at all of its screenings, including a Special Awards Ceremony at the Directors Guild of America on April 2.

24/7 Summit
Landmark Conference Draws Global Video Experts
February 13, 2008
Video creators, scholars, activists, policy makers, technologists and entrepreneurs gathered at USC to focus on the fate and future of visual media in the 21st century during 24/7: A DIY Video Summit—a first-of-its-kind international event held at an academic institution.

Sundance Shines
SCA Lights Up Park City Festival Scene
February 12, 2008
A touch of Southern California sunshine warmed the snowy landscape of Park City, Utah as the School of Cinematic Arts celebrated its most successful year of screenings ever at the Sundance and Slamdance Film Festivals.

Golden Age Gold
Movie Memories And More At The Warner Bros. Archives
February 05, 2008
How do you build a small family business into a multi-billion dollar industry giant? Bit, by bit, as researchers have discovered over the past 30 years of combing through the School of Cinematic Arts Warner Bros. Archives, whose contents offer a unique glimpse into the Golden Age of the Hollywood studio system.

Marathon Run
A USC Collaborative Efforts Hits Theater Screens
January 24, 2008
Four years in the making, Spirit of the Marathon, the collaborative effort of three-time Academy Award winner Mark Jonathan Harris, Telly Award winner and marathon runner Jon Dunham ‘00 and producer/marathoner Gwendolen Twist premieres tonight.

Model Worker
Precision Is The Hallmark Of German Pinchevsky
January 22, 2008
In the early 1960s, German Pinchevsky studied the art of cinematography at the Moscow Film School, the oldest institute of its kind in the world. Five decades later, his unique craftsmanship and ingenuity is a key factor to ensure students at the oldest American cinema program keep on rolling.

Holman Honored
SCA Professor Recognized By Peers
January 14, 2008
Professor Tomlinson Holman, whose THX theatre system revolutionized sound in movie theatres, has been recognized as a fellow by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers for “contributions to the recording of cinema sound and its realistic reproduction in both cinema and home environments.”

More Met
A Semester Of Opera At The SCA
January 11, 2008
The Norris was one of 477 screens in the United States – and a hundred more overseas – to host the Met HD broadcast of Roméo et Juliette Dec. 15. But unlike the others, admission at USC was free.

Strike Impact
Writing Division Hosts Forum On WGA Work Stoppage
November 16, 2007
While the Writers Guild of America (WGA) strike is having an immediate impact on current television and film scribes, SCA students and recent alumni learned during a special forum hosted by the Writing Division that it can have long-term consequences on them as well.

Most Active Alumni
USC Honors Herb Farmer ’42
October 17, 2007
USC’s Half-Century Club honored Emeritus Professor Herb Farmer ’42 with its Most Active Alumni Award at the club’s luncheon for the class of 1957 during Trojan Parents’ Weekend on Friday, October 12.

Eisenstein Award
Celebrating and Honoring the Work of Costa-Gavras
October 09, 2007
Director, screenwriter, and producer Costa-Gavras presented with Eisenstein Award.

THE GRADUATE
40 Years Later, Larry Turman Reflects On His Iconic Production
October 04, 2007
Producer Larry Turman reflects on a film that still resonates with audiences today, forty years after its debut.

Media Of Choice
USC Institute for Multimedia Literacy Fuses Image, Sound and Text
September 18, 2007
Since its founding, the IML has worked with over 100 faculty members at USC and beyond, in addition to scores of teachers from K-12, to hone the philosophy and the teaching methods of a literacy based on multiple media—from text to moving- and still-images, to audio files and other databased resources.

Robert Enders
In Memoriam
September 18, 2007
Writer, director and producer Robert Enders, who taught as an adjunct faculty member at the School of Cinematic Arts for 14 years, passed away on September 7 in Los Angeles.

The Producers
Michael Peyser and John Watson Join Production Faculty
September 07, 2007
Seasoned producers Michael Peyser and John Watson, whose credits are among some of the most recognized titles in contemporary film, have joined the faculty of the school’s Film & Television Production Division

Div Docs
New Ph.D. Program Spans All The School’s Divisions
August 28, 2007
A new degree is the second doctoral track in the school, joining the Critical Studies Ph.D., which became the nation’s first Cinema Ph.D. in 1958.

Complex Cam
A Bird's-Eye View Of The School's New Facilities
August 14, 2007
Over the course of the summer, visitors to the University Park campus have watched the construction on the new cinematic arts complex make great strides. Now, as construction heightens, any one can track its development thanks to a 24/7 camera.

Interactive Politics
Launching An Anti-Gerrymandering Video Game
June 14, 2007
An interactive media research team from the University of Southern California, supported by members of Congress from both sides of the aisle and key political reform groups, launched The Redistricting Game on Capital Hill on Wednesday, June 13, 2007.

Global Reach
SCA Teams Teach Abroad, International Students Trek To LA
May 29, 2007
Just because the regular school year has ended doesn’t mean the lazy days of summer have come to the School of Cinematic Arts. With teaching teams deployed around the globe and scores of international students arriving over the next two months—including a contingent funded by an exclusive State Department grant—the SCA has become one of the summer’s hot spots.

Honorary Alumnus
SCA Bestows Award On Clint Eastwood
May 03, 2007
Acclaimed actor, director and producer Clint Eastwood will receive the first Honorary Alumni Award ever conferred by the USC School of Cinematic Arts during its 2007 commencement exercises on May 11.

