The entertainment industry has found a home within UCLA’s
faculty.
Barbara Boyle, a producer and president of Valhalla Motion
Pictures, will be stepping up as the new chairwoman for the UCLA
Department of Theater, Film and Digital Media.
She officially became the chairwoman for the department this
month, after being selected from a long list of potential
candidates for the position.
“The ideal for the department is the highest standard of
professionalism, combined with a spirit of individualism, and she
perfectly embodies that,” said Robert Rosen, dean for the
School of Theater, Film, Television and Digital Media.
Boyle’s tasks as the new chairwoman will range from
providing leadership for the department to finding financial
contributions, Rosen said.
One of the major issues she will be dealing with are the budget
cuts taking effect on the department.
Finding money to fund the program is an immediate concern, Boyle
said.
Rosen and Boyle will be working together to obtain the needed
funding to replace money taken by budget cuts.
“The biggest challenge is how do we prepare our students
for the visual literacy of the 21st century,” Boyle said.
The new chairwoman hopes that, with the support of the faculty
and the dean, she will be up to challenges ahead of her.
Last week, Boyle was able to experience her new role for the
first time.
She had individual meetings with senior faculty to discuss
departmental issues and requests.
“I’d describe (the week) as energizing and
exciting,” Boyle said.
This is just the beginning of what will be a full-time job for
Boyle.
The department went on a nationwide search for a chairperson who
was interested in working on a long-term basis, Rosen said.
Boyle was recently involved in movie production through her
presidency at Valhalla Motion Pictures, which is set to release
“The Hulk” in June.
Boyle pursued the opening for the chair position and left
Valhalla when she was accepted.
Although Boyle left her position, she will continue her work as
a producer, if the department’s students should need her
knowledge and experience with the field, she said.
Other opportunities for university positions were available to
Boyle, but she decided she wanted the position at UCLA, she
said.
“I’m a complete UC baby,” Boyle said.
Her alma maters are UC Berkeley, where she received an
undergraduate degree in English and literary criticism, and UCLA
for a degree in law.
She is also a founding member and co-chair for the School of
Law’s Entertainment Advisory Council.
When she found herself working for a film company, her goals
began to take a new form.
Boyle wanted to make changes in the way women and minorities
were portrayed in film, she said.
In 2000, she was given the Crystal Award for helping to expand
the role of women in film.
Earlier, Boyle served as president and board member of the
organization Women in Film.
“I think it’s fortuitous to have a woman at the
helm,” Rosen said.
Boyle may serve as a role model not only for all of the
department’s students but for women in particular, he
said.
As the chairwoman, Boyle’s involvement with the students
is part of her job and guiding them is one of her goals.
“I want to bring encouragement to their own vision,
explain to them the realities of our business, and … to conquer
those realities and make them happen,” she said.