Upcoming student film tells a ghost story centered on childlike innocence

This post was updated Feb. 26 at 4:48 p.m. An Instagram comic depicting a ghost intent on taking out the trash inspired the plot of Yimeng Yuan’s video, “The Melancholy of March.” Jumping off the idea of an adorable ghost, the fourth-year art history student is directing a three-minute video following a father and his […]

Second Take: List of best director nominees indicate gender inequity remaining in Hollywood

The number of female best director nominees throughout the 90-year history of the Oscars can be counted on one hand. Although Greta Gerwig’s 2018 nomination for “Lady Bird” seemed to indicate a shift from the Academy’s historical sexism, the 2019 nominees prove Hollywood’s glass ceiling has hardly been cracked. The all-male candidates – Spike Lee, […]

Alumna’s documentary, nonprofit combat stigma around menstruation in India

India’s GDP would rise by $5.5 billion if 1 percent more girls were enrolled in secondary school. But according to The Pad Project, many girls drop out once they start their periods. This issue struck a chord with alumna Melissa Berton, who founded The Pad Project with her students at Oakwood High School. The nonprofit […]

Costumes add depth to the diverse range of characters, settings this Oscar season

From 16th-century Scotland to modern Wakanda, this year’s Oscar-nominated costume designs transported audiences to different worlds. The designers behind costumes for all of this year’s Oscar-nominated films will discuss their work Saturday at UCLA’s Ninth Annual Sketch to Screen Costume Design Panel and Celebration. The featured panelists will include the nominated designers, as well as […]

‘BlacKkKlansman’ recounts story of racism in 1970s, remains relevant today

The Charlottesville white supremacist rally took place as the cast and crew of “BlacKkKlansman” prepared to film. Director Spike Lee saw footage of the rally, and immediately knew he wanted to use it to end “BlacKkKlansman,” said Sean McKittrick, a UCLA alumnus and Oscar-nominated producer of the movie. The film follows the true story of […]

‘Vice’ follows Dick Cheney’s career using humorous detours, in-depth research

“Vice” jolts its audience from a straightforward White House cabinet meeting into an animated game board showing the powerful players of Washington, D.C. Along with rolling dice, officials in the George W. Bush administration appear as pop-up players on the board – this is one of various surreal digressions in the film’s comedy-drama narrative. The […]