USC School of Cinematic Arts Conversations With... Speakers Series Podcast

Garth Jennings and Nick Goldsmith are the creative team behind The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy as well as music videos of Beck, The Wannadies, Vampire Weekend, R.E.M. and Fatboy Slim, among others. Jennings wrote and directed the film Son of Rambow, while Goldsmith produced. Jennings and Goldsmith were featured guests at the "Conversations With ..." speaker series, hosted by the Writing Division at the USC School of Cinematic Arts. An episode in the USC School of Cinematic Arts podcast series.

Derek Haas and Michael Brandt are the writers of 3:10 To Yuma and the action blockbuster 2 Fast 2 Furious. They've also penned the upcoming Angelina Jolie film Wanted. Haas and Brandt were featured guests at the "Conversations With ..." speaker series, hosted by the Writing Division at the USC School of Cinematic Arts. An episode in the USC School of Cinematic Arts podcast series.

Tom Schulman is the Academy Award-winning writer of Dead Poets Society; Honey, I Shrunk The Kids; What About Bob; Medicine Man and 8 Heads In A Duffel Bag (which he also directed). Schulman was a featured guest at the "Conversations With ..." speaker series, hosted by the Writing Division at the USC School of Cinematic Arts. An episode in the USC School of Cinematic Arts podcast series.

Bill Prady (Two and a Half Men, Dharma & Greg), executive producer and co-creator of The Big Bang Theory, discusses his show, along with staff writers Dave Goetsch (3rd Rock From the Sun) and Jennifer Glickman (Caroline in the City). Prady, Goetsch and Glickman were featured guests at the "Conversations With ..." speaker series, hosted by the Writing Division at the USC School of Cinematic Arts. An episode in the USC School of Cinematic Arts podcast series.

David Weiss '87 has worked in animation for over 15 years, writingsuch films as All Dogs Go To Heaven, Shrek 2, Jimmy Neutron and The Rugrats Movie. His work in television includes Cybill, Rugrats and Mission Hill. He currently serves as the vice-president of the Writers Guild of America West. Weiss was a featured guest at the "Conversations With ..." speaker series, hosted by the Writing Division at the USC School of Cinematic Arts. An episode in the USC School of Cinematic Arts podcast series.

Alfred Gough & Miles Millar are the creators of the hit show Smallville. As a writing team they have worked on Spiderman 2, Lethal Weapon 4, Shanghai Noon and Herbie Fully Loaded. They are both 1994 alumni of the Peter Stark Producing Program. Gough and Millar were featured guests at the "Conversations With ..." speaker series, hosted by the Writing Division at the USC School of Cinematic Arts. An episode in the USC School of Cinematic Arts podcast series.

Julie Taymor is known for directing such films as Frida (2003), and the recently released Across the Universe (2007). Taymor was the first woman to win the Tony Award for directing a musical with her adaptation of The Lion King (1997). She has directed operas and stage plays across the world, and is also an award-winning costume and puppet designer. Taymor was a featured guest at the "Conversations With..." speaker series, hosted by the Writing Division at the USC School of Cinematic Arts. An episode in the USC School of Cinematic Arts podcast series.

Jerry Stahl is the writer of Bad Boys 2 and the book Permanent Midnight (adapted into the film starring Ben Stiller). He's written over 10 episodes of CSI, and has also written episodes of Northern Exposure, Twin Peaks, ALF, Moonlighting, thirtysomething and You Again? His other novels include Perv-A Love Story, Plainclothes Naked, Love Without and I, Fatty. Stahl was a featured guest at the "Conversations With ..." speaker series, hosted by the Writing Division at the USC School of Cinematic Arts. An episode in the USC School of Cinematic Arts podcast series.

Richard Shepard is the critically acclaimed writer/director of The Hunting Party and The Matador. He also recently won an Emmy and the Director's Guild Award for directing the TV pilot of Ugly Betty. His other films include Mexico City, Oxygen, Mercy, The Linguini Incident and Scotland PA (as a producer). Shepard was a featured guest at the "Conversations With ..." speaker series, hosted by the Writing Division at the USC School of Cinematic Arts. An episode in the USC School of Cinematic Arts podcast series.

Mark Fergus is best known for his work on Children of Men, for which he was honored with the USC Scripter Award. Fergus and his partner Hawk Otsby also penned the adaptation of John Carter Of Mars, now in turnaround at Pixar. Jon Favreau enjoyed working with the team so much that he hired them to rewrite Iron Man, which is slated for a summer blockbuster release in 2008. Not only a talented writer, Fergus also directed First Snow starring Guy Pearce. Fergus was a featured guest at the "Conversations With ..." speaker series, hosted by the Writing Division at the USC School of Cinematic Arts. An episode in the USC School of Cinematic Arts podcast series.