We’re in awards season on the pop culture calendar, when Hollywood and the entertainment world celebrates the work of the past year. We’ve had the Grammys, Golden Globes and it’s almost time for the 88th annual Academy Awards. This year’s Oscar nominees are out and there is certainly a large group of talented artists who work together to create movie magic. Among those nominated for best director this year are Lenny Abrahamson (Room), Alejandro González Iñárritu (The Revenant), and George Miller (Mad Max: Fury Road). But we think there is another group of talented directors deserving of recognition, and that is our SUNY alumni.
We’ve told you about stars of the screen that came from SUNY before. Many of our arts, communications, and humanities programs have also produced very talented alumni who have gone on to do some incredible work behind the camera after graduating.
So without further adieu, let’s grab some popcorn and recognize these stars behind the camera that bring us the experiences we remember. Here’s a list of 5 alumni directors from the television to the silver screen that have made a mark in Hollywood.
Diane English
Diane English is a Buffalo State graduate. As a director she is best known for her 2008 film, The Women. She also directed the 2014 film Timbuktu which follows the story of a homeless man searching for his High School teacher. In addition to directing, she has also worked extensively as a screen writer, even creating the popular show Murphy Brown.
John McTiernan
John McTiernan is an alum from SUNY Old Westbury. As a director he is probably best know for his work on the popular action film, Die Hard. But he also directed other big-name films including Predator and The Hunt for Red October. His films often present characters speaking in a foreign languages without subtitles. McTiernan attributes this to the number of foreign films he saw as a student.
Marc Lawrence
Marc Lawrence is a graduate Binghamton University graduate. He has directed several movies including Did you Hear About the Morgans and The Rewrite. The Rewrite (which was written by Lawrence as well) features Hugh Grant playing a screenwriter whose life is changed when he takes a job teaching at Binghamton University, making a huge SUNY connection both behind and in front of the camera. Lawrence also has a successful career in screenwriting and wrote the screenplay for Miss Congeniality 2.
Robert Lieberman
Robert Lieberman is an alum from the University at Buffalo. Unlike many of the other directors of featured on this list, Lieberman’s directing career has been mostly in television. Leiberman has directed episodes of some very popular shows including Nakita, Criminal Minds, and Dexter. But Lieberman has also directed a full length feature film in D3: The Mighty Ducks.
William “Bill” Duke
Bill Duke is a Dutchess County Community College graduate. As a director, he too got his start in television. He directed episodes of Miami Vice, and the Twilight Zone. He later directed Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit. He is also known for his acting in this movie and several others works including Car Wash, Starsky and Hutch, Predator, and Lost.
