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UTA Media Rights Agent Gives Insights into Talent Agency Life

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By Priyanshi Katare

Leading global talent and entertainment company UTA represents many of the most acclaimed figures across film, television, news, music, sports, speakers, theater, fine art, literature, video games, podcasts and other social and digital content. A passionate advocate for artists, creators and innovators, the company also is recognized in the areas of film finance and packaging, branding, licensing and endorsements.

Mary Pender currently works as an agent in the Media Rights department.

“I work to identify voices that I think are going to be influential in the book space or as journalists, as podcasters or even someone who has an interesting life story which might be an interesting source material for a film or TV,” Pender explained. (more…)

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Jon Faris of Global Experience Studio Category41 on His Career in Theatre and Production

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Jon Faris joined MSLCE for our fall Creative Connect series. Learn more and join future events on our speaker series page.

by Priyanshi Katare

Northwestern alum Jon Faris is no stranger to the creative industry. During his time at Northwestern he studied Theatre and helped found and manage several theatre boards like WAVE Productions and the Student Theatre Coalition (StuCo). Since graduating from Northwestern, he has worked with award-winning production companies such as Uma Productions and returned to the School of Communication as a guest lecturer on arts management — a role he serves at DePaul University as well— and on the advisory board for the Theater Management Module.
Prior to this current position, Jon was the Managing Director for Writers Theatre in Glencoe, Illinois, where he led the design and construction of their new state-of the art theater center. These days he can be found working with creative teams at Category41— a global experience studio — where he is the Head of Production Operations. (more…)

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Categories: Guest Speakers

Writers Theatre: An Intimate, Collaborative Experience

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by Samantha Sartori

 Growing up a “theatre kid,” I love getting a behind-the-scenes look at any artistic performance space. So when the MSLCE program and EPICS offered us a site visit to the Writers Theatre in Glencoe, I knew I had to jump on the opportunity.

 Writers Theatre was founded in 1992 with the core foundation that all productions would honor the written word and nurture artists. Over the last 27 years, it has become a vital member of the Chicago theatre community and regarded as one of the top half-dozen regional theatres in the country by The Wall Street Journal.
 (more…)

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Categories: Industry Immersion

Tapping into the Five Styles of Leadership: Leadership Styles in the Media and Entertainment Industries Speaker Series

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by Samantha Sartori

Take a moment to picture someone you consider to be a leader. What is it about them that makes them stand out? Is it her perseverance and how she focuses on the group’s vision? Perhaps it’s his ability to keep his team aligned and accountable. Or maybe it’s their imagination and intuition when solving difficult problems. As students in the MSLCE program, we’re learning about our own personal styles of leadership and how to most effectively tap into them. (more…)

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5 Questions with MSLCE ’15 Alum Qiumeng Fu

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What is your current role(s)/project(s)/business and what are your responsibilities?

I am the director of Fu Qiumeng Fine Art in Upper East Side Manhattan. My responsibilities include sourcing consignments for New York and Beijing exhibitions, completing donation and collection appraisals, developing collaborative business opportunities, designing interpretive  and immersive thematic exhibitions, and planning and hosting events to promote the exhibitions. Additionally, I work on developing and maintaining client relationships, both in the US and in China. (more…)

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Laura Rice is Marching to Her Own Beat

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By Miya Williams Fayne

Music has been omnipresent in Laura Rice’s life. Growing up she took piano and recorder lessons and performed with her church’s children’s choir. “I so appreciate great musicianship and music’s ability to transform space, soothe the soul, move the crowd and fight the power,” she shared. (more…)

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Where Are They Now? 5 Questions with MSLCE Alum Aleksa Narbutaitis

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What is your current role(s)/project(s) and what are your responsibilities?

I’m currently the Creative Director at the Chicago-based personal branding and creative services agency, SimplyBe. Agency. I was hire #1, and my CEO and I have built the company from two to eight full time staff over the past two years. My core responsibilities as Creative Director are to oversee all of our company’s as well as all of our clients’ visual brands, and to partner with our strategy team to lead our visual branding projects including full brand style guide and website creation. My job is essentially to make sure that our clients’ value props are always being communicated and supported by the visual components of their brands. (more…)

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Visiting “The View”: Exploring the Northwestern Externship Program (NEXT) in NYC

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By ALYSSA HOLCOMB

Being a member of the “Purple Mafia” certainly has its perks… More than that, staying involved in the Northwestern community provides many opportunities to network with and learn from some of the university’s most prominent alumni.
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Programming and Product Building Across Platforms with Kenny Miller of Disney/ABC Television

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By ALYSSA HOLCOMB

Seasoned digital programmer, platform builder, and NU alumnus Kenny Miller joined students and moderator/MSLCE faculty member AJ Christian for an engaging and insightful chat on “making, sharing and learning” the changes in television in the digital era.
(more…)

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Gigi Pritzker Shares Stories, Insights and Industry Advice with MSLCE Students

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by Thomas Wall

As graduate students, we are constantly seeking advice on how to advance our careers. But when that advice comes from an Emmy-winning film producer and CEO/Founder of her own media company, it carries a special weight. Thanks to the MSLCE program, we were granted the opportunity to meet, hear from, and most importantly learn from acclaimed filmmaker, businesswoman, and all-around trailblazer, Gigi Pritzker, on January 17th. (more…)

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Categories: Guest Speakers