ACADEMY AWARD® WINNING PRODUCER CATHY SCHULMAN TO DELIVER COMMENCEMENT ADDRESS AND RECEIVE HONORARY DEGREE AT CHAPMAN UNIVERSITY’S DODGE COLLEGE OF FILM AND MEDIA ARTS
Orange, CA (May 2, 2014) – It was announced today that Academy Award® winning producer Cathy Schulman (“Crash”) will receive an honorary Doctor of Arts degree from Chapman University’s Dodge College of Film and Media Arts at Dodge College’s commencement ceremony on Saturday, May 24, where Schulman will deliver the keynote address.
Schulman is President of Mandalay Pictures and sits on the Board of Mandalay Vision, Mandalay’s independent financing and production label, where she oversees the division’s creative affairs.
A leading and supportive voice for women in the entertainment industry as well as a highly accomplished producer, Schulman was the fall 2013 Filmmaker-in-Residence at Chapman University’s Dodge College of Film Media and Arts where she taught graduate level film producing.
“Cathy Schulman makes movies that have built-in audience appeal at the same time that she is committed to making films that make the world a better place,” says Dodge College Dean Bob Bassett. “She is a tremendous example of what smart, hard-working, fearless people can accomplish in the industry.”
Schulman is currently producing the Mandalay Film “Whatever Makes You Happy”, based on the novel by William Sutcliffe, written and directed by Emmy® Award Winner Cindy Chupack, and starring Susan Sarandon, Allison Janney, Viola Davis and James Corden.
Recently, Schulman completed Mandalay’s “Horns,” starring Daniel Radcliffe and directed by Alex Aja, based on Joe Hill’s bestselling novel. Schulman also recently wrapped Marjane Satrapi’s latest film “The Voices,” starring Ryan Reynolds, Jacki Weaver, Gemma Arterton and Anna Kendrick. Schulman is in post-production on “Dark Places,” based on Gillian Flynn’s bestselling novel, directed by Gilles Paquet-Brenner and starring Charlize Theron, Chloe Moretz, Nicholas Hoult and Christina Hendricks.
In 2012, Mandalay produced “Bernie,” directed by Richard Linklater and starring Jack Black and Matthew McConaughey. Schulman also produced the company’s “Salvation Boulevard,” the faith-based hit “Soul Surfer” and the critically acclaimed “The Kids Are All Right,” which was nominated for an Academy Award® in 2011.
Previous to Mandalay, Schulman produced “Crash,” directed by Paul Haggis and starring Sandra Bullock, Don Cheadle, Matt Dillon, and Terrence Howard. Released in 2005 by Lionsgate, “Crash” collected numerous awards and nominations. In addition to Schulman receiving the film’s Best Picture Oscar® in 2006, “Crash” received Academy Awards for Best Original Screenplay and Best Editing.
In 2002, Schulman and Tom Nunan formed Bull’s Eye Entertainment to produce independent film and television content. Through this venture, Schulman produced “The Illusionist” and executive produced “Thumbsucker” and Lifetime’s drama series “Angela’s Eyes.”
Schulman has served as producer on numerous additional projects throughout her career, including the documentary “Darfur Now,” “Godsend,” starring Robert De Niro,, and Edward Burn’s “Sidewalks of New York” as well as associate producing “Tears of the Sun” starring Bruce Willis, “Isn’t She Great?” starring Bette Midler and “Striptease” starring Demi Moore.
From 1998 to 2000, Schulman served as President of Michael Ovitz’s Artists Production Group, where she supervised over fifty projects, including developing and securing financing for Martin Scorsese’s epic drama “Gangs of New York.” She also served as head of production for a joint venture formed between APG and media giant Studio Canal.
Other positions Schulman has held include VP of Production and Acquisitions at Sovereign Pictures, where she served as an executive on a slate of films that included “My Left Foot” and “Reversal of Fortune”; Vice President of Production and Acquisitions at the Samuel Goldwyn Company, where she was the executive on films such as “Much Ado About Nothing” and “The Madness of King George;” Senior Vice President of Production at Savoy Pictures; and President of Lobell-Bergman Productions at Universal Pictures.
Most recently, Schulman began producing live entertainment shows. She produced the 2013 WOMEN IN FILM CRYSTAL AND LUCY AWARDS, a gala entertainment event attended by over one thousand industry professionals. She will produce the annual show again in June 2014.
Active in the industry, Schulman is the President of Women In Film, a Board Member of Film Independent and has served as a Council Member of the Producers Guild of America. She is also a member of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences.
About Chapman University:
Consistently ranked among the top universities in the West, Chapman University attracts highly qualified students from around the globe. Its programs are designed to encourage leadership in innovation, creativity and collaboration, and are increasingly recognized for providing an extraordinary educational experience. The university excels in film and media arts, performing arts, educational studies, economics and business, law, humanities and the sciences. Student enrollment in graduate and undergraduate programs is approaching 7,000, and Chapman University alumni are found throughout California and the world.
Lawrence and Kristina Dodge College of Film and Media Arts:
One of the premier film schools in the country, Dodge College of Film and Media Arts offers students the unique opportunity to learn filmmaking in a hands-on environment modeled on a working studio. The college is comprised of the Sodaro-Pankey Undergraduate School of Film and Media Arts, offering degrees in film production, film studies, screenwriting, creative producing, television and broadcast journalism, public relations and advertising, screen acting and digital arts; and the graduate Conservatory of Motion Pictures, offering M.F.A. degrees in film production, film and television producing, production design, and screenwriting, and an M.A. in film studies. Two joint M.F.A. degrees in producing are also offered in conjunction with the business (M.F.A./M.B.A.) and law (M.F.A./J.D.) schools. Dodge College is housed in Marion Knott Studios, a state-of-the-art, 76,000-square-foot studio and classroom building that provides students with 24-hour access to sound stages, edit bays, Dolby surround mixing, a motion capture stage and more. With an Oscar and Emmy-award winning full-time faculty that boasts more feature film credits than any other film school, Dodge College is where students learn the entertainment business from the inside out.
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