Veteran Film Producer Named Dean of LMU's School of Film and Television

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May 06, 2010, 07:09 ET

LOS ANGELES, May 6 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Stephen Ujlaki, producer of 30 feature films, made-for-television movies and documentaries, has been named dean of the Loyola Marymount University School of Film and Television. He will join the university on July 1.

Ujlaki is currently chair of the Cinema Department at San Francisco State University. He was chosen to head SFTV after a nationwide search to fill the position vacated by veteran producer Teri Schwartz, who served as dean from 2003 to 2009.

"This is a really exciting opportunity to take a film school that's already very, very solid in terms of its resources and its student body and to try to take it to another level," Ujlaki said. "There's great enthusiasm on the part of the administration, from the acting president on down, in support of branching out into more interdisciplinary classes outside the school, to have classes with law and business and art and music and theater, so that students will develop a more rounded creative background and education."

In his eight years at SFSU, Ujlaki strengthened his department's ties to the film industry with a series of innovative programs, including the creation of the DOC Film Institute, which sponsors documentary film festivals and honors leading documentary film producers.

He also headed an initiative that created an internship program for film students throughout the California State University system; a Visiting Fellows Program that brought professionals and artists into the classroom; and an advisory council of working film industry professionals.

"Stephen Ujlaki used his extensive experience and knowledge of the film industry to raise the profile of the film programs at San Francisco State and the other campuses in the state university system," said David W. Burcham, acting president of LMU. "We know he will bring that same talent, enthusiasm and record of success to Loyola Marymount. He will be an excellent addition to our academic leadership."

Ujlaki has had a long career in Hollywood, producing feature films and HBO movies. His credits include "The Cry of the Owl" starring Julia Stiles, "Loch Ness" with Ted Danson, "The Hot Spot" starring Don Johnson, and "Hostile Intent" with Rob Lowe.

From 1988-91, he was the head of European Feature and Television Production for Stone Group France, a production company started by Michael Douglas. Prior to that, Ujlaki worked as vice president of development and production for HBO Pictures. He earned his bachelor of arts from Harvard University and a master of fine arts in directing from the Institut des Hautes Etudes Cinematographiques in Paris.

The LMU School of Film and Television was founded in 2003, after decades as a department in the school of Communication and Fine Arts. Degrees offered include: the bachelor of arts in film and television production, recording arts, screenwriting and animation; and the master of fine arts in screenwriting, film and television production, and writing and producing for television. SFTV alumni work in many facets of the entertainment industry and have earned numerous accolades, including Academy Awards.

About Loyola Marymount University

Located between the Pacific Ocean and downtown Los Angeles, Loyola Marymount University is a comprehensive university offering 53 major programs, 32 master's degrees and a doctoral degree in education from four colleges, two schools and Loyola Law School. Founded in 1911, LMU is ranked fourth in "Best Universities with Master's Programs in the West" by U.S. News & World Report. LMU is one of the largest Catholic institutions of higher education on the West Coast with nearly 5,500 undergraduate students and more than 3,000 graduate and law students. For more LMU news and events, please visit www.lmu.edu/news.

SOURCE Loyola Marymount University