Rod Lurie Coming To SHSU
This article is courtesy of Cari Kenealy of Raven Films, a student film organization within the Mass Communication Department of Sam Houston State University (SHSU).
Rod Lurie, film director, writer, and journalist who’s topics often involve politics and women in power will be coming to the campus of SHSU from Thursday November 1st through Saturday November 3rd.
The College of Fine Arts and Mass Communication, Mass Communications Department and Raven Films will be hosting Mr. Rod Lurie and viewing of The Contender, a political thriller . President Barack Obama cited President Evans. the character in ‘ The Contender’ as his favorite fictional president.
Mr. Lurie will be giving a Q&A moderated by Peter Rousell of the MCM Department at SHSU and former Presidential Press Secretary immediately after the screening.
Lurie wrote and directed the widely praised Academy Award® and Golden Globe Award nominated political thriller The Contender.
The film was also honored by the Broadcast Film Critics.
In addition, Lurie created and served as an executive producer on ABC’s highly acclaimed hit series, Commander in Chief.
Imaging a world in which the President of the United States is a woman, the popular series stars Geena Davis and also executive produced the ABC one-hour FBI drama, Line of Fire.
Mr. Lurie has directed actors Robert Redford, Genna Davis, Joan Allen, James Gandolfini, Matt Dillon and Mark Ruffalo and many others.
Before becoming a filmmaker, Lurie completed a career in the military and enjoyed success as a film critic, entertainment reporter and investigative reporter.
Lurie graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1984 and went on to serve for four years as a Combat Arms officer in the U.S. Army.
He broke into journalism as an entertainment reporter for the New York Daily News, as well as a frequent contributor to Premiere, Movieline and Entertainment Weekly.
Most recently, Mr. Lurie directed the remake of Sam Peckinpah’s classic ‘Straw Dog’s’ and this month as a guest director on AMC’s Western series “Hell on Wheels”.
Leading up to this even, MCM & Raven films will be hosting a viewing of Rod Lurie movies starting today from 5-7p.m. with “The Last Castle.”
Then on Oct. 29th from 5-7 p.m. “Resurrecting the Champ,” Oct. 30th from 6-9 p.m. “Straw Dogs,” and Oct. 31st from 5-7 p.m., “Nothing but the Truth.”
These events are free and open to the public and will be held in room 306 in the Dan Rather building on the SHSU campus.
Don’t Take Life For Granted
by Cheval John
Sometimes we forget how precious life really is.
We are used to interacting with our friends, family, etc., on a daily basis that we get to the point of taking it for granted.
We believe that we have all the time in the world to tell a person how important they are in our lives and forget that they can be taken in an instant.
When that happens, we wonder if we did everything for that person or said what was needed to be said and ending up beating ourselves in the process.
For example, Deanna Brionnes has been the secretary of the Mass Communication Department on the campus of Sam Houston State for quite some time.
On a daily basis, she has to deal with the logistics of the department, whether it is helping a student register for a class or getting the schedule made for a professor.
In addition to her work, she helped in the planning of the MCM department’s annual spring banquet and collaborate with those that are in charge of putting it together.
Because of her dedication, she has received recognition from professors and student organizations in the department.
For example, Raven Films, a student film organization, gave her a baby blanket as their way of saying thank you because she and her husband are expecting their first child.
So the next time you see that person who makes life so fun and interesting, let him or her know how important they are to you.
Because you never know if you will get that opportunity again.
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