The

University of Southern California , mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it" , religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist , established = , accreditation = WSCUC , type = Private research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $8. ...

School of Cinematic Arts (SCA) houses seven academic divisions: Film & Television Production; Cinema & Media Studies; John C. Hench Division of Animation + Digital Arts; John Wells Division of Writing for Screen & Television; Interactive Media & Games; Media Arts + Practice; Peter Stark Producing Program. The USC School of Cinematic Arts is led by dean Elizabeth Monk Daley, who holds the Steven J. Ross/Time Warner Chair and is the longest-serving dean at the University of Southern California, having led the cinema school since 1991.

History

When

Douglas Fairbanks Douglas Elton Fairbanks Sr. (born Douglas Elton Thomas Ullman; May 23, 1883 – December 12, 1939) was an American actor, screenwriter, director, and producer. He was best known for his swashbuckling roles in silent films including '' The Thi ...

became the first president of the nascent Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 1927, one of the more innovative items on his agenda was that the academy should have a “training school”. As Fairbanks and his enablers reasoned that training in the cinematic arts should be seen as a legitimate academic discipline at major universities, given the same degree considerations as fields like medicine and law. Although cinema studies programs are now widely entrenched in academia, back then it was a novel idea and many universities turned Fairbanks down. But he found tepid acceptance at the University of Southern California that agreed to allow one class, called “Introduction to Photoplay” that debuted in 1929, the same year as the Academy Awards. Determined to make it a success, Fairbanks brought in the biggest industry names of the era to lecture, including

Mary Pickford Gladys Marie Smith (April 8, 1892 – May 29, 1979), known professionally as Mary Pickford, was a Canadian-American stage and screen actress and producer with a career that spanned five decades. A pioneer in the US film industry, she co-founde ...

, D. W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin,

William C. DeMille William Churchill deMille (July 25, 1878 – March 5, 1955), also spelled de Mille or De Mille, was an American screenwriter and film director from the silent film era through the early 1930s. He was also a noted playwright prior to moving into ...

Ernst Lubitsch Ernst Lubitsch (; January 29, 1892November 30, 1947) was a German-born American film director, producer, writer, and actor. His urbane comedies of manners gave him the reputation of being Hollywood's most elegant and sophisticated director; as ...

Irving Thalberg Irving Grant Thalberg (May 30, 1899 – September 14, 1936) was an American film producer during the early years of motion pictures. He was called "The Boy Wonder" for his youth and ability to select scripts, choose actors, gather productio ...

, and

Darryl Zanuck Darryl Francis Zanuck (September 5, 1902December 22, 1979) was an American film producer and studio executive; he earlier contributed stories for films starting in the silent era. He played a major part in the Hollywood studio system as one of ...

.Rachel Abramowitz
L.A.'s screening gems
''Los Angeles Times'', Accessed June 16, 2008. From that one class grew a Department of Cinematography (1932) in the College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, renamed the Department of Cinema (1940), which led to the establishment of the USC School of Cinema-Television (1983), which was renamed the USC School of Cinematic Arts (2006). . On September 19, 2006, USC announced that alumnus

George Lucas George Walton Lucas Jr. (born May 14, 1944) is an American filmmaker. Lucas is best known for creating the ''Star Wars'' and '' Indiana Jones'' franchises and founding Lucasfilm, LucasArts, Industrial Light & Magic and THX. He served as chai ...

had donated US$175 million to expand the film school with a new facility. This represented the largest single donation to USC and the largest to any film school in the world. His previous donations resulted in the naming of two buildings in the school's previous complex, opened in 1984, after him and his then-wife Marcia, though Lucas was not fond of the

Spanish Colonial Revival architecture The Spanish Colonial Revival Style ( es, Arquitectura neocolonial española) is an Architectural style, architectural stylistic movement arising in the early 20th century based on the Spanish Colonial architecture of the Spanish colonization of th ...

used in those buildings. An architectural hobbyist, Lucas laid out the original designs for the project, inspired by the Mediterranean Revival Style that was used in older campus buildings as well as the Los Angeles area. The project also received another $50 million in contributions from Warner Bros.,

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film studio, film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm o ...

and

The Walt Disney Company The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment industry, entertainment conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios (Burbank), Walt Disney Stud ...

. In fall 2006, the school, together with the Royal Film Commission of Jordan, created the Red Sea Institute of Cinematic Arts (RSICA) in

Aqaba Aqaba (, also ; ar, العقبة, al-ʿAqaba, al-ʿAgaba, ) is the only coastal city in Jordan and the largest and most populous city on the Gulf of Aqaba. Situated in southernmost Jordan, Aqaba is the administrative centre of the Aqaba Gove ...

Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Ri ...

. The first classes were held in 2008, and the first graduating class for the university was in 2010. The USC School of Cinematic Arts announced it would remove an exhibit devoted to actor and former USC student John Wayne, after months of insistence from a small number of students denouncing the Hollywood star’s views and the portrayal of indigenous Americans in his films. The exhibit has been relocated to the Cinematic Arts library which has many collections for the study of figures whose lives and works are part of society's shared history. These materials are preserved for posterity and made accessible for research and scholarship as will the materials in the Wayne Collection.

Divisions

Film &
Television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication Media (communication), medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of Transmission (telecommunications), television tra ...
Production

The current Chair is Gail Katz, holder of the Mary Pickford Endowed Chair; Vice-Chair is Susan Arnold.

