Longtime television development, directing and production professor and USC alumnus Ian Sander passed away on May 3rd. He is remembered by faculty, staff, alumni, and students of the School of Cinematic Arts as a true role model and educator who cared deeply for students, and who always had an open door for both current students and alumni of his classes. Sander co-taught the World of Television course at SCA since 2006 with his wife and partner Kim Moses.

Ian served as Executive Producer and Director of the CBS hit series Ghost Whisperer, which ran for five years before airing in syndication on three networks in the U.S. and in 170 territories around the world.  Along with Kim Moses, Ian co-created the Total Engagement Experience (TEE). The business is a creative model for television that uses each show as a component of a broader multi-platform entertainment experience.

For the past 10 years, under his SLAM digital media shingle, Sander co-created and produced entertainment event programming including all digital media IP for Ghost Whisperer, the content for feature films Happy Feet Two (Warner Bros) and Hotel Transylvania (Sony), as well as Desperate Housewives (ABC), Ugly Betty (ABC) and Comic-Con. He co-authored the book Ghost Whisperer: Spirit Guide and created and wrote the award-winning Ghost Whisperer: The Other Side webseries.

New York-born Sander executive produced more than 600 hours of primetime drama series including the 2014 CBS summer series Reckless. His other series producing credits include I‘ll Fly Away (ABC), for which he was named Producer of the Year by the PGA; Profiler (NBC); The Beast (ABC); New York News (CBS); Brimstone (Fox); and For The People (Lifetime) — all of which he also directed.

Sander is survived by his wife, Kim Moses; and sons, Aaron Sander and Declan Sander. Sander's memorial celebration will take place Monday, May 9, 2016 at 10:00 AM at Valley Beth Shalom (15739 Ventura Blvd. Encino, CA 91436). No RSVP is needed for the memorial. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you please make a donation to the Ian Sander Scholarship Fund at the USC School of Cinematic Arts.

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