Elizabeth Daley — USC

Dean, School of Cinematic Arts

THE LATEST: In September, USC’s School of Cinematic Arts launched a new course, “Visions of Diversity in the Cinematic Arts,” which is designed to expose students to more diverse film and media content and tackle the issue of bias in cinema and other media content. In December, the school’s Media Institute for Social Change chose its 2020 slate of 15 cinema and other media projects for the most significant depiction of social change; among the films chosen were “Trial of the Chicago 7” and “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom.”
BACKGROUND: Daley has guided the School of Cinematic Arts for 30 years, making her the longest-serving dean at USC. She was founding executive director of USC’s Annenberg Center for Communication and serves as executive director of the university’s Institute for Multimedia Literacy. She oversaw creation of the Entertainment Technology Center, a think tank that studies the impact of new technologies. Prior to joining USC, Daley worked for the film and TV division of the Mark Taper Forum and was a producer for MGM Television.
YEARS ON THE LA500: 6
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