Cinema & Media Studies

The Division of Cinema & Media Studies is the central hub for film theory at the USC School of Cinematic Arts. The current Chair is Priya Jaikumar.

John C. Hench Division of Animation + Digital Arts

The John C. Hench Division of Animation + Digital Arts teaches courses in animation and digital arts. These include classic character animation, 2-D and 3-D storytelling, performance capture, visual effects, motion graphics, stop-motion, experimental filmmaking, installations and multimedia, documentary animation, and visualizing scientific research. The current Chair is Teresa Cheng, who holds the John C. Hench Endowed Division Chair.

Interactive Media & Games Division

The Interactive Media & Games Division teaches video games, which make up the fastest growing segment of the entertainment industry. USC has been a pioneer in teaching the foundations of games and interactive media while also moving the field forward with innovative research concepts. The Princeton Review has ranked USC the #1 Game Design school in North America every year since its ranking system began in 2009. The current Chair is Danny Bilson.

Media Arts + Practice

The Media Arts + Practice Division (MA+P) creates and analyzes media for fields as diverse as business, medicine, education, architecture, law, urban planning, filmmaking. The current Chair is

Holly Willis Holly Willis is a Professor and Chair of the Media Arts and Practice division in the USC School of Cinematic Arts. Previously, she served as Associate Dean of Research and Founding Chair of Media Arts and Practice, as well as Director of Academ ...

John Wells Division of Writing for Screen & Television

The USC School of Cinematic Arts offers Bachelor of Fine Arts and Master of Fine Arts degrees in Writing for Screen and Television for students who seek professional preparation for a career in screen and television writing. The programs emphasizes small, workshop-style classes. Students attend a variety of guest speaker presentations, take industry internships, are provided with mentors and are taught by professors who are actively working in the entertainment industry. Each fall, 30 undergraduate and 32 graduate writing students are selected to begin the program. The current Chair is David Isaacs.

Peter Stark Producing Program

The Peter Stark Producing Program is a two-year (four semester) full-time graduate program. Approximately 24 Peter Stark Program students are enrolled each fall. The curriculum is designed to prepare a select group of students for careers as producers and executives of film, television, and new media. The current Chair is

Edward Saxon Edward Bradley Saxon (born November 17, 1956) is an American film producer. Early life Saxon was born and raised in St. Louis, Missouri, and educated at Kirkwood High School from 1972 to 1976. He studied at McGill University from 1976 to 198 ...

Faculty

The School of Cinematic Arts also has an active Board of Councilors who help guide the future direction of the School and work with the Dean to ensure the School is properly resourced.

Facilities

Donations from film and game industry companies, friends, and alumni have enabled the school to build the following facilities:Facilities
/ref> * School of Cinematic Arts Complex, completed in 2010, which includes: **

soundstage **

and

Steven Spielberg Steven Allan Spielberg (; born December 18, 1946) is an American director, writer, and producer. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, he is the most commercially successful director of all time. Spi ...

Buildings, featuring the Ray Stark Family Theatre, which is equipped for 3D presentation, as well as two digital theatres, the Albert and Dana Broccoli Theatre and

Fanny Brice Fania Borach (October 29, 1891 – May 29, 1951), known professionally as Fanny Brice or Fannie Brice, was an American comedienne, illustrated song model, singer, and theater and film actress who made many stage, radio, and film appearances. ...

Theatre **

Marcia Lucas Marcia Lou Lucas (née Griffin; born October 4, 1945) * * is an American film editor and film producer. She is best known for her work editing Martin Scorsese's ''Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore'' (1973), ''Taxi Driver'' (1976), and ''New York, N ...

Post-Production Center ** Marilyn &

Jeffrey Katzenberg Jeffrey Katzenberg (; born December 21, 1950) is an American filmmaker, animator, and media proprietor. He became well known for his tenure as chairman of Walt Disney Studios from 1984 to 1994. After departing Disney, he was a co-founder and ...

Center for Animation ** Sumner Redstone Production Building which contains two stages Redstone 1 and Redstone 2 ** Interactive building (SCI), home of the USC Interactive Media & Games Division, the USC Division of Media Arts and Practice, and several research labs (th
Game Innovation Lab
th
Mobile and Environmental Media Lab
th
Mixed Reality Lab
and th
Creative Media & Behavioral Health Center
among others) * Robert Zemeckis Center for Digital Arts, home of Trojan Vision, USC's

student television station A student television station is a television station run by university, high or middle school students that primarily airs school/university news and in many cases, student-produced soap operas, entertainment shows, and other programming. At th ...

* Eileen Norris Cinema Theatre Complex, featuring a 365-seat theatre that also serves as a classroom with USC faculty member and

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment in ...

winner

Tomlinson Holman Tomlinson M. Holman (born 1946) is an American film theorist, audio engineer, and inventor of film technologies, notably the Lucasfilm's THX sound system. He developed the world's first 10.2 sound system.Truta, Filip Truta (May 5, 2011)"Apple Hire ...

