Upcoming Events
Outside the Box [Office]: Fall 2018
January 1, 2018 - December 31, 2018, Times Vary
Locations Vary
Outside the Box [Office] is SCA's ongoing weekly showcase for upcoming international, documentary and independent cinema. The series draws from around the globe to present movies that may challenge, inspire or simply entertain and often features recent award-winning films from Sundance, Cannes, Berlin, SXSW and Venice Film Festivals. All screenings are free of charge and open to the public, unless otherwise noted. All screenings will be OVERBOOKED to ensure capacity.
On-Campus SCA Information Session
January 7, 2018 - December 21, 2018, 11:00 AM
USC School of Cinematic Arts
This information session is available for prospective applicants interested in the undergraduate and/or graduate programs at the USC School of Cinematic Arts (SCA). The session begins with a presentation discussing the SCA programs, admissions processes and available facilities at the school -- an opportunity for Q & A will also be given.
Festival & Distribution: General Info Sessions
August 1, 2018 - May 14, 2028, Varies
School of Cinematic Arts, SCA 255
Industry Relations presents monthly Festival & Distribution General Info Group Sessions. Learn about the first steps to submit to film festivals, strategic ways to choose where to apply, and get your general festival questions answered.
CTCS-466: Theatrical Film Symposium
August 23, 2018 - December 6, 2018, 6:00 P.M. - 10:00 P.M.
The Frank Sinatra Hall at the Eileen Norris Cinema Theatre Complex, 3507 Trousdale Parkway, Los Angeles, CA 90007
This Fall 2018 semester, the School of Cinematic Arts will offer a very special course called CTCS-466: Theatrical Film Symposium, a four-unit elective class open for enrollment to ALL USC STUDENTS OF ANY MAJOR that brings you face-to-face with leading film directors, writers, producers, and actors working today. Each week, students watch sneak previews of upcoming Hollywood movies, followed by an exclusive Q&A with the creative team behind the film. The class is taught by film critic LEONARD MALTIN and meets every Thursday night from 6:00 - 10:00 p.m. in the Frank Sinatra Hall at the Norris Cinema Theatre Complex.
Virtual Graduate Information Session
September 11, 2018 - November 7, 2018, Varies
Online- Access Information Sent via Email
Join the SCA Admissions staff for an online information session to learn more about applying to the SCA graduate programs for the Fall 2019 semester. Topics will include an overview of the school, programs and facilities, financial aid, Q&A with staff and more! Please note that access information to the online session will be sent via email the morning of the session you register for.
On-Campus Undergraduate Transfer Student Information Session
September 14, 2018 - January 12, 2019, 10:00 AM
School of Cinematic Arts
Join the SCA Admissions staff for an information session specific to Transfer applicants. Transfer applicants will learn more about applying to the SCA undergraduate programs for the Fall 2019 semester. Topics will include an overview of the school, programs and facilities, Q&A with staff and more!
Virtual Undergraduate Information Session
September 17, 2018 - November 21, 2018, 3:30 PM (Pacific Standard Time)
Online - Access Information Sent Via Email
Join the SCA Admissions staff for an online information session to learn more about applying to the SCA undergraduate programs for the Fall 2018 semester. Topics will include an overview of the school, programs and facilities, financial aid, Q&A with staff and more!
This session is for prospective freshman and transfer applicants. Please note that access information to the online session will be sent via email the morning of the session you register for.
On-Campus Graduate Information Session
September 26, 2018 - October 26, 2018, 7PM - 9PM
USC School of Cinematic Arts
This information session is available for students interested in pursuing graduate studies in one of our M.A. or M.F.A. programs at the School of Cinematic Arts. Information regarding the Ph.D. programs will not be covered during the presentation. The session will begin with a presentation discussing the SCA programs, application process and available facilities at the School--opportunity for Q & A will also be given.
The Metropolitan Opera's 2018/2019 Live in HD Broadcast Series
October 20, 2018 - March 30, 2019, Varied
The Frank Sinatra Hall at the Eileen Norris Cinema Theatre Complex, 3507 Trousdale Parkway, Los Angeles, CA 90007
The USC School of Cinematic Arts, USC Thornton School of Music, USC Visions and Voices: The Arts and Humanities Initiative, and the Metropolitan Opera Invite you and a guest to select broadcasts from the 2018/2019 Live in HD Broadcast Series.
