The Lucas Effect
I was just thinking about George Lucas and browsed over to the USC page to check out if they made a big deal of him being an alumni of USC Film School.
When we were at 'SC, George donated a huge amount of money and so they named our editing building after him and his then wife Marcia (Marcia and George Lucas Editing Building). The editing building was in the main Production quad and consisted of rooms with old splicing tables for film and Media 100 editing consoles.
I mention old because with the success of his Skywalker Ranch Production, Lucas has become a big time alumnus, giving back to the 'SC filmmaking family &mdash we used to call it The Factory. Lucas's love for all things digital also ushered in the era of digital filmmaking. When I graduated, incoming students were using MiniDV instead of super-8 or 16mm cameras. Now I hear students are shooting their features in HD format.
Here are some of Lucas contribution to USC film school...
** George Lucas Instruction Building
** Marcia Lucas Post-Production Building
** Robert Zemeckis Center for Digital Arts (another famous alumni, but I think it is also funded by George Lucas and Steven Spielberg)
Why has Lucas donated so much to USC Film School? Back when he was an undergraduate, Lucas made a thesis film called THX-1138. THX-1138 went on to become a feature film, but it didn't do well. After THX-1138's critical failure, Lucas made a movie called Star Wars: A New Hope. THX also became the sound system Lucas used to standardize theater sound quality. BTW George Lucas In Love is a hilarious spoof on Lucas inspiration and musings for Star Wars.
