Carsey-Wolf Center at UCSB

What a thrill to welcome actors Jeff Bridges and Amy Brenneman to the Pollock Theater to discuss their work on FX's THE OLD MAN! The Carsey-Wolf Center is so grateful to writer/director Brad Silberling for proposing Saturday's event and moderating the discussion. Thanks so much to FX Studios for their assistance in making this event possible.

Join our team! The Carsey-Wolf Center is now accepting applications for the role of Assistant Director. The Assistant Director plays a leading role in the development of public programming at the Pollock Theater, marketing and communications, event coordination and venue management, and more. We are seeking a motivated and energetic team member with a passion for cinema, and a commitment to higher education. Learn more and apply by visiting www.jobs.ucsb.edu and searching for "Carsey" or Job ID 74486. Review of applications begins Dec. 6, 2024. #NowHiring #Hiring #HigherEdJobs #FilmStudies #FilmandMediaStudies

Last night, we were over the moon to welcome UC Santa Barbara Film & Media Studies alumnus and former Pollock Theater staffer back to campus last night for a very special screening of her debut feature film, THE MOON AND BACK. In front of a crowd filled with aspiring student filmmakers and beaming former professors, Leah sat down with Ross Melnick (Film and Media Studies) for an insightful conversation about the film, and about how her time at #UCSB prepared her for an exciting career in the entertainment industry. She even took some time to chat with and sign some posters for our current cohort of Pollock staffers. We're extremely grateful to Leah for joining us, to Ross Melnick for his thoughtful moderation, and to everyone who joined us for this joyful homecoming.

Tomorrow, we welcome UC Santa Barbara alumnus and former Pollock Theater student staffer Leah Bleich back to the Carsey-Wolf Center for a very special presentation of her debut feature, THE MOON AND BACK. In anticipation of her visit, Leah spoke to the team at The Current about her journey from UCSB to Hollywood, the making of THE MOON AND BACK, and more. Check out the full conversation below, then grab your tickets for the screening at our website! https://ow.ly/baOg50UaxbJ

It was all smiles at the Pollock Theater this past weekend when acclaimed screenwriter and playwright Phyllis Nagy, whose screenplay for Todd Haynes' 2015 drama CAROL earned an Academy Award nomination, stopped by for a screening and discussion of Alfred Hitchcock's classic thriller, STRANGERS ON A TRAIN. Together with Dick Wolf Director of the Carsey-Wolf Center Patrice Petro, Nagy discussed her relationship with Patricia Highsmith, whose 1950 novel provided the source material for STRANGERS, the strange and surprising story of the novel's transformation into a screenplay, and some of the film's iconic stylistic and aesthetic choices. Our warm thanks to Phyllis Nagy for joining us, to Amy Villarejo for her assistance in bringing this event together, and to all those who came out for this wonderful event.

Tickets are now available for our Dec. 7 presentation of NICKEL BOYS, featuring a post-screening discussion with filmmaker RaMell Ross. Set in Tallahassee in 1962, Nickel Boys chronicles the lives of two teenagers, Ellwood (Ethan Herisse) and Turner (Brandon Wilson), as they navigate life at Nickel Academy, a racially segregated labor camp posing as a reform school for children. Based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Colson Whitehead, Nickel Boys takes its subject from the real-world Dozier Reform School for Boys, which closed in 2011. More information and tickets available at the link below. https://ow.ly/72Aa50U5taT

We're delighted to share the news that friend of the Center Wendy Eley Jackson's new documentary, FACING THE FALLS, is officially under consideration with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for Best Documentary Short. A key member of our Storytelling for the Screen instructional team and moderator for several Pollock events past, Wendy served as co-producer for FACING THE FALLS, which tells the powerful story of international disability rights advocate Cara Elizabeth Yar Khan. Battling a progressive and fatal muscle-wasting disease called Hereditary Inclusion Body Myopathy, Cara, despite being unable to walk unassisted, embarks on a bold 12-day expedition through the Grand Canyon. Congratulations to Wendy on this exciting achievement! For those based in Los Angeles, catch a screening of FACING THE FALLS on Monday, November 11 at 6:00 PM at the UTA Theater, 9336 Civic Center Dr., Beverly Hills CA 90210. RSVP at ftf [at] frankpublicity [dot] com.

On November 21, we're thrilled to welcome filmmaker Leah Bleich to the Pollock Theater for a very special presentation of her debut feature film, THE MOON AND BACK. An emerging talent in film and television, Bleich is also an alumnus of Film & Media Studies at UC Santa Barbara and a former Pollock Theater student staff member! We are honored to welcome her back to campus for this exciting showcase of her work. Following the film, Bleich will sit down with Ross Melnick (Film & Media Studies, UCSB) for a post-screening discussion. Tickets at the link below! A year after her father’s death, high school senior Lydia Gilbert finds herself directionless. Everything changes, however, when she stumbles upon an epic screenplay for a ridiculous space opera—written by her dad. With zero experience, a VHS camera, and next to nothing for a budget, she decides to honor her father by turning his final script into a full-fledged movie. https://ow.ly/GUCm50U2JSS

COMING SOON: Revisit one of Alfred Hitchcock's most iconic thrillers. On Nov. 16, join us for a matinee presentation of STRANGERS ON A TRAIN. Adapted from the 1951 Patricia Highsmith novel of the same name, STRANGERS is a visually sumptuous thriller that offers a glimpse into a US national psyche riven by potent anxieties over sex, desire, and politics. In this event, we will be joined by acclaimed screenwriter Phyllis Nagy, known for her Academy Award-winning screenplay for Todd Haynes' 2015 drama, CAROL, and her many other Highsmith adaptations for stage and screen. Nagy will sit down with Dick Wolf Director of the Carsey-Wolf Center Patrice Petro for a post-screening discussion of STRANGERS. Tickets at the link below. https://ow.ly/IOiv50U0Jv1

Warm thanks to all those who joined us last night at the Pollock Theater for Madhuja Mukherjee's searching, dreamlike political drama DEEP6. We were very fortunate to be joined by Mukherjee, who sat down after the film for an insightful conversation with Bishnupriya Ghosh (English, UC Santa Barbara). Our gratitude to Mukherjee for being with us, to Ghosh for her thoughtful moderation, and to our audience for their engaging questions.