By Dan Li
A group of people that included a Steppenwolf producer, a film producer, a writer for House of Cards, and a playwright met at Northwestern last Friday to discuss their writing processes during the 2016 Writers Panel co-hosted by the EPICS Office and the MFA in Writing for the Screen and Stage program. (more…)
By Cameron Kong
Aaron Firestein, the co-founder of Bucketfeet, joined the MSCLE students in Gregg Latterman’s NUvention Arts Entrepreneurship class last week.
The story of Bucketfeet began with the serendipitous meeting of two strangers traveling through Argentina. At their parting, Aaron drew on a pair of canvas shoes which Raaja Nemani, his later business partner, wore traveling across six continents. Raaja was amazed by the magic of the conversation starter- his new shoes, during his journey, and one year later (more…)
By Zach Hyman
Northwestern alumni Garry Marshall’s storied career has included creating legendary TV shows like Happy Days, Laverne and Shirley, and The Odd Couple as well as feature films such as Pretty Women and The Princess Diaries. He returned to his alma mater on May 10 to screen his new movie Mother’s Day and answer questions about how Hollywood has changed over his fifty-year career.
Marshall kicked off his talk-back by describing his early life at Northwestern – “I had to play the drums around Chicago to raise money to get through college” – and his transition from Broadway to film. (more…)
By Jacob Nelson
Last week was a busy one for Mark Hoebee. The producing artistic director of Paper Mill Playhouse flew from New York to Chicago so he could speak at the MSLCE speaker series event. But before that, he and his theatre company won a 2016 Regional Theater Tony Award.
“It’s crazy, it’s been a really emotional week,” Hoebee said with a smile as the speaker series event began last Thursday. He called winning a Tony “something you dream about,” and pointed out that when he first began working at Paper Mill the company was on the verge of going out of business. “It’s kind of mind blowing.” (more…)
Photo by Michael Johnson.
By Scotty Stieber
Last week, a group of School of Communication students took part in an EPICS Leadership Journey to 360i’s downtown Chicago office.
Amanda Abar, the Executive Vice President of 360i Chicago, led the discussion about her current role and the many steps she has taken to get to where she is today. The digital marketing agency is based in New York with six additional offices, from São Paulo to London. On top of the company’s diverse catalog of clients, like Coca-Cola, HBO, Oreo and Toyota, 360i has proudly been named to AdAge‘s “Agency A-List” for four straight years – no easy feat in an increasingly saturated industry. (more…)
By Ben Levine
The entrepreneurship course taught by Gregg Latterman gives students the opportunity to build their own company from the ground up.
One of the highlights of the course is the myriad of wonderful guest speakers and mentors that Professor Latterman brings in to help give the students a sense of how entrepreneurship works as well as to get feedback from experts on their new ventures. On April 22, the class was fortunate to have Dan Novaes come and share his story and advice for what it takes to make a great, relevant company in the modern landscape. (more…)
By Cameron Kong
“What are you going to do with your classic music major?” Classical guitarist Bryan Albert got this question often during his time as an undergraduate at Northwestern. Yet, as a freelance artist and touring musician, Bryan’s passion for music remains unabated almost a decade after graduation.
“I wake up in the morning and the first thing I do is play the piano,” he told MSLCE students during a recent WCAS Alumni in the Arts panel. “That’s just what I naturally do.” (more…)
By Laura Hess
“I’m left wondering what the reality of this country is. There are many liberties, but no one is listening to you.” Standing in front of a community support group, a man recounts his recent, and possibly wrongful, termination by his employer.
Frederick Wiseman, however, is indeed listening. The release of In Jackson Heights marks the 40th documentary by the acclaimed and prolific filmmaker. Recently screened at Northwestern University, in the Block Museum’s Pick-Laudati Auditorium, In Jackson Heights immerses the audience within the culturally variegated New York neighborhood. Consistent with Wiseman’s long-established style, there is no voice-over, no soundtrack, no to-camera interviews; private moments retain a compellingly intimate quality. The film’s sinuous path knits together many such moments from this diverse district of Queens, which reportedly includes 167 different languages. (more…)
By Zach Hyman
You may have seen the buzz all over the Chicago social sphere – Vincent van Gogh is at the Art Institute of Chicago.
“Van Gogh’s Bedrooms,” an exhibit featuring the tortured artist’s three interpretations of his chambre in Arles, has run through most of spring and will continue until May 10.
In a special presentation to our Marketing Strategy class, Art Institute Chief Marketing Officer Gordon Montgomery brought an insider perspective on Van Gogh and nonprofit marketing. His main challenge? Bringing “for-profit experience” to a Chicago cultural mainstay. (more…)
Mark Hoebee has been a gymnast, a dancer, a choreographer, a director, and, most recently, a theater administrator, working as Paper Mill Playhouse’s Producing Artistic Director. He is the first to admit that a career in show business follows no standard trajectory.
“Anybody who tells you this is what you have to do to be successful is full of it because there is no one way to do it,” he said with a laugh. “You can sort of fashion your own career.” (more…)