THX THX Ltd. is an American company that develops the eponymous high fidelity audio/visual reproduction standards for movie theaters, screening rooms, home theaters, computer speakers, gaming consoles, car audio systems, and video games. Founded ...

audiovisual reproduction standard used in film venues worldwide. The Frank Sinatra Hall, dedicated in 2002, houses a public exhibit and collection of extensive memorabilia commemorating Sinatra's life and contributions to American popular culture. * David L. Wolper Center at Doheny Memorial Library * Louis B. Mayer Film and Television Study Center at Doheny Memorial Library * Hugh M. Hefner Moving Image Archive At the center of the new television complex is a statue of founder

. He is seen holding a fencing foil in one hand and a script in the other to reflect his strong ties with the USC Fencing Club.

Distinctions

* Since 1973, at least one alumnus of SCA has been nominated for an

annually, totaling 256 nominations and 78 wins.Mel Cowan
Cinematic Arts Celebrates 80th Anniversary With All New Campus
University of Southern California, March 31, 2009, Accessed May 1, 2009. * Since 1973, at least one SCA alumnus or alumna has been nominated for the

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

annually, totaling 473 nominations and 119 wins. * The top 17 grossing films of all time have had an SCA graduate in a key creative position. * ''

The Princeton Review The Princeton Review is an education services company providing tutoring, test preparation and admission resources for students. It was founded in 1981. and since that time has worked with over 400 million students. Services are delivered by 4 ...

'' has ranked the Interactive Media and Games Division's video game design program best in North America multiple years in a row. * Both ''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Hollywood film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade paper, and in 2010 switched to a weekly large ...

'' and ''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virg ...

'' have ranked SCA the number one film program in the world, with its unmatched facilities, proximity to Hollywood, and numerous industry connections being the primary rationale. * The current acceptance rate for the USC School of Cinematic Arts is 3%.

Awards for USC Cinema short films

* In 1956, producer Wilber T. Blume, a USC Cinema instructor at the time, received an Academy Award for best live action short film for a film he created entitled '' The Face of Lincoln''. Blume also received an Academy Award nomination that year for documentary short. * In 1968,

won first prize in the category of Dramatic films at the third National Student Film Festival held at

Lincoln Center Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (also simply known as Lincoln Center) is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has thirty indoor and outdoor facilities and is host to 5 millio ...

, New York for his futuristic '' Electronic Labyrinth: THX 1138 4EB''.Rinzler, J.W., ''The Complete Making of Indiana Jones; The Definitive Story Behind All Four Films'', Del Rey, 2008, .Bapis, Elaine M., ''Camera And Action: American Film As Agent of Social Change, 1965–1975'', McFarland, 2008, . * In 1970, producer John Longenecker received an Academy Award for best live action short film for a film he produced while attending USC Cinema 480 classes as an undergraduate—'' The Resurrection of Broncho Billy''. The film's crew and cast included Nick Castle, cinematographer;

John Carpenter John Howard Carpenter (born January 16, 1948) is an American filmmaker, actor, and composer. Although he worked in various film genres, he is most commonly associated with horror, action, and science fiction films of the 1970s and 1980s. He ...

, film editor and original music; James Rokos, director;

Johnny Crawford John Ernest Crawford (March 26, 1946 – April 29, 2021) was an American actor, singer, and musician. He first performed before a national audience as a Mouseketeer. At age 12, Crawford rose to prominence playing Mark McCain in the series '' ...

, lead actor; and

Kristin Nelson Sharon Kristin Nelson (née Harmon; June 25, 1945 – April 27, 2018) was an American primitive painter, actress, and author. She was married to the actor and musician Ricky Nelson for nineteen years, and is the sister of actor Mark Harmon. Earl ...

, lead actress. * In 1973, Robert Zemeckis won a Special Jury Award at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences' second annual Student Film Awards presentation for ''A Field of Honor''. * In 2001, MFA student David Greenspan won the Palme d’Or for

short film A short film is any motion picture that is short enough in running time not to be considered a feature film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences defines a short film as "an original motion picture that has a running time of 40 minutes ...

at the

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films ...

for his student film ''Bean Cake''. * In 2006, director, co-writer, and producer Ari Sandel received an Academy Award for best live action short film (" West Bank Story") made as a USC Cinema graduate school project. * In 2009, MFA student Gregg Helvey was nominated for an Academy Award for his MFA thesis film, Kavi. * In 2020, School of Cinematic Arts graduate Travis Misenti directed a science fiction film, '' The Echo Worlds'', that was awarded the January Nominee (for the movie trailer category) of the year of 2020 for The Monthly Film Festival.

Awards for USC Cinema feature films

* In 2019, the crime / thriller film ''

Samir Samir (variantly spelled Sameer) is a male name found commonly in the Middle East, Central Asia and Europe. In Arabic, Samir () means holy, jovial, loyal or charming. In Albanian, it translates literally as “so good” but the connotation is clo ...

'' became an official selection for the 2019 Heartland International Film Festival with the help of

Warner Bros. Entertainment Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Dis ...

Notable SCA alumni

''See also

List of University of Southern California people This is a list of notable alumni, faculty, and students, from the University of Southern California. Those individuals who qualify for multiple categories have been placed under the section for which they are best known. Academia Architectur ...

'' SCA has more than 12,000 alumni. Among the most notable are: *

Sasha Alexander Sasha Alexander (born Suzana Drobnjakovic on May 17, 1973), is an American actress and TV director. She played Gretchen Witter in '' Dawson's Creek'' and has acted in films including '' Yes Man'' (2008) and ''He's Just Not That Into You'' (2 ...