Off-Campus Graduate Information Session
October 22, 2018, 6:30PM - 8:30PM
Chicago
This information session is available for students interested in pursuing graduate studies in one of our M.A. or M.F.A. programs at the School of Cinematic Arts. Information regarding Ph.D. programs will not be covered during the presentation. The session will begin with a presentation discussing the SCA programs, application process and available facilities at the school -- opportunity for Q & A will also be given.
WEED THE PEOPLE
October 23, 2018, 7:00 P.M.
The Albert and Dana Broccoli Theatre, SCA 112, George Lucas Building lobby, USC School of Cinematic Arts Complex, 900 W. 34th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90007
Through the emotional stories of children fighting cancer, Weed the People educates mainstream audiences about medical cannabis as a human rights issue. Cannabis has been off-limits to doctors and researchers in the US for the past 80 years, but recently scientists have discovered its anti-cancer properties. Armed with only these laboratory studies, desperate parents obtain cannabis oil from underground sources to save their children from childhood cancers. Weed the People follows these families through uncharted waters as they take their children’s survival into their own hands. Some of their miraculous outcomes beget the unsettling question at the heart of the film: If weed is truly saving lives, why doesn’t the government want people to access it?
FREE SOLO
October 23, 2018, 7:00pm
The Michelle & Kevin Douglas IMAX Theatre Robert Zemeckis Center for Digital Arts (RZC) 3131 S Figueroa St, Los Angeles, CA 90007 (Entrance on 32nd Street)
From award-winning documentary filmmaker E. Chai Vasarhelyi and world-renowned photographer and mountaineer Jimmy Chin, the directors of “MERU,” comes FREE SOLO, a stunning, intimate and unflinching portrait of free soloist climber Alex Honnold, as he prepares to achieve his lifelong dream: climbing the face of the world’s most famous rock ... the 3,200-foot El Capitan in Yosemite National Park … without a rope. Celebrated as one of the greatest athletic feats of any kind, Honnold’s climb set the ultimate standard: perfection or death. Succeeding in this challenge places his story in the annals of human achievement.
BOY ERASED
October 24, 2018, 7:00 P.M.
The Ray Stark Family Theatre, SCA 108, George Lucas Building, USC School of Cinematic Arts Complex, 900 W. 34th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90007
Boy Erased tells the courageous story of Jared Eamons (Lucas Hedges), the son of a Baptist pastor in a small American town, who must overcome the fallout of being outed to his parents (Nicole Kidman and Russell Crowe). His parents struggle with reconciling their love for their son with their beliefs. Fearing a loss of family, friends, and community, Jared is pressured into attending a conversion therapy program. While there, Jared comes into conflict with its leader (Joel Edgerton) and begins his journey to finding his own voice and accepting his true self.
BATTLE FIELDS & TUNIS BY NIGHT
October 26, 2018, 7:00 P.M.
The Ray Stark Family Theatre, SCA 108, George Lucas Building, USC School of Cinematic Arts Complex, 900 W. 34th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90007
Battle Fields is the story of a chance encounter between a US Veteran of Iraq whose life spirals out of control because of PTSD and an Iraqi Limo driver who lives in LA as a refugee. As the two men begin discovering each other’s backgrounds, tensions mount leading to the most unexpected circumstances. Tunis By Night follows Youssef Ben Younes, the host of Tunisian National Radio’s late night show "Tunis By Night" for over two decades, as he prepares for his final episode before retirement. How he approaches his final show, however, radically changes in the wake of a recent incident in the town of Sid Bouzi leading to the self-immolation of a young street vendor which instantly polarizes the nation as cries of revolution ring on the horizon.
SCA Network 2nd Annual Halloween Bash
October 28, 2018, 7:00PM
Wood & Vine, 6280 Hollywood Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90028
SCA Network 2nd Annual Halloween Bash
IN SEARCH OF GREATNESS
October 30, 2018, 7:00 P.M.
