Outside the Box [Office], Amazon MGM Studios, and IMAX® Entertainment,
invite you and a guest to attend
 

A Special IMAX® Screening of

THE BLUE ANGELS

Directed by Paul Crowder
Produced by Glen Powell, Sean Stuart, Glen Zipper, Mark Monroe,
J.J. Abrams, and Hannah Minghella
Executive Produced by John Turner, Bill O'Dowd, Emerson Davis,
Rob Stone, and Greg Wooldridge

Followed by a Q&A with Paul Crowder, SCA Alumnus Rob Stone,
3-time Blue Angels Leader Greg Wooldridge,
and John Turner, SVP & Head of Documentaries & Original Content at IMAX Entertainment

Moderated by Dr. Michael Renov, SCA Vice Dean of Academic Affairs,
and Haskell Wexler Endowed Chair in Documentary

6:30 P.M. on Thursday, July 3rd, 2025

The Michelle and Kevin Douglas IMAX Theatre, RZC 119
Robert Zemeckis Center for Digital Arts
3131 S. Figueroa Street, Los Angeles, CA 90007

FREE ADMISSION. OPEN TO THE PUBLIC. RSVPs REQUIRED.
RSVPs ARE NON-TRANSFERABLE.

FOOD AND DRINKS ARE STRICTLY PROHIBITED IN THE AUDITORIUM.
 

CLICK HERE TO RSVP
 

About The Blue Angels

The Blue Angels have been enthralling crowds—across the country and around the globe—for more than 75 years. Now, from Amazon MGM Studios and IMAX Entertainment, the brand new documentary The Blue Angels will take audiences soaring with the Navy’s elite Flight Demonstration Squadron as never before. Filmed for IMAX®, the immersive footage puts you in the cockpit for a firsthand view of the Blue Angels’ precision flying, while the aerial shots deliver a spectacular showcase of the breathtaking maneuvers that have made them the world’s premier jet team.

The Blue Angels also takes audiences behind the scenes for a revealing, in-depth look at what it takes to become a Blue Angel—from the careful selection process to the challenging training regimen, and on through the demanding eight-month show season.

The film is a fitting tribute to the extraordinary teamwork, passion and pride of the hundreds of outstanding men and women of the Navy and Marine Corps who have had the honor to serve in the Blue Angels...past, present and future.

Provided courtesy of Amazon MGM Studios and IMAX® Entertainment. Rated G. Running time: 93 minutes.

https://www.imax.com/movie/blue-angels

About the Guests

PAUL CROWDER (Director, Editor)

Paul Crowder is a former UK musician turned award-winning movie editor and director with a unique voice.

Crowder spent the first 20 years of his career as both a studio engineer and a professional drummer. He jammed with Paul McCartney age 14, and signed his first record deal with A&M Records at 18. At 21, as an assistant studio engineer, he worked on hits for such artists as George Michael, on Last Christmas and Careless Whisper; Siouxsie and the Banshees, on Live LP Nocturne; and Aha, on Take on Me. Moving the other side of the studio glass, Crowder then had a few European hits with the band The Adventures from 1985 – ’89, including Top 20 hits in 1988, and toured with Tears for Fears and Fleetwood Mac. His drumming career saw him move from London to Los Angeles in 1989 and he has made LA his home ever since. He continued to play music around Los Angeles and toured with Eric Burdon and Robbie Krieger. He was also a founding member of Flogging Molly and was the drummer, with Kathy Valentine, of the Go-Gos alter band The Delphines (now The Blue Bonnets).

After briefly dabbling in acting, Crowder segued into picture editing in the mid-90s, looking to be home having started a family. He started out in television working for all the major networks and also editing a large number of Behind The Music episodes for VH1. During his fledgling years as an editor, he worked with Stacy Peralta on two projects for the Museum of Television and Radio. He went on to edit Peralta’s documentary film Dogtown and Z-Boys, which won the Audience Favorite and Best Director Awards at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival, and Best Documentary Award at the 2002 Independent Spirit Awards. Following that success, Crowder edited Peralta’s Riding Giants, garnering the 2004 A.C.E. Eddie for Best Edited Documentary.