* Ante Cheng *

Scott Alexander Scott Alain Alexander (born July 10, 1989) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball (MLB). He played college baseball for Pepperdine University and Sonoma State University. The Kansas City ...

* Elizabeth Allen * Thom Andersen *

Judd Apatow Judd Apatow (; born December 6, 1967) is an American comedian, director, producer, and screenwriter, best known for his work in comedy and drama films. He is the founder of Apatow Productions, through which he produced and directed the films '' ...

Gregg Araki Gregg Araki (born December 17, 1959) is an American filmmaker. He is noted for his heavy involvement with the New Queer Cinema movement. His film ''Kaboom'' (2010) was the first winner of the Cannes Film Festival Queer Palm. Early life and ...

* Aditya Assarat * Doug Atchison *

John August John August (born August 4, 1970) is an American screenwriter, director, producer, and novelist. He is known for writing the films '' Go'' (1999), ''Charlie's Angels'' (2000), '' Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle'' (2003), '' Big Fish'' (2003), '' ...

* John Bailey * Kelley Baker *

Richard L. Bare Richard Leland Bare (August 12, 1913 – March 28, 2015) was an American director, producer, and screenwriter of Hollywood movies, television shows and short films. Career Born in Turlock, California, he attended USC School of Cinematic Arts ...

* Hal Barwood *

Walt Becker Walter William Becker is an American filmmaker and novelist, whose directorial credits include the films ''Van Wilder'', ''Wild Hogs'' and ''Old Dogs''. Biography Becker graduated from Pasadena High School (California) in 1986 and USC School ...

Jim Bernstein Jim Bernstein is an American television writer. He is co-creator and executive producer of the Disney XD series '' Mighty Med''. He is a graduate of the USC School of Cinematic Arts and has been nominated for three Emmy awards. In 2021, he won a ...

* David Bezmozgis * Laura Bialis *

Gregg Bishop Gregg Bishop is an American film director, producer and writer. Early life Gregg Bishop grew up in Powder Springs, Georgia and started making movies with his father's Super 8 film cameras when he was 7 years old. He completed over 50 short fi ...

Paul Harris Boardman Paul Harris Boardman is an American screenwriter and film producer, best known for his work in the horror genre. Boardman has also written other screenplays for various studios and production companies, including TriStar, Disney, Bruckheimer Films, ...

Dominic Arizona Bonuccelli Dominic Arizona Bonuccelli is a professional photographer, television host and world traveler. Dominic spent several months on assignment co-hosting the travel TV series Lonely Planet: Roads Less Travelled, Lonely Planet: Stressbuster, and photog ...

* A. C. Bradley *

Charles Braverman Charles "Chuck" Dell Braverman (born March 3, 1944, in Los Angeles, California) is an American film director, collage animator, documentary filmmaker and producer. He was nominated for an Academy Award for Documentary Short Subject for his 2000 ...

* Mehcad Brooks * Norman Buckley *

Bryan Burk Bryan Burk (born December 30, 1968) is an American film and television producer. He is mostly known for producing movies in collaboration with J. J. Abrams, including the ''Star Trek'' reboot series, the ''Mission: Impossible'' films '' Gh ...

* Ben Burtt *

Trey Callaway Trey Callaway is an American film and television writer and producer. In addition to working with Hollywood luminaries like Harrison Ford, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Ron Howard, and Tim Burton, Callaway has written and produced for shows like '' 9-1- ...

Steven Cantor Steven Cantor is an American film/television director and film/television producer. Eight of his films have been nominated for Primetime Emmy Awards, with two winning, including the 2022 Outstanding Documentary prize for When Claude Got Shot. Wh ...

* Nick Castle * Aneesh Chaganty *

Sharon Choi Sharon Choi (born Choi Sung-jae; 1994 or 1995) is a South Korean interpreter and film director. She received widespread recognition and praise as Bong Joon-ho's Korean–English interpreter during the 2019–2020 film awards season. Early life ...

* Adam Christian Clark *

Jon Chu Jonathan Murray Chu (born November 2, 1979) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. He is best known as the director of 2018's '' Crazy Rich Asians'', the first film by a major Hollywood studio to feature a majority cast of As ...

Art Clokey Arthur "Art" Clokey (born Arthur Charles Farrington; October 12, 1921 – January 8, 2010) was an American pioneer in the popularization of stop-motion clay animation, best known as the creator of the character Gumby and the original voice of ...

* Ryan Coogler * Ericson Core *

Jack Couffer Jack Craig Couffer A.S.C. (December 7, 1924 – July 30, 2021) was an American cinematographer, film and television director, and author. Couffer has specialized on documentary films, often involving nature and animal cinematography. Couffer was ...

* R. J. Cutler *

Mark Z. Danielewski Mark Z. Danielewski (; born March 5, 1966) is an American fiction author. He is most widely known for his debut novel ''House of Leaves'' (2000), which won the New York Public Library's Young Lions Fiction Award. His second novel, '' Only Revolu ...

Thomas Del Ruth Thomas Del Ruth (born May 1, 1942) is a retired American cinematographer. Biography Del Ruth was born in 1942 in Beverly Hills, California, as the son of film director Roy Del Ruth, and actress Winnie Lightner. He was educated at Van Nuys ...