The Albert and Dana Broccoli Theatre, SCA 112, George Lucas Building lobby, USC School of Cinematic Arts Complex, 900 W. 34th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90007
Through the eyes of the greatest athletes of all time, IN SEARCH OF GREATNESS is a cinematic journey into the secrets of genius. From award-winning filmmaker Gabe Polsky (Red Army, Genius) this groundbreaking feature documentary includes original interviews with Wayne Gretzky, Pelé, & Jerry Rice, and features Muhammad Ali, Einstein, David Bowie, Serena Williams, Michael Jordan among others.
THE WAR AT HOME
October 31, 2018, 7:00 P.M.
The Ray Stark Family Theatre, SCA 108, George Lucas Building, USC School of Cinematic Arts Complex, 900 W. 34th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90007
Widely considered one of the most important political films ever made, The War at Home is a look at the anatomy of a resistance movement, vividly chronicling the anti-war protest movement of the 1960's and 70's. The film provides a ground-level view of the home front during the Vietnam War and of the war that students and other anti-war dissidents waged on America's political system, military, and notions of patriotism. Through a powerful combination of rare archival footage and interviews with students, community leaders, Vietnam veterans, and participants from all points of view, The War at Home shows how the anti-war movement grew into a genuine people's revolt.
2019 Health Care Benefits Presentation
November 2, 2018, 1:00PM-2:00PM
SCA 108
Hello,
USC Benefits will be presenting the upcoming changes to health care benefits for 2019. This presentation will be held Friday, November 2nd from 1:00-2:00PM in SCA 108.
Benefits open enrollment for 2019 begins October 29 and runs through November 12. For more information, please visit https://openenrollment.usc.edu/
USC Comedy Festival, Vol. 4 Presents: JACK OAKIE COMEDY STUDENT SHORT FILM FESTIVAL
November 2, 2018, 4:00 P.M.
The Ray Stark Family Theatre, SCA 108, George Lucas Building, USC School of Cinematic Arts Complex, 900 W. 34th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90007
A screening of original short films created by SCA students. Be part of the jury and help award the People's Choice "It's All In Fun" Award. Esteemed members of the USC Comedy Faculty will also judge 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place awards & scholarships. All films are no longer than four minutes in lengths.
USC Comedy Festival, Vol. 4 Presents: SPOTLIGHT ON CBS ALL ACCESS' NO ACTIVITY
November 2, 2018, 7:00 P.M.
The Ray Stark Family Theatre, SCA 108, George Lucas Building, USC School of Cinematic Arts Complex, 900 W. 34th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90007
No Activity, a comedy series from executive producers Will Ferrell, Adam McKay and Funny Or Die, marks CBS All Access’ first original comedy. In what should be a high stakes sting operation, No Activity celebrates the mundane. This season, we’re back in Car 27 with Detectives Cullen and Tolbeck, two low-level cops who have spent far too much time in a car together, as they stake out the seedy underbelly of a cockfighting ring. Meanwhile, the SDPD is rocked by a massive corruption scandal, and the culprit might be close to home.
USC Comedy Festival, Vol. 4
November 2, 2018 - November 4, 2018, Varied
The Frank Sinatra Hall and the Ray Stark Family Theatre
The 4th edition of the USC Comedy Festival comes at a time when comedy has emerged as a leader in discourses and causes for social justice and human rights, serving a galvanizing role for change in our fractured and polarized society. Affiliated with the USC Comedy track at the School of Cinematic Arts and the Jack Oakie and Victoria Horne Oakie Foundation, the festival will honor comedy legends, introduce notable emerging artists, address important issues and new developments in comedy form and content, and celebrate the work of our newest generation of USC Comedy students.
USC Comedy Festival, Vol. 4 Presents: THE STANDUP SPECIAL - NEW DIRECTIONS
November 3, 2018, 1:30 P.M.
The Ray Stark Family Theatre, SCA 108, George Lucas Building, USC School of Cinematic Arts Complex, 900 W. 34th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90007
Standup specials have undergone a tremendous burst of creative experimentation in the Netflix Comedy era, with multi-hyphenates like Jerrod Carmichael, Hannah Gadsby, Bo Burnham, and Christopher Storer moving the tradition televised standup comedy special in exciting new directions. Join us for a panel discussion with Neal Brennan, Ian Karmel, and Jessica Yu, curated and moderated by Jason Zinoman, the first-ever Comedy Critic of the New York Times.