He made his directorial debut in 2006 with Once in a Lifetime: The Extraordinary Story of the New York Cosmos, teaming up with friend and writer Mark Monroe. He then co-directed and edited the Grammy-nominated Amazing Journey: The Story of the Who, again with Monroe as writer. The two formed Diamond Docs in 2006.

Crowder directed and edited the acclaimed films Last Play at Shea (2009) and 1: Life On The Limit (2013). He also edited Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Dave Grohl’s directorial debut, Sound City. In 2015, he teamed up with Ron Howard on the Grammy- and Emmy Award-winning The Beatles: Eight Days A Week – The Touring Years, earning nominations for an Emmy and A.C.E for Best Editing, and then Pavarotti, as editor and executive producer. All films were made in association with Diamond Docs.

During that time, Crowder edited the Chris Paine documentary Do You Trust This Computer, with Elon Musk as executive producer. He was also co-executive producer and editor of Imagine Entertainment’s documentary Once Were Brothers, based on Robbie Robertson’s autobiography about his career with The Band and executive produced by Martin Scorsese. He edited the powerful Netflix documentary on police brutality, 137 Shots, and then teamed again with Stacy Peralta to edit his documentary The Yin and Yang of Gerry Lopez about the legendary surfer. He was also finishing editor on the 2020 Netflix series Challenger: The Final Flight.

Crowder was an executive producer on Frank Marshall’s The Bee Gees: How to Mend a Broken Heart and worked again with Marshall as one of the editors of Hulu’s McCartney 3-2-1. In addition, he directed two episodes of UFO, the four-part series for Showtime and J.J. Abrams, also editing all four episodes.

More recently, Crowder teamed again with Ron Howard and Imagine to executive produce and edit their documentary Jim Henson Idea Man, for Disney+. He is also producer and editor of an independent film called Tolstoy the Tomato Thief, about the plight of super tusker elephants in Kenya due to the human wildlife conflict. In addition, he is directing two episodes of an untitled show for MGM+, with Bad Robot and Zipper Bros.

Still a musician, Crowder helps with the composing and plays on the scores of most of the documentaries. He can also be seen playing the clubs of LA with his current band, punk legends, The Automatics. He is also releasing a solo L.P. this summer called The Adventures of Crowderville, an album of cover songs featuring musicians he has played with throughout his musical career.

ROB STONE (Executive Producer, SCA Alumnus)

Rob Stone is an award-winning filmmaker who has earned acclaim for writing and directing films produced by his company, Vienna Productions.

Stone produced and directed Blue Angels: Around the World at the Speed of Sound, a two-hour special on the legendary flight squadron, hosted by Dennis Quaid. The show premiered on the Arts & Entertainment network and went on to win a Cable Ace Award for Best Documentary. He also produced Thunder Over the Pacific, hosted by Candice Bergen, and Into the Wild Blue, hosted by Tom Skerritt, which premiered on the History Channel.

In addition, Stone produced, directed, and edited the feature documentary film One Vision, a comprehensive look inside the filmmaking process that features interviews with film directors, including Martin Scorsese, Oliver Stone, Quentin Tarantino, Robert Zemeckis, Sydney Pollack, Rob Reiner, Penny Marshall, and Ron Howard.

Stone’s other credits include Sir William Osler: The Science and Art of Medicine, hosted by Richard Dreyfuss, as well as producing multiple non-fiction episodes and specials for television.

JOHN TURNER (Executive Producer, Senior Vice President and Head of Documentaries and Original Content for IMAX Entertainment)

John Turner, an Oscar- and Emmy-nominated producer, is currently Senior Vice President and Head of Documentaries and Original Content for IMAX Entertainment, overseeing the development of documentary and non-fiction projects for the IMAX global network.

