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Heliya Alam ’17 has released her short film The List, which she wrote and directed. The List focuses on mental health.
Carl Albert ‘20 released his first novel, Truth of Crowns, in May.
Scott Alexander ’85 and Larry Karaszewski ’85 will receive the Bill Wittliff Award for Screenwriting at the 30th Austin Film Festival.
Trey Callaway ’89 has been hired to write a new pilot for Netflix based on an international bestselling novel .
Madison Campione ’19 is writing and directing a new pilot The Disappearance of Violet Willoughby with Cineteller Productions.
Guillermo Casarin ’21 directed Bad Hombrewood, which won Best Latinx Short at the Cleveland International Film Festival.
Caitlin Fein ’18 wrote the episode “Pranks Fore Nothing” for Nickelodeon’s The Loud House, which aired on May 18th.
Dina Gachman ’07 has released her second book, So Sorry for Your Loss, which is a collection of essays about the grieving process.
Victoria E. Johnson ’97 has been elected as President of the Society of Cinema and Media Studies.
Kelley Kali ’17 directed A Jagged Mind, which is set to release on Hulu as a part of the new “Pride Never Stops” campaign.
Provenance took home Best Drama Series at the College Television Awards. Trojans attached to Provenance includeBijan Kazerooni ’22 (Producer), Julia Elizabeth Evans (Producer), Lucinda Hirschfeld ’22 (Producer), Ugonna Nwabueze ’22 (Producer), Caleb Townsend (Producer/Writer), Sayali Upadhye (Producer/Writer), and Vivian Gray ’22 (Director).
Olivia Levenson ’14 won second place in the Education Innovation Challenge held at Harvard University with Global Tinker, a mini-meditation program for children ages 3-5 who have experienced trauma or been diagnosed with depression and/or anxiety.
Marina Massidda ’23 and Julia Rose Camus ’22 held a dual art exhibition in Highland Park called Skin Deep, which displayed their respective paintings and photography.
Lily Ni ’18's first feature, Born to be Human, was released on Amazon Prime Video.
John Ira Palmer ’17 produced Black Flies starring Sean Penn & Tye Sheridan. It premiered at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival. Palmer also directed Out of the Corner of Our Eye, which is funded by National Endowment for the Arts and commissioned by SCI-Arc Channel for their Queer Perspectives series. Out of the Corner of Our Eye is an official selection for 2023 Outfest.
Rodes Phire ’12 directed Farewelling, which premiered at Dances With Films.
Jason Reitman is set to direct a film for Sony based on Saturday Night Live’s opening night in 1975.
Alex Simon ’90 was named one of Austin Film Festival and MovieMaker Magazine’s “25 Screenwriters to Watch.”
The film Moon Garden swept the 2022 festival season. It was written, directed, and edited by Ryan Stevens Harris ’06 and produced by John Michael Elfers ’04 . The film is currently at 100% on Rotten Tomatoes and is starting to screen in New York and Los Angeles.
Dave Tolchinsky ’88 was named Dean of the Media School at Indiana University Bloomington.
The Stranger, written and directed by James Tupper ’02 , has received distribution through Omeleto.
John Vourlis ’92’s documentary The House Next Door was chosen to screen at the 72nd annual Columbus International Film Festival.
Wei-Lei took home Best Comedy Series at the College Television Awards. Trojans attached include Zhongyu Wang ’22 (Director), Guang Xi Shi ‘22 (Writer), Naomi Shroff-Mehta ’22 (Producer), and Andy Li (Producer).
Jared Yeager ’02, Executive Producer at Walt Disney Games, has released Aliens: Dark Descent for PC and game consoles.

R.M.N. had its U.S. theatrical release on April 28. It was written by Sergio Zaciu ’20 and his brother Oliver as well as directed by Palme D’or winner Cristian Mungiu. R.M.N. originally premiered at Cannes in 2022 and was Romania’s submission for the 2023 Academy Awards.