Scott Derrickson Scott Derrickson (born July 16, 1966) is an American filmmaker. He is best known for directing the films '' The Exorcism of Emily Rose'' (2005), ''The Day the Earth Stood Still'' (2008), '' Sinister'' (2012), ''Deliver Us from Evil'' (2014), '' ...

Caleb Deschanel Joseph Caleb Deschanel, (born September 21, 1944) is an American cinematographer and director of film and television. He has been nominated for the Academy Award for Best Cinematography six times. He is a member of the National Film Preservatio ...

* Trygve Allister Diesen * Craig Detweiler *

Susan Downey Susan Nicole Downey (née Levin; born November 6, 1973) is an American film producer. Until February 2009, she was co-president of Dark Castle Entertainment and executive vice president of production at Silver Pictures, Joel Silver's production ...

* Daniel Dubiecki *

Richard Edlund Richard Edlund, (born December 6, 1940) is an American visual effects artist and inventor. He was a founding member of Industrial Light & Magic, having already founded Pignose amplifiers, and later co-founded Boss Film Studios and DuMonde VFX. ...

Lindsay Ellis Lindsay Ellis (born 1984/1985) is an American author, film critic, video essayist, and former YouTuber. Her debut novel, '' Axiom's End'', published in July 2020, became a ''New York Times'' Best Seller. Education and career Ellis received he ...

Kevin Feige Kevin Feige ( ; born June 2, 1973) is an American film and television producer who has been the president of Marvel Studios and the primary producer of the Marvel Cinematic Universe franchise since 2007. The films he has produced have a combin ...

* Bobby Florsheim * Frank E. Flowers * Tyler Fredrickson * David Gallagher *

Bob Gale Michael Robert Gale (born May 25, 1951) is an American screenwriter, comic book writer, film producer and director. He is best known for co-writing the science fiction comedy film ''Back to the Future'' with his writing partner Robert Zemec ...

* Gavin Garrison * Douglas Gayeton *

Scott Gimple Scott Milhouse Gimple (born March 29, 1971)Internet Movie Database;– Scott M. Gimple ...

Alfred Gough Alfred Gough (born August 22, 1967) is an American screenwriter, producer and showrunner. He is best known as co-creator of The WB/The CW's Superman prequel series ''Smallville'' and Netflix's '' Addams Family'' spin-off series '' Wednesday''. ...

* David S. Goyer *

James Gray James, Jim, or Jimmy Gray may refer to: Politicians * James Gray (Australian politician) (1820–1889), member of the Tasmanian House of Assembly * James Gray (British politician) (born 1954), British politician * James Gray (mayor) (1862–1916 ...

Macy Gray Natalie Renée McIntyre (born September 6, 1967), known by her stage name Macy Gray, is an American R&B and soul singer and actress. She is known for her distinctive raspy voice and a singing style heavily influenced by Billie Holiday. Gray ha ...

Brian Grazer Brian Thomas Grazer (born July 12, 1951) is an American film and television producer and writer. He founded Imagine Entertainment in 1986 with Ron Howard. The films they produced have grossed over $15 billion. Grazer was personally nominated fo ...

Luke Greenfield Luke Greenfield (born February 5, 1972) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. He is best known for directing the 2004 film '' The Girl Next Door''. Greenfield directed the pilot episode of the television series ''Aliens in ...

Kevin Greutert Kevin Greutert (born March 31, 1965) is an American film director, film editor and writer, best known for his work on the '' Saw'' film series, as well as character-based supernatural horrors. He is married to actress Elizabeth Rowin. Career ...

* Ashley Greyson * Javier Grillo-Marxuach * Lawrence Guterman * Conrad Hall * Jane Hamsher *

Ray Harryhausen Raymond Frederick Harryhausen (June 29, 1920 – May 7, 2013) was an American-British animator and special effects creator who created a form of stop motion model animation known as "Dynamation". His works include the animation for '' Mig ...

Grant Heslov Grant Heslov (born May 15, 1963) is an American actor and filmmaker known for his producing and writing collaborations with George Clooney, which have earned him four Oscar nominations. As a co-producer of '' Argo'' (2012), he received the Academ ...

* Matthew Ryan Hoge * Sean Hood *

Ron Howard Ronald William Howard (born March 1, 1954) is an American director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. He first came to prominence as a child actor, guest-starring in several television series, including an episode of ''The Twilight Zone''. He ...

* Martin Hynes *

James Ivory James Francis Ivory (born June 7, 1928) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. For many years, he worked extensively with Indian-born film producer Ismail Merchant, his domestic as well as professional partner, and with screen ...

* O'Shea Jackson Jr. *

Joe Johnston Joseph Eggleston Johnston II (born May 13, 1950) is an American film director, producer, writer, and visual effects artist. He is best known for directing effects-driven films, including '' Honey, I Shrunk the Kids'' (1989), '' Jumanji'' (19 ...

Rian Johnson Rian Craig Johnson (born December 17, 1973) is an American filmmaker. He made his directorial debut with the neo-noir mystery film ''Brick'' (2005), which received positive reviews and grossed nearly $4 million on a $450,000 budget. Transiti ...

* Larry Karaszewski * Jonathan Ke Quan * Richard Kelly *

Nahnatchka Khan Nahnatchka Khan (born June 17, 1973) is an American television writer and producer. She created and executive produced the ABC comedy series '' Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23'' (2012–2013) and ''Fresh Off the Boat'' (2015–2020), and ...