Turner previously developed documentary features for Netflix, where he co-created Dirty Money, a six-part financial crime investigative series. He also served as an executive producer on the true-crime documentary feature Why Did You Kill Me?, which premiered on Netflix in 2021.

Among his other credits, Turner developed and executive produced From Here to Home, an anthology short series for Concordia Studio, which premiered at the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival and was nominated for a 2020 Academy Award.

GREG WOOLDRIDGE (Executive Producer)

Greg Wooldridge is a veteran of 27 years in Naval Aviation. His flight experience is highlighted by his incredible flight time total of 8300 hours, more than anyone in the Navy when he hung up his flight suit. The high point of his flying career was leading the Navy’s famed Blue Angels a record three times. His team was the only team to fly an airshow over Moscow. Following his second tour as flight leader of the Blues, he commanded the Navy’s premier Naval Air Station in Lemoore California. While there, his leadership led to the base being awarded the President’s Installation of Excellence Award as the best base in the Navy.

Delaying Navy retirement, he answered an urgent call to return to a struggling Blue Angels team for a third leadership stint. He turned the team around, leading them to a highly acclaimed 50th Anniversary year.

Following the Navy, Wooldridge went to FedEx Express as a pilot. While there, he was designated a Line Check Airman. In that role, he trained and did checks on fellow pilots. He was instrumental in improving safety throughout the aviation world through the implementation of a debrief protocol that was unique to the Blue Angels.

Based upon the multiple experiences of leading high performance organizations, Wooldridge began speaking to companies, associations and teams across the U.S. and as far abroad as New Zealand. A sampling of his clients includes Chevron, SAIC, Textron, and Mass Mutual. Many others have benefitted from his firsthand knowledge of bringing success to a level unimagined.

Wooldridge has built trust and experienced the same confidence in return. He continues to pursue excellence in many new endeavors calling for leadership and determination.

About Outside the Box [Office]

Outside the Box [Office] is a weekly showcase for upcoming releases highlighting world cinema, documentary and independent film titles. The series draws from around the globe to present movies that may challenge, inspire or simply entertain.

To view the calendar of screenings, click here

To SUBSCRIBE to our MAILING LIST for upcoming free screenings and events, e-mail the word "Subscribe" to: aago@cinema.usc.edu
 

Check-In & Reservations

This program is open to all eligible individuals. The USC School of Cinematic Arts operates all of its programs and activities consistent with the University’s Notice of Non-Discrimination. Eligibility is not determined based on race, sex, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or any other prohibited factor.

This screening is free of charge and open to the public A reservation confirmation will automatically be sent to your e-mail account upon successfully making an RSVP through this website. Doors will open at 6:00 P.M.

All SCA screenings are OVERBOOKED to ensure seating capacity in the theater, therefore seating is not guaranteed based on RSVPs. The RSVP list will be checked in on a first-come, first-served basis until the theater is full. Once the theater has reached capacity, we will no longer be able to admit guests, regardless of RSVP status.

Accessibility Needs

Individuals with disabilities who need accommodations to attend this event may contact Alessandro Ago, Director of Programming and Special Projects, at aago@cinema.usc.edu or 213-740-2330. It is requested that individuals requiring accommodations or auxiliary aids such as sign language interpreters and alternative format materials notify us at least seven days prior to the event. Every reasonable effort will be made to provide reasonable accommodations in an effective and timely manner.

Parking

NO STUDENT, STAFF, FACULTY OR THEATER PARKING IS AVAILABLE AT THE ROBERT ZEMECKIS CENTER.

We recommend Parking in the USC Shrine Parking Structure, located 686 W 32nd St. Parking passes may be purchased at the gate. Metered street parking is also available along 32nd street.

The USC Robert Zemeckis Center is located at 3131 South Figueroa St., Los Angeles, CA 90007, one block north of Parking Structure D, on the North side of the Shrine Auditorium. The RZC entrance is located at the rear of the building, behind the red fence on 32nd St.

Contact Information

Name: Alessandro Ago
Email: aago@cinema.usc.edu