USC Comedy Festival, Vol. 4 Presents: WOMEN RUNNING THE SHOW
November 3, 2018, 11:00 A.M.
The Ray Stark Family Theatre, SCA 108, George Lucas Building, USC School of Cinematic Arts Complex, 900 W. 34th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90007
Representation matters. And it starts at the top. Join us for a discussion with today’s top tv comedy showrunners on how the perspective, content and focus changes when a woman’s at the helm. A panel discussion featuring: Gemma Baker, Co-Creator/Executive Producer, Mom; Yvette Lee Bowser, Showrunner, Dear White People; and Natasha Leggero, Co-Creator, Another Period. Moderated by Joanna Cherensky, USC MFA Screenwriting alum.
USC Comedy Festival, Vol. 4 Presents: FRASIER - 25TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION
November 3, 2018, 4:00 P.M.
The Frank Sinatra Hall at the Eileen Norris Cinema Theatre Complex, 3507 Trousdale Parkway, Los Angeles, CA 90007
An all-star panel, anchored by series co-creators Peter Casey and David Lee, and star Kelsey Grammer, reminisce about this long-running, brilliant Cheers spin-off in which psychiatrist Frasier Crane returns to his native Seattle to host a call-in radio show and spar with his fussy brother, their ex-cop father and dad's physical therapist. Impeccable performances and polished scripts are the hallmarks of this sitcom, Emmy's most honored series. Moderated by Bill Prady, co-creator of The Big Bang Theory.
USC Comedy Festival, Vol. 4 Presents: KENYA BARRIS IN CONVERSATION WITH TIM STORY
November 3, 2018, 7:00 P.M.
The Frank Sinatra Hall at the Eileen Norris Cinema Theatre Complex, 3507 Trousdale Parkway, Los Angeles, CA 90007
The Annual SCA Jack Oakie and Victoria Horne Oakie Award this year will be given to Kenya Barris, creator of the Emmy-nominated series black-ish for ABC (which is based on his own life). In its second season, the show won a Peabody Award as well as an AFI Award, among others. Barris was awarded the Humanitas Prize in 2017 as well as NAACP Image Awards in 2016 and 2017 for Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series and a show win for Outstanding Comedy Series for the fourth year in a row. In 2018 Barris premiered the hit spinoff series, grown-ish, starring Yara Shahidi for Freeform. Director and SCA Alumnus Tim Story (Barbershop, Think Like a Man, Ride Along) will moderate the discussion.
USC Comedy Festival, Vol. 4 Presents: LAUGHING WITH VERSUS LAUGHING AT - OTHERNESS AND COMEDY
November 4, 2018, 1:00 P.M.
The Ray Stark Family Theatre, SCA 108, George Lucas Building, USC School of Cinematic Arts Complex, 900 W. 34th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90007
While the entertainment industry has begun accepting that diversity and inclusion are necessary for good business, the ideas have become misunderstood buzzwords that have largely lost connection to their meanings. Especially in comedy, where we know all-too-well the difference between ‘laughing at’ and ‘laughing with,’ diversity and inclusion can’t just be about checking boxes. Understanding how much innovative thinking and dedicated work are required at every level to make the systemic changes necessary to create genuine inclusivity of diverse voices in comedic entertainment, we hope to inspire a more profound conversation about the issues, challenges, and potential solutions. This panel will provide a platform to discuss how to think beyond checking boxes and redefine diversity and inclusion, how we can encourage change to the mainstream approach to otherness, how to understand power dynamics in comedy and how pov and lived experience shapes humor, how to expand thinking past binaries to multiplicities and evolve ‘either or’ into ‘yes, and,’ and how we can empower creators whose voices have been marginalized to become centralized.
USC Comedy Festival, Vol. 4 Presents: DEAD PILOTS SOCIETY - LIVE CELEBRITY READING OF A NEVER-FILMED NETWORK COMEDY PILOT
November 4, 2018, 4:00 P.M.
