The Legacy of Milos Forman
In 1978, esteemed director Milos Forman and his Screenwriting mentor Frank Daniel were appointed co-chairs of the Film Program. Under their leadership, the program flourished and became the world-renowned institution of film education that it is today. In many ways, Forman was the "creative founder" of Columbia Film, having shaped and refined its commitment to narrative filmmaking anchored in strong screenplays. He gave it a character as distinct as his own—original, passionate, intelligent, and international.
News
Francisca Alegria ’16 is one of eight participants selected by the Sundance Institute for the fifth annual Momentum Fellowship, a program designed to support mid-career artists with a focus on career development during a pivotal moment in their creative practice.
Anocha Suwichakornpong is now a professor at School of the Arts, where she earned her MFA in film.
Film alumnus Brian McAuley ‘13 has written a horror novel titled Curse of the Reaper, which was featured on Esquire’s list of Best Horror Books of 2022.
Film alumna Chantel Clark ’18 has been chosen to participate in the AuthenticA Series Lab, a training program for African episodic screenwriters hosted by Realness Institute, the African non-profit filmmaking organization.
Several projects from Columbia filmmakers are headed to the upcoming South by Southwest (SXSW) Film Festival, which will take place March 10-19, 2023.
The 2023 Film Independent Spirit Awards took place over the weekend, with the Columbia filmmakers behind Joyland and The Cathedral taking home top prizes.
Three projects from Columbia filmmakers took home awards at this year’s Writers Guild Awards. They are: Women Talking, Hacks, and Last Week Tonight with John Oliver.
The 21st edition of the Berlinale Talents just wrapped up and Columbia alumna Apoorva Charan ’18 was one of the participants in the week-long program.
The sixth and latest edition of Alternative Scriptwriting: Contemporary Storytelling for the Screen (Routledge, 2023) features contributions from several Columbia filmmakers, including Cyril Aris ’17, Ellie Foumbi ’17, Missy Hernandez ’17, Jimmy Keyrouz ’16, Chloe Lenihan ’16, Adjunct Assistant Professor Valerie Castillo Martinez ’16, George Sikharulidze ’17, and Isold Uggadottir ’11.
In this series, we catch up with Columbia filmmakers who have recently graduated to chat about their time in the Film Program, what they’re doing now, and their goals for the future. This week, we spoke with alumna Kristin Kohlmeyer ’21.
The 29th Screen Actors Guild Awards took place on Sunday, February 26th, and Actress Jean Smart, one of the leading ladies of Hacks, took home the prize for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series.
The Emperor of Ocean Park, a brand new scripted series written by Film alumnus Sherman Payne ’10 and co-produced by John Wells Productions and Warner Brothers has been greenlit and has now officially gone into development.