New Films in Release

97 Minutes
Luke Taylor ’11 (Thornton) (Executive Producer)

A Tourist's Guide to Love
Lauren Connelly ’06 (Editor)

About My Father
Dan Balgoyen ’04 (Executive Producer)

Air
Alex Convery ’14 (Writer/Co-Producer)
Madison Ainley ’11 (Producer)
Jason Michael Berman ’06 (Producer)
David Ellison (Producer)

The Angry Black Girl and Her Monster
Bomani J. Story ’10 (Director/Writer/Producer)
Daphne Qin Wu ’11 (Cinematographer)
Arianna Shining Star ’15 (Colorist)

Asteroid City
Robert Yeoman ’79 (Cinematographer)

Black Lotus
Roman Viaris-de-Lesegno ’01 (Marshall) (Executive Producer)

BlackBerry
Matt Johnson ’99 (Director/Writer)
Matthew Miller ’95 (Writer/Producer)

The Blackening
Tim Story ’94 (Director/Producer)
Tracy Oliver ’10 (Writer/Producer)
Todd A. Dos Reis ’94 (Cinematographer)

The Boogeyman
Shawn Levy ’94 (Producer)
Robyn Meisinger ’91 (Dornsife) (Executive Producer)
Emily Morris ’11 (Marshall) (Executive Producer)

Book Club: The Next Chapter
Andrew Dunn ’94 (Cinematographer)

Chevalier
John Axelrad ’90 (Editor)

Chupa
Carlos Rafael Rivera ’04 ’10 (Thornton) (Composer)

Double Life
Chris Sivertson ’97 (Writer)
Eric Jarboe (Marshall) (Executive Producer)

The End of Sex
Ari Posner ’93 (Composer)

Extraction 2
Shelby Malone ’15 (Co-Producer)
Matthew Stillman ’15 (SDA) (Co-Producer)

Every Body
River Gallo ’18 (Cast)

Fast X
Neal H. Moritz ‘85 (Producer)
Brian Tyler ’12 (Composer)
Corbin Mehl ’04 (Editor)

Follow Her
Fenner Osmond Friedman ’23 (Thornton) (Executive Producer)
Alex Weiss ’12 (Supervising Sound Editor)

Flamin’ Hot
Linda Yvette Chavez ’07 (Writer)
DeVon Franklin ’00 (Producer)

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
Kevin Feige ’95 (Producer)

Hypnotic
Mark Gill ’83 (Producer)
Vahan Yepremyan ’97 (Gould) (Executive Producer)

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
George Lucas ’66 (Executive Producer)
Gary Rydstrom ’81 (Supervising Sound Editor)

Knights of the Zodiac
Matt Stuecken ’01 (Writer)

Loren & Rose
Russell Brown ’97 (Director/Writer/Producer)
Mike Sawitzke ’06 (Thornton) (Composer)
Curtiss Clayton ’80 (Editor)

Love Again
Andrew Dunn ’94 (Director of Photography)

Maggie Moore(s)
Daniel Grodnik ’74 (Dornsife) (Executive Producer)

Maximum Truth
David Stassen ’04 (Director/Writer)

Monica
Eric Cook ’15 (Executive Producer)

Moon Garden
Ryan Stevens Harris ’06 (Director/Writer/Executive Producer/Editor)
John Michael Elfers ’04 (Producer)

Nimona
Megan Ellison (Executive Producer)
Julie Zackary ’04 (Producer)

Nuclear Now
Steven Wacks ’85 (Cinematographer)

On a Wing and a Prayer
Brandon Roberts ’88 (Thornton) (Composer)

On Our Way
Heliya Alam ’17 (Producer)
Grafton Doyle ’19 (SDA) (Executive Producer)

One Ranger
Sean Murray ’93 (Composer)

One True Loves
Ryan Winterstern ’11 (Executive Producer)

Outpost
Yang Hua Hu ’14 (Editor)

Padre Pio
Roman Viaris-de-Lesegno ’01 (Executive Producer)

Prisoner’s Daughter
Wen-Chia Chang ’10 (Executive Producer)
Madalyn Maghdessian ’19 (Associate Producer)
Sean Higgins ’12 (Supervising Sound Editor)

Queens of the Qing Dynasty
Yu Su ’16 (Composer)

Renfield
Samantha Nisenboim ’07 (Producer)

Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken
Kirk DiMicco ’91 (Dornsife) (Director/Writer)

Sheroes
Luke Taylor ’11 (Thornton) (Executive Producer)