The Ray Stark Family Theatre, SCA 108, George Lucas Building, USC School of Cinematic Arts Complex, 900 W. 34th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90007
In Dead Pilots Society, scripts that were developed by studios and networks but were never produced are given the table reads they never got a chance to have. Starring actors you know and love from television and film, a live audience, and a good time in which no one gets notes, no one is fired, and everyone laughs. Presented by Andrew Reich (Friends; Worst Week) and Ben Blacker (The Writers Panel podcast; co-creator, Thrilling Adventure Hour).
EL ANGEL
November 6, 2018, 7:00 P.M.
The Albert and Dana Broccoli Theatre, SCA 112, George Lucas Building lobby, USC School of Cinematic Arts Complex, 900 W. 34th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90007
Buenos Aires, 1971. Carlitos (Lorenzo Ferro) is a seventeen-year-old with movie star swagger, blond curls and a baby face. As a young boy, he coveted other people’s things, but it wasn’t until his early adolescence that his true calling — to be a thief — manifested itself. When he meets Ramon at his new school, Carlitos is immediately drawn to him and starts showing off to get his attention. Together they will embark on a journey of discovery, love and crime. Killing is just a random offshoot of the violence, which continues to escalate until Carlitos is finally apprehended. Because of his angelic appearance, the press dubs Carlitos “The Angel of Death.” Showered with attention because of his beauty, he becomes an overnight celebrity. Altogether, he is believed to have committed over forty thefts and eleven homicides.
AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR
November 7, 2018, 7:00 P.M.
The Ray Stark Family Theatre, SCA 108, George Lucas Building, USC School of Cinematic Arts Complex, 900 W. 34th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90007
An unprecedented cinematic journey ten years in the making and spanning the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe, Marvel Studios' "Avengers: Infinity War" brings to the screen the ultimate, deadliest showdown of all time. As the Avengers and their allies have continued to protect the world from threats too large for any one hero to handle, a new danger has emerged from the cosmic shadows: Thanos. A despot of intergalactic infamy, his goal is to collect all six Infinity Stones, artifacts of unimaginable power, and use them to inflict his twisted will on all of reality. Everything the Avengers have fought for has led up to this moment - the fate of Earth and existence itself has never been more uncertain.
I AM NOT A WITCH
November 13, 2018, 7:30 P.M.
Interactive Media Building Screening Room, SCI 106, 3470 McClintock Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90007
When eight-year-old Shula turns up alone and unannounced in a rural Zambian village, the lo-cals are suspicious. A minor incident escalates to a full-blown witch trial, where she is found guilty and sentenced to life on a state-run witch camp. There, she is tethered to a long white ribbon and told that if she ever tries to run away, she will be transformed into a goat. As the days pass, Shula begins to settle into her new community, but a threat looms on the horizon. Soon she is forced to make a difficult decision – whether to resign herself to life on the camp, or take a risk for freedom.
Giacomo Puccini's LA FANCIULLA DEL WEST
November 17, 2018, 12:00 P.M.
The Frank Sinatra Hall at the Eileen Norris Cinema Theatre Complex, 3507 Trousdale Parkway, Los Angeles, CA 90007
Soprano Eva-Maria Westbroek sings Puccini’s gun-slinging heroine in this romantic epic of the Wild West, with the heralded return of tenor Jonas Kaufmann in the role of the outlaw she loves. Tenor Yusif Eyvazov also sings some performances. Baritone Željko Lu?i? is the vigilante sheriff Jack Rance, and Marco Armiliato conducts.
THE GREAT BUDDHA+
November 29, 2018, 7:00 P.M.
The Ray Stark Family Theatre, SCA 108, George Lucas Building, USC School of Cinematic Arts Complex, 900 W. 34th Street, Los Angeles, CA 90007
The Great Buddha+ is the award winning 2017 Taiwanese dark comedy which won top prize at the 19th Taipei Film Festival, the Hong Kong Film Award for Best Film from Mainland and Taiwan, the Golden Horse Award for Best Adapted Screenplay, and has been selected to represent Taiwan for the Best Foreign Language Film Competition at the Academy Awards in 2019. The film follows a night security guard named Pickle, who works at a Buddha statue factory, and his colleague Belly Bottom, a recyclables collector. Their dull lives suddenly change when they stumble across videos that document promiscuous meetings of their wealthy, politically well-connected boss.