Q&A: Morten Bay speaks on his recent paper analyzing politicization of pop culture

Morten Bay began researching tweets exploring the relationship between fake news and “Star Wars: The Last Jedi.” As a fan himself, he had seen other fans on Twitter willing to believe disinformation about the movie’s critical reception because it reinforced their beliefs that the film was bad. But as the UCLA alumnus and current fellow […]

Second Take: Fans protest casting of Korean actress for problematic role in ‘Fantastic Beasts’

Typically, the news that a woman of color has been cast in a film franchise with historically limited representation of people of color would lead to praise. However, last week’s trailer for “Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald” revealed that Voldemort’s pet Nagini is actually a woman trapped as a snake. Moreover, the human version […]

Alum travels back to his hometown for short film about childhood, trauma

The lead actor in Kris Wilson’s film wanted to know more about the backstory of his character. Wilson explained that his character Prince’s life was difficult in part because his father was in jail. The 9-year-old actor was quickly able to relate – his own father was in jail. “It was a sad moment but […]

Q&A: Professor discusses involvement in philosophical aspects of ‘The Good Place’

Sharp-eyed fans of “The Good Place” might notice the name of UCLA philosophy professor Pamela Hieronymi listed as “further reading” on a whiteboard in the episode “The Trolley Problem.” It’s not just a coincidence or a reference to her academic work – Hieronymi consulted on the show. Hieronymi helped the show’s creator Michael Schur explore […]

Playwright group to present dynamic, political showcase from female writers

The showcase of East West Players’ inaugural playwrights group includes everything from a musical about classism and sewer rats to a one-woman show about a Japanese-American heroine. The group was initially launched in April 2017 by East West Players, the longest running professional theater of color. The playwrights will put on FEME (First Syllable Female) […]

‘Hamilton’ costume designer to speak at UCLA’s Design Showcase West

Costume designer Paul Tazewell was mostly designing contemporary and naturalistic productions at the beginning of his career, rather than the more theatrical beaded dresses and extravagant hats he dreamed of creating. However, as time passed and the theater and television industry changed to value more diverse and interesting productions, Tazewell felt he was able to […]

Second Take: Mayim Bialik’s views on #MeToo movement demonstrate lack of Bruin values

Mayim Bialik is certainly the highest profile UCLA commencement speaker in recent history, but she may also be the most controversial. Bialik wrote a New York Times opinion-editorial on Oct. 13, offering her take on Harvey Weinstein and the #MeToo movement in Hollywood, referring to herself as a conservative, “nontraditional-looking woman.” The piece faced criticism […]