Space Wars: Quest for the Deepstar
Garo Setian ’95 (Director/Writer/Producer/Executive Producer/Editor)
Sarah French ’13 (Producer)

The Super Mario Bros. Movie
Eric E. Osmond ’92 (Editor)

Sweetwater
Wen-Chia Chang ’10 (Executive Producer)
Rodric David ’94 (SDA) (Associate Producer)

The Tank
Max Aruj ’12 (Thornton) (Composer)

The Thief Collector
John Boccardo ’71 (Producer)
Tony Hsieh ’12 (Executive Producer)

Transformers: Rise of the Beasts
Steven Caple Jr. ’14 (Director)
David Ellison (Producer)

Unidentified Objects
Mike McNamara (Associate Producer)

The Unseen
Evan Cholfin ’08 (Associate Producer)

Users
Noah Kadner ’99 (Executive Producer)

You Hurt My Feelings
Jeffrey Waldron ’03 (Cinematographer)

Shooting Stars
Frank E. Flowers ’01 (Co-Writer)
Tony Rettenmaier ’15 (Co-Writer)
Juel Taylor ’15 (Co-Writer)

New Series in Release

The Afterparty,Season 2 (Apple TV+)
Nick Olah ’10 (Editor)

American Born Chinese (Disney +)
Erin O’Malley ’96 (Director/Executive Producer)
Lana Cho ’01 (Writer/Executive Producer)
Aaron Izek ’15 (Writer)
Kai Wu ’12 (Writer)
Wendy Wang ’12 (Composer)
Yu-Jung Hou ’15 (Editor)
Ke Huy Quan ’99 (Actor)
James Hong ’54 (Viterbi) (Actor)

Bama Rush (Max)
Zachary Luke Kislevitz (SDA) (Producer)

Based On A True Story (Peacock)
Alexander Buono ’95 (Director/Executive Producer)

The Bear, Season 2(FX)
Hiro Murai ’06 (Executive Producer)

Beef (Netflix)
Hikari ’11 (Director)
Jean Kyoung Frazier ’16 (Dornsife) (Writer)
Kevin Rosen ’11 (Writer)

Blindspotting, Season 2 (Starz)
Nyesha Littlejohn ’00 (Writer)
Ambrose Akinmusire ’07 (Composer)

Boom! Boom! The World vs. Boris Becker (Apple TV+)
Michael J. Palmer ’01 (Editor)

Celebrity Prank Wars (E!)
Anthony Gonzales ’00 (Director)
J.R. Arinaga ’04 (Editor)
Tyler Soper ’04 (Editor)

Citadel (Amazon Prime Video)
Kiran Pallegadda (Editor)

City on Fire (Apple TV+)
Josh Schwartz (Writer/Executive Producer)

Class of ‘09 (FX)
Bayan Wolcott ’12 (Writer)
Bartholomew Burcham ’03 (Editor)

CMT Awards (CBS)
Lauren Quinn ’20 (Director)

Dave, Season 3 (FXX)
Shannon Murphy ’94 (Director)
Jeanie Bergen ’14 (Writer/Executive Story Editor)
Rob Rosell ’18 (SDA) (Executive Producer)
Aron N. Forbes ’07 (Thornton) (Composer)
Derek Renfroe ’17 (Thornton) (Composer)

Dead Ringers (Amazon Prime Video)
Megan Ellison (Executive Producer)

Dear Mama (FX)
Isaac Bauman (Cinematographer)

The Diplomat (Netflix)
Alex Graves ’89 (Director)

Downey's Dream Cars (Max)
Susan Downey ’95 (Executive Producer)
Emily Barclay Ford ’95 (Executive Producer)

Fatal Attraction (Paramount+)
Jonathan Talbert ’02 (Producer)
Cort Fey ’97 (Cinematographer)
Elizabeth Cirillo ’16 (Editor)

FDR (History Channel)
Beth Laski ’88 (Annenberg) (Executive Producer)

Fear the Walking Dead, Season 8 (AMC)
Ron Underwood ’74 (Director)

FROM, Season 2 (MGM+)
Jack Bender (SDA) (Director/Executive Producer)

FUBAR (Netflix)
David Ellison (Executive Producer)

Glamorous (Netflix)
Celeste Vasquez ’12 (Writer)

Grease: The Rise of the Pink Ladies (Paramount+)
Nick Sena ’07 (Thornton) (Composer)
Antonia de Barros ’16 (Editor)

The Great, Season 3 (Hulu)
Jaffar Mahmood ’02 (Director)

Growing Belushi, Season 3 (Discovery)
Ryan Kroft ’98 (Annenberg) (Executive Producer)
Gary Kout ’89 (Dornsife) (Producer)

grown-ish,Season 6 (Freeform)
Shiri Appleby (Director)
Liz Elverenli ’09 (Writer/Co-Executive Producer)
Colin Hawes ’09 (Editor)

High Desert (Apple TV+)
Jay Roach ’87 (Director/Executive Producer)
Jonathan Talbert ’02 (Executive Producer)

I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson, Season 3(Netflix)
Alice Mathias ’11 (Director/Executive Producer)

iCarly,Season 3 (Paramount)
Miranda Cosgrove (Dornsife) (Executive Producer/Actor)

The Idol (HBO)
Harrison Kreiss ’11 (Marshall) (Producer)

I’m a Virgo (Amazon Prime Video)
Saira Haider ’14 (Editor)

Jack Ryan,Season 4 (Amazon Prime Video)
Zachary Dehm ’09 (Editor)

Judy Blume Forever (Amazon Prime Video)
Brian Grazer ’74 (Executive Producer)
Ron Howard (Executive Producer)
Emily Topper ’05 (Cinematographer)

Jury Duty (Amazon Freevee)
Nicholas Hatton ’09 (Executive Producer)

The Last Thing He Told Me (Apple TV+)
Ashley Strumwasser ’11 (Annenberg) (Supervising Producer)

Mike Judge's Beavis and Butt-head, Season 2 (Paramount+)
Sam Johnson ’99 (Writer)
Angela Beevers ’12 (Associate Producer)

Mrs. Davis (Peacock)
Antonia de Barros ’16 (Editor)

The Muppets Mayhem (Disney +)
Michael Bostick ’90 (Executive Producer)

Nancy Drew, Season 4(The CW)
Josh Schwartz (Writer)

Pretty Baby: Brooke Shields (Hulu)
Emily Topper ’05 (Cinematographer)

Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story (Netflix)
Shonda Rhimes ’94 (Writer/Executive Producer)
Matt Byrne ’07 (Co-Executive Producer)
David Greenspan ’01 (Editor)

RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars, Season 8 (Paramount+)
Katy Farzanrad (Co-Executive Producer)
Corey Ziemniak ’05 (Editor)

Saint X (Hulu)
Matthew Cruz ’11 (Dornsife) (Writer)
Aida Kattan ’98 (Co-Producer)

Schmigadoon!, Season 2 (Apple TV+)
Cinco Paul ’93 (Writer/Executive Producer/Showrunner)
Alice Mathias ’11 (Director)
Taylor Segal ’13 (Co-Producer)

Silo (Apple TV+)
Ingrid Escajeda ’02 (Writer/Executive Producer)

Single Drunk Female, Season 2 (Freeform)
Martin Desmond Roe (Director)
Luke Pebler (Editor)

Stillwater, Season 3 (Apple TV+)
Jun Falkenstein ’91 (Director)

Swagger, Season 2 (Apple TV+)
Brian Grazer ’74 (Executive Producer)

Tiny Beautiful Things (Hulu)
Naomi Iwamoto ’16 (Writer/Supervising Producer)
Tori Metcalf ’12 (Dornsife) (Co-Producer)
Ashley Strumwasser ’11 (Annenberg) (Co-Executive Producer)

The Ultimatum: Queer Love (Netflix)
Eric Detwiler ’02 (Annenberg) (Executive Producer)

Waco: The Aftermath (Showtime)
Kyle Wilson ’12 (Associate Producer)

XO, Kitty (Netflix)
Lindsay Armstrong ’14 (Editor)

You, Me, & My Ex, Season 2 (TLC)
Thomas Sanchez ’07 (Editor)

Any omissions or errors on this list are unintentional, please reach out if your name is missing from a project, or if you have an upcoming credit or news item that you’d like shared in future Hot Sheets by emailing alumni@cinema.usc.edu. Thank you for your patience, Fight On!