At U.S.C., