UC Santa Barbara (Audio)

Adapted from the 1998 short story “Story of Your Life” by acclaimed science fiction author Ted Chiang, “Arrival” (2016) centers on communicating with tentacular alien visitors, whose language changes one’s experience of time. Introspective and immersive, “Arrival” imagines a fantastical calligraphy alongside questions of alienation, race, and motherhood. Professor Jennifer Rhee joins Melody Jue to discuss the film and explore the dynamics of free will, determinism, disorientation, communication, language, and temporal nonlinearity, as well as the similarities and differences between the film and the original short story. Series: "Carsey-Wolf Center" [Humanities] [Show ID: 38161]

In this UC Santa Barbara Innovator Stories program, Tony Rodoni, a former Global Sales Leader at Salesforce, talks about how he went from being an engineer to sales by focusing on customers, their needs and how he could help solve their problems. Series: "Innovator Stories: Creating Something from Nothing" [Business] [Show ID: 38309]

In this program, UC Santa Barbara Professor of Religion and Literature, Philosophy of Religion and History of Judaism Sarah Hammerschlag discusses Emmanuel Levinas’ Talmudic Lectures. Series: "Taubman Symposia in Jewish Studies" [Humanities] [Show ID: 38311]

Writer/director Oualid Mouaness discusses his film 1982 with moderator Paul Amar (Global Studies, UCSB). Mouaness details the development of the film and the importance of depicting an honest representation of the war in Lebanon, especially as a means to bridge gaps between older and younger generations. He explains the significance of telling 1982’s story through a child’s perspective and the unique point-of-view they have in experiencing war and history. Series: "Carsey-Wolf Center" [Humanities] [Show ID: 38159]

Making sure your client is happy is the number one priority for any business leader. As the first-ever Chief Client Officer of Baker Botts, a global law firm, Catherine Zinn is laser-focused on servicing the client. Referring to the Net Promoter Score, Zinn says it’s important to ask your client how likely they are the recommend your business to someone else on a scale from 1-10 (10 being certain). Anything less than a 9 or 10 means the relationship is in jeopardy your business has a vulnerability that needs to be explored. To be successful, you must be proactive and relentless in your focus on client satisfaction and in its growth in key markets. Zinn was recognized as a "Woman of Influence" by the "Silicon Valley Business Journal," as a "Woman of Achievement" by "Legal Momentum" and a "Top 100 Woman in Law" by "Women Who Lead" in 2021. Series: "Innovator Stories: Creating Something from Nothing" [Business] [Show ID: 38307]

Acclaimed co-writer/director Abderrahmane Sissako discusses his film Timbuktu with moderators Richard Watts and Peter Bloom. Sissako details the development of the script and its connection to real-world news stories from Mali. He also recalls the political and logistical challenges during the film production. Watts and Bloom discuss the poetic qualities of the film, and in his own words, Sissako describes his artistic objectives with landscape and setting. Series: "Carsey-Wolf Center" [Humanities] [Show ID: 38160]

Professor Stephanie Malia Hom (French and Italian Studies, UCSB) joins moderator Anna Brusutti (Film and Media Studies, UCSB) to discuss Italian series Inspector Montalbano to conclude a yearlong screening series on global television. Brusutti provides a thorough breakdown of the history of Italian television broadcasting and distinguishes it from other national contexts. Hom explores the show’s Sicilian setting and ties contemporary discrimination towards migrants from abroad within a broader history of regional and global flows. Hom and Brusutti also examine the regional dialects of the show, as well as the structure of organized crime in Italy. They discuss the prolific work of author Andrea Camilleri and the long history of Inspector Montalbano in Italian television broadcasting. Series: "Carsey-Wolf Center" [Humanities] [Show ID: 38156]

Director Marc Shaffer discusses his documentary Exposing Muybridge, which sheds light on the life and impact of photographer Eadweard Muybridge, a pioneer of early motion pictures. Muybridge is most famously known for capturing consecutive images of a galloping horse, which proved that all four hooves leave the ground mid-stride. Shaffer details the importance of this photographic experiment in the development of cinema, as well as the other strange and captivating details of Muybridge’s life. He also elaborates on the interview subjects of the film, including the involvement of actor Gary Oldman. He talks through the process of recreating and reimagining Muybridge’s famous multi-camera shoot and explains the importance of Muybridge in photographic and cinematic history, as well as the lasting influence of his work. Series: "Carsey-Wolf Center" [Humanities] [Show ID: 38155]

When the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June, the controversial decision ended the right to abortion that was upheld for nearly 50 years. So what does a post-Roe world look like? In this program, UC Irvine law professor Michele Bratcher Goodwin and UC Santa Barbara feminist studies professor Laury Oaks discuss the wide-ranging impact of the decision on legal, medical, and political mobilizations.

(Note: this program was recorded on May 9, 2022, prior to the ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade.) Series: "Ethics, Religion and Public Life: Walter H. Capps Center Series" [Public Affairs] [Health and Medicine] [Humanities] [Show ID: 38308]

Director/co-writer Pamela B. Green and producer/co-writer Joan Simon discuss their documentary "Be Natural: The Untold of Alice Guy-Blaché" with moderator Cynthia Felando. Green and Simon explain the 10-year-long process of researching to make the documentary, as well as their respective inspirations for discovering more about the pioneering film making of Alice Guy-Blaché. Green also discusses her unique directorial approach that involved relaying film history like a “detective story” by involving the audience in her archival work. Simon talks in detail about the feminist scholars and film festivals that first brought Guy-Blaché’s films into academia, and how many of Guy-Blaché’s contributions to early cinema are often overlooked. Series: "Carsey-Wolf Center" [Humanities] [Show ID: 38079]