Karey Kirkpatrick Karey Kirkpatrick is an American screenwriter, film director, and producer. His films include Chicken Run, '' The Rescuers Down Under'', '' James and the Giant Peach,'' '' Over the Hedge'', ''The Spiderwick Chronicles'', '' Charlotte's Web'', a ...

Randal Kleiser John Randal Kleiser (born July 20, 1946) is an American film and television director, producer, screenwriter and actor, best known for directing the 1978 musical romantic-comedy film '' Grease''. Biography John Randal Kleiser was born in Lebanon ...

Tim Kring Richard Timothy Kring (born July 9, 1957) is an American screenwriter and television producer, best known for his creation of the drama series '' Strange World'', ''Crossing Jordan'', ''Heroes'', and ''Touch''. Early life Kring was born in El Do ...

Eric Kripke Eric Kripke (born 1974) is an American writer and television producer. He came to prominence as the creator of the fantasy drama series ''Supernatural'' (2005–2020) which aired on The CW. He served as the showrunner during the first five seasons ...

* Kurt Kuenne *

Ken Kwapis Kenneth William Kwapis (born August 17, 1957) is an American film and television director, screenwriter, and author. He specialized in the Single-camera setup, single-camera sitcom in the 1990s and 2000s and has directed feature films such as '' ...

* Brandon Laatsch *

Jon Landau Jon Landau (born May 14, 1947) is an American music critic, manager, and record producer. He has worked with Bruce Springsteen in all three capacities. He is the head of the nominating committee for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and recei ...

Alexander Sebastien Lee Alexander Sebastien Lee is an American filmmaker born and raised in Los Angeles, California. Lee was exposed from an early age to the films of Akira Kurosawa, Zhang Yimou, and Claude Berri. In his teens, Lee studied theater in London at the Royal ...

* Chris Chan Lee *

Shawn Levy Shawn Adam Levy (born July 23, 1968) is a Canadian film director, film producer, actor, and founder of 21 Laps Entertainment. He has worked across genres and is perhaps best known as the director of the ''Night at the Museum'' film franchise an ...

* R. Eric Lieb *

Doug Liman Douglas Eric Liman (; born July 24, 1965) is an American film director and producer. He is known for directing the films '' Swingers'' (1996), '' Go'' (1999), '' The Bourne Identity'' (2002), '' Mr. & Mrs. Smith'' (2005), '' Jumper'' (2008), '' E ...

* John Longenecker *

* Albert Magnoli *

Gregory Markopoulos Gregory J. Markopoulos (March 12, 1928 – November 12, 1992) was an American experimental filmmaker. Biography Born in Toledo, Ohio in 1928 to Greek immigrant parents, Markopoulos began making 8 mm films at an early age. He attended USC Film Sc ...

* Richard Martini * Joseph Mazzello *

John Milius John Frederick Milius (; born April 11, 1944) is an American screenwriter, film director, and producer. He was a writer for the first two '' Dirty Harry'' films, received an Academy Award nomination as screenwriter of ''Apocalypse Now'' (1979), ...

Miles Millar Miles Millar (born 1967) is an Australian-British screenwriter, showrunner, producer and director. He is known for co-creating the long-running Superman prequel television series ''Smallville'' and the Tim Burton Netflix '' Addams Family'' spi ...

* F. Hudson Miller *

John Lloyd Miller John Lloyd Miller is an American filmmaker who has directed, produced and/or written music videos, short films, features, documentaries, commercials and television programming. Career Miller has worked in virtually every aspect of the film an ...

* Derek Mio * Stephen Mirrione * Raamla Mohamed *

Walter Murch Walter Scott Murch (born July 12, 1943) is an American film editor, director, writer and sound designer. With a career stretching back to 1969, including work on ''THX 1138'', ''Apocalypse Now'', ''The Godfather I'', '' II'', and ''III'', ''Ameri ...

Don Murphy Don Murphy (born April 1967) is an American film producer who produced ''Natural Born Killers'', ''Real Steel'', ''Splice'' and many other films, including ''Transformers'' and '' Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen''. Personal background Bo ...

* Tab Murphy *

Tom Neff Thomas Linden Neff (born 1953)-, known as Tom Neff, is an American film executive, director and producer, born in Chicago, Illinois. He lives in Nashville, Tennessee. Education Neff received his Bachelor of Arts from Lawrence University with ...

Laura Neri Laura Neri (Greek: Λάουρα Νέρι) is a director of Greek and Italian origins. Born in Brussels, Belgium, she is a graduate of the USC School of Cinematic Arts The University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts (SCA) houses ...

* Eric Newman * Doug Nichol * Dan O'Bannon *

Tracy Oliver Tracy Y. Oliver is an American film and television writer, producer, director, and actress. Oliver originally starred in the web series ''The Mis-Adventures of Awkward Black Girl,'' before serving as a staff writer on ABC's '' The Neighbors'' an ...

* Randy Olson * Tom Oesch * Richard Outten * Chris Parson * Paula Patton *

Sam Peckinpah David Samuel Peckinpah (; February 21, 1925 – December 28, 1984) was an American film director and screenwriter. His 1969 Western epic '' The Wild Bunch'' received an Academy Award nomination and was ranked No. 80 on the American Film Institut ...

(drama major) *

Charlie Pecoraro Charlie Pecoraro (born November 9, 1980) is an American stage, television, and film actor. Biography Pecoraro was born into a family of noted performers and musicians. He is the son of jazz guitarist Charles P. Pecoraro, the nephew of Actor/Da ...