Future Of Film
LA Conference Unites Film and Technology Decision Makers
March 13, 2007
Film and technology decision-makers are set to network and share ideas with over 300 of the industry’s most innovative digital media insiders at the very first Future of Film conference in Beverly Hills on March 21, 2007.

E. Russell McGregor II
Production Professor Was School's First Interim Dean
February 13, 2007
Dr. E. Russell McGregor II, the first interim dean of the School of Cinematic Arts and former professor in the Division of Film & Television Production, passed away on February 7, 2007 in San Luis Obispo. He was 76.

Charles S. Swartz
Entertainment Industry Leader Passes Away
February 13, 2007
Charles S. Swartz, respected throughout the entertainment industry and academia for his role in shepherding innovations that broke new ground in cinematic content, distribution, and display, passed away on February 10 from pneumonia, his family announced today.

Film Scholar
David James Ph.D. focuses on the link between music and movies
February 06, 2007
David E. James, professor in critical studies at the USC School of Cinematic Arts, has been named one of two 2007 Academy Film Scholars by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Scene at Sundance
SCA Films Screen at Prestigious Festival
January 30, 2007
Though Park City temps were sub-zero, School of Cinematic Arts (SCA) alumni, students, and faculty were in the glow as they celebrated the official USC screenings selected for this year’s Sundance Film Festival.

Cinema-Tech
Vince Gonzales Captures The Art of Motion Picture Technology
January 30, 2007
While a magic lantern might seem like it belongs with Aladdin and his flying carpet, in reality, the classic piece of pre-cinema history from the late 1700s is coming to life as part of a unique photography show by SCA staffer Vince Gonzales.

Golden State
USC Project Examines The History Of Jews In California
January 17, 2007
Though the roles of Jewish people throughout California are undeniably important to the state’s cultural development, until now, Jewish California has been a little studied aspect of American history. That’s all about to change as a new interactive media project gets underway.

Female Forum
Women In Film Salutes Dean Daley
January 17, 2007
Elizabeth Daley, dean of the USC School of Cinematic Arts, was honored last fall at a ceremony celebrating the contribution of women in the film industry.

Page To Screen
Children Of Men Wins Scripter Award
January 16, 2007
The author of Children of Men and the screenwriters of the film based on the book have won the 19th annual USC Libraries Scripter Award.

Entertainment Leader
Hollywood Veteran David Wertheimer To Lead ETC
January 16, 2007
The Entertainment Technology Center at the University of Southern California (ETC-USC), a neutral, non-partisan research organization in the School of Cinematic Arts that studies entertainment technology developments that are critical to the creative community; production companies; content owners, distributors and exhibitors; and technology companies has tapped entrepreneur, technologist, and Hollywood veteran David Wertheimer to lead the organization.

Cinema Manifesto
Documentary Examines Filmmakers '70s Exploits
January 12, 2007
In the early 1970s in San Francisco, Judy Irola, now the head of cinematography in the USC School of Cinematic Arts, was part of a groundbreaking Marxist filmmaking collective called Cine Manifest.

Price Is Right
BOC Chair Is Nominee For Council On Arts
January 10, 2007
Frank Price, a USC Life Trustee and Chair of the Board of Councilors for the School of Cinematic Arts, has been nominated by President George W. Bush to a six-year term on the National Council on the Arts. The council advises the chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts on grants to be made by the endowment.

Listen Up
Professor Tom Holman Receives IEEE’s Ibuka Award
January 08, 2007
The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) has named School of Cinematic Arts Professor Tom Holman as the recipient of its 2007 Masaru Ibuka Award, recognizing Holman’s contribution to the development of advanced audio and cinema multi-channel playback systems.

Savage Screenplay
Bringing Murder To Life On The Big Screen
January 03, 2007
One of the hallmarks of the School of Cinematic Arts is an environment where theory and practice interact—even, at times, collide. For faculty who balance careers in the industry and university, it can prove an interesting juggling act. Just ask Howard A. Rodman, who’s spent the past year chairing the writing division and teaching, while at the same time penning a pilot for HBO and edging his adaptation of the 1985 nonfiction book Savage Grace toward the big screen.

Much Ado About Dodos
Two USC Filmmakers And A Flock Of Extinct Birds Put The Debate On Evolution And Intelligent Design In Focus
January 03, 2007
The dodo, that famously dumb and dead bird, has been brought back from extinction in a feature film garnering praise everywhere it plays since its world premiere at the 2006 Tribeca Film Festival in New York City. Now, the acclaimed film will have a special USC screening on February 10, 2007 at the Norris Theatre.

Historic Signing
Marking The Creation Of The Red Sea Institute Of Cinematic Arts
September 21, 2006
King Abdullah II of Jordan presided over a ceremony in New York City on September 20th marking the creation of the Red Sea Institute of Cinematic Arts (RSICA) in Jordan’s Red Sea resort town of Aqaba.

Agent Extraordinaire
Marking The Installation Of The School's 13th Endowed Chair
May 12, 2006
At a star-studded gala that began with the fanfare of the Trojan Marching Band, friends, family, scholars, students, and supporters of Associate Dean Larry Auerbach marked his installation as the school’s record-breaking 13th endowed chair on May 10.

2004 Steven J. Ross/Time Warner Award
June 22, 2004
ROBERT A. DALY TO BE HONORED BY THE USC SCHOOL OF CINEMA-TELEVISION WITH THE STEVEN J. ROSS / TIME WARNER AWARD