Mark Harris, B.A.

Distinguished Professor
Head, Advanced Documentary Production course

213.740.3319
mharris@cinema.usc.edu
LUC 402

Mark Jonathan Harris brings his experience into the classroom, teaching courses in screenwriting and film production, concentrating on the documentary film. He has made three Academy Award-winning documentaries, with his most recent Oscar for directing and writing the feature documentary, Into the Arms of Strangers: Stories of the Kindertransport (2000). His previous wins include Best Feature Length Documentary for The Long Way Home (1997) and Best Short Documentary for The Redwoods (1968). In addition to short stories, screenplays, educational films, and his worldwide lectures and presentations, Harris is the author of five children's novels, including Come the Morning, which received the FOCAL Award for Best California Children's Book in 1990, two books of non-fiction, and numerous articles and essays in newspapers and magazines.

In 2003, Harris' HBO documentary, Unchained Memories: Readings From the Slave Narratives, received two Emmy nominations. He has three new documentaries that will be released in 2007 and 2008: Spirit of the Marathon, which he executive produced, wlll debut at the Chicago Festival in October 2007; Darfur Now, which he produced with Don Cheadle and Cathy Shulman, will premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2007; and The Defector, which he co-wrote and directed will be released in 2008.

Serving as co-director of documentary production from 1985-1991, Harris supervised the production of 34 student-produced documentaries that have been shown on PBS, the Learning Channel, Discovery, the BBC, and Swedish television. The films won over 100 international awards, including two Academy Award nominations for Best Short Documentary.