By Benjamin Pola

“Survive for seven years!” That was the advice SCA alum Luke Harris ’22 received from fellow alum Jon M. Chu '03 at the 2025 Princess Grace Awards, where the two met for the first time. They talked about many things that night, but that line stayed with Harri as he grappled with the realities of the industry he had chosen. Chu’s words, coming from someone whose career he aspired to, became a guiding marker Harris could hold onto in the moments when filmmaking felt impossible. “That advice is so true with where I’m at in my career,” he reflects.

Harris is no stranger to hard work and persistence. During his time at SCA, he served as President of the African American Cinema Society, mentored incoming students, wrote and directed his own short films, and crewed on countless others. That ability to juggle responsibilities became essential after graduation as he searched for ways to keep his creative muscles active in the real world while needing to pay the bills.

After finishing a new short-script titled ManBooBs, a coming‑of‑age story drawn from his adolescent experiences with body‑image insecurities, first crushes, and all the messy challenges of teenage life, Harris began searching for funding. He reached out to The COOL Cooperative, a nonprofit in his home state of Louisiana that creates opportunities for middle and high school students interested in film.

In the summer of 2024, Harris directed his short ManBooBs through The COOL Cooperative, working with a crew made up entirely of students from the organization’s summer program. After two weeks of pre-production and a crash course in filmmaking, the team was ready to shoot. One week of production and one week of post later, they had a cut.

Harris refined the film and began submitting it to festivals. ManBooBs went on to become a finalist for the 2025 HBO Short Film Award at the American Black Film Festival. Since then, Harris has continued to build an impressive body of work. He directed Jeremiah’s Big Christmas Party, a documentary supported by the NAACP Hollywood Bureau and the 2025 NBCUniversal Alliance Power of Storytelling Grant. He won the #CreateLouisiana Grant for Tambou, which premiered at the French Film Festival. His films Pam (Omeleto, 1M+ views), South Body (NOFF Audience Award), and Danny Boy have all earned wide recognition. His short The First Day of Being Black won a Student DGA Jury Award, and the series he worked on during his time at SCA, Provenance, won Best Drama at the College Television Awards.

Harris continues to write stories that hold a mirror to himself and to the world around him, creating projects that challenge audiences and spark conversations long after the credits roll. Reflecting on his time at SCA, he points to the school’s emphasis on editing and storytelling as the training that most profoundly shaped his craft. Having worked as an editor in high school, he learned early how essential it is to think about editing while writing, directing, and making choices across every stage of production.

The SCA alumni network remains one of the most valuable parts of his experience. “I just had a table read for my feature draft with some of my classmates and professors,” he shares. Between organizing writers’ groups and continuing to make films, Harris is now in pre-production on his debut feature, successfully living out the advice he received: survive, keep going, and keep creating. And he is only in year four!