* Michael R. Perry *

Brian Wayne Peterson Brian Wayne Peterson (born c. 1971/1972) is an American screenwriter, television producer, and showrunner. After finding success writing the script for 1999 film '' But I'm a Cheerleader'', he and his writing partner Kelly Souders wrote and produ ...

* Shawn Piller * Stu Pollard * Dan Povenmire * Santiago Pozo *

Ben Proudfoot Ben Proudfoot (born October 29, 1990) is a Canadian filmmaker. He is most noted as director of '' The Queen of Basketball'', winner of the 2021 Academy Award for Best Documentary Short Subject; as well as codirector with Kris Bowers of the sho ...

* Ben Queen * Kevin Reynolds * Ben Ripley *

Shonda Rhimes Shonda Lynn Rhimes (born January 13, 1970) is an American television screenwriter, producer, and author. She is best known as the showrunner—creator, head writer, and executive producer—of the television medical drama ''Grey's Anatomy'', it ...

Jay Roach Mathew Jay Roach (born June 14, 1957) is an American filmmaker. He is best known for directing the ''Austin Powers'' film series, ''Meet the Parents'', '' Dinner for Schmucks'', '' The Campaign'', '' Trumbo'', and '' Bombshell''. Roach also ea ...

* Steven Robiner * Barry Rubinow *

Jason Russell Jason Russell (born October 12, 1978) is an American film and theater director, choreographer, and activist who co-founded Invisible Children, Inc. He is the director of ''Kony 2012'', a short documentary film that went Viral video, viral in the ...

Gary Rydstrom Gary Roger Rydstrom (born June 29, 1959) is an American sound designer and film director. He has been nominated for 20 Academy Awards for his work in sound for movies, winning 7. Life and career Rydstrom was born in Chicago. He graduated from ...

Walter Salles Walter Moreira Salles Júnior (; born 12 April 1956) is a Brazilian filmmaker. Early life Salles was born on 12 April 1956 in Rio de Janeiro and attended the University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts. He is the son of Brazi ...

Josh Schwartz Joshua Ian Schwartz (born August 6, 1976) is an American screenwriter and television producer. Schwartz is best known for creating and executive producing the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox Teen drama, teen drama series ''The O.C.'' which ran for 4 ...

* Ben Shedd *

Stacey Sher Stacey Sher (born November 30, 1962) is an American film producer. Early life Sher was born to a Jewish family in New York City and raised in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. She graduated and got her bachelor's degree from University of Southern Cal ...

* Robert Sherman *

Christine Shin Christine Shin is a South Korean-born writer–director. Early life and education After growing up in South Korea, Shin relocated in her adolescence to the United States. Already aware that she wanted to be involved in film, Shin attended the Un ...

* Sofia Shinas * Sigurjón Sighvatsson *

John Singleton John Daniel Singleton (January 6, 1968 April 28, 2019) was an American director, screenwriter, and producer. He made his feature film debut writing and directing '' Boyz n the Hood'' (1991), for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for ...

Bryan Singer Bryan Jay Singer (born September 17, 1965) is an American filmmaker. He is the founder of Bad Hat Harry Productions and has produced almost all of the films he has directed. After graduating from the University of Southern California, Singer ...

Stephen Sommers Stephen Sommers (born March 20, 1962) is an American filmmaker, best known for big-budget action movies, such as '' The Mummy'' (1999), its sequel, '' The Mummy Returns'' (2001), '' Van Helsing'' (2004), and '' G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra'' (200 ...

* Dror Soref * Guido Mina di Sospiro * Kevin Stea * Adam Stein * David H. Steinberg *

Tim Story Timothy Kevin Story (born March 13, 1970) is an African American film director. He is best known for '' Barbershop'' (2002), the '' Fantastic Four'' (2005) and the ''Ride Along'' franchise. He has been nominated for two NAACP Image Awards for ...

Chris Terrio Chris Terrio (born December 31, 1976) is an American screenwriter and film director. He is best known for writing the screenplay for the 2012 film ''Argo'', for which he won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. Terrio also won the Writ ...

Jon Turteltaub Jonathan Charles Turteltaub (born August 8, 1963) is an American film director and producer. Life and career Turteltaub was born on August 8, 1963 in New York City, one of two children born to comedy writer Saul Turteltaub (best known for his ...

Ron Underwood Ronald Brian Underwood (born November 6, 1953) is an American film and television director, known for directing such films as '' Tremors'' (1990), '' City Slickers'' (1991), ''Heart and Souls'' (1993),'' and Mighty Joe Young'' (1998). Early ...

* Lee Unkrich *

Christopher Vogler Christopher Vogler (born 1949) is a Hollywood development executive, screenwriter, author and educator, best known for working with Disney and his screenwriting guide, '' The Writer's Journey: Mythic Structure For Writers'', from 2007. Early life ...

Matthew Weiner Matthew Hoffman Weiner () (born June 29, 1965) is an American television writer, producer, and director best known as the creator and showrunner of the television series ''Mad Men'', and as a writer and executive producer on ''The Sopranos''. ...

* John Wells * Alexander Winn *

Freddie Wong Freddie Wong (born September 13, 1985) is an American Internet celebrity, filmmaker, VFX artist, podcaster, and competitive gamer. Wong has participated in at least three YouTube channels; with ''RocketJump'', his production company's main ch ...

* Marianna Yarovskaya * Robert Yeoman * Rayka Zehtabchi * Robert Zemeckis * Laura Ziskin * Bradley Steven Perry

Other notable faculty members and instructors (past and present)

* Danny Bilson * Mitchell Block * Mark Bolas *

Peter Bonerz Peter R Bonerz (, born August 6, 1938) is an American actor and director. Early life Bonerzwas born in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, to Elfrieda (née Kern) and Christopher Bonerz. He grew up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where he attended Marquette Un ...

* Todd Boyd *

* Drew Casper *

Peter Chung Peter Chung (born April 19, 1961) is a Korean American animator. He is best known for his unique style of animation, as the creator and director of '' Æon Flux'' and '' Reign: The Conqueror (Alexander Senki)''. Early life and career Peter Chun ...

* Frank Daniel *

Edward Dmytryk Edward Dmytryk (September 4, 1908 – July 1, 1999) was an American film director. He was known for his 1940s noir films and received an Oscar nomination for Best Director for ''Crossfire'' (1947). In 1947, he was named as one of the Hollywood ...

Duwayne Dunham Duwayne Robert Dunham (born November 17, 1952) is an American director and editor of film and television, as well as an adjunct professor at the USC School of Cinematic Arts. He is best known for his collaborations with George Lucas and David ...

* John A. Ferraro * Verna Fields * Scott Fisher * Rachel Feldman *

James Franco James Edward Franco (born April 19, 1978) is an American actor and filmmaker. For his role in '' 127 Hours'' (2010), he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor. Franco is known for his roles in films, such as Sam Raimi's ''Spider- ...

* Robert L. Freedman * Anne Friedberg *

Nina Foch Nina Foch ( ; born Nina Consuelo Maud Fock; April 20, 1924 – December 5, 2008) was a Dutch-born American actress who later became an instructor. Her career spanned six decades, consisting of over 50 feature films and over 100 television appea ...

Tracy Fullerton Tracy Fullerton (born June 21, 1965) is an American game designer, educator and writer. She is a Professor in the USC Interactive Media & Games Division of the USC School of Cinematic Arts and Director of the Game Innovation Lab at USC. In 2014 ...

* Maureen Furniss * Eric Goldberg * Dan Gordon *

Mark Jonathan Harris Mark Jonathan Harris (born 1941) is an American documentary filmmaker probably best known for his films '' Into the Arms of Strangers: Stories of the Kindertransport'' (2000) and '' The Long Way Home'' (1997). He has directed three documentaries ...

* Gordy Hoffman * Sean Hood *

Jerry Lewis Jerry Lewis (born Joseph Levitch; March 16, 1926 – August 20, 2017) was an American comedian, actor, singer, filmmaker and humanitarian. As his contributions to comedy and charity made him a global figure in pop culture, Lewis was nickn ...

David Kehr
Jerry Lewis, Mercurial Comedian and Filmmaker, Dies at 91
''The New York Times'', August 20, 2017. *

Leonard Maltin Leonard Michael Maltin (born December 18, 1950) is an American film critic and film historian, as well as an author of several mainstream books on cinema, focusing on nostalgic, celebratory narratives. He is perhaps best known for his book of f ...

* Robert McKee *

Michael Naimark Michael Naimark is an artist, inventor, and scholar in the fields of virtual reality Virtual reality (VR) is a simulated experience that employs pose tracking and 3D near-eye displays to give the user an immersive feel of a virtual worl ...

* Christine Panushka * Mark Pesce * Gene Polito * Abraham Polonsky *

Bill Prady William Scott Prady (born June 7, 1960) is an American television writer and producer who has worked on American sitcoms and variety programs, including '' Married... with Children'', '' Dream On'', '' Star Trek: Voyager'', '' Dharma & Greg'', ...

* Howard Rodman *

Howard Rosenberg Howard Anthony Rosenberg (born June 10, 1942) is an American television critic. He worked at '' The Louisville Times'' from 1968 through 1978 and then worked at the ''Los Angeles Times'' for 25 years where he won a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.< ...

Tom Sito Tom Sito (born May 19, 1956) is an American animator, animation historian and teacher. He is currently a Professor at USC's School of Cinematic Arts in the Animation Division. In 1998, Sito was included by ''Animation Magazine'' in their list of ...

* Kathy Smith * Chris Swain *

Larry Turman Lawrence Turman (born November 28, 1926) is an American former film producer. Early life Turman was born to a Jewish family. Career Turman was nominated for an Academy Award for ''The Graduate'' (1967). He has also produced such films as '' Pr ...

Jordan Weisman Jordan Weisman is an American game designer, author, and serial entrepreneur who has founded five game design companies, each in a different game genre and segment of the industry. Biography Weisman graduated from Francis W. Parker High School, ...

* Paul Wolff *

Slavko Vorkapić Slavoljub "Slavko" Vorkapić ( sr-Cyrl, Славољуб "Славко" Воркапић; March 17, 1894 – October 20, 1976), known in English as Slavko Vorkapich, was a Serbian-born Hollywood montagist, an independent cinematic artist, chair ...

References

{{authority control School of Cinematic Arts Film schools in California Animation schools in the United States Educational institutions established in 1929 1929 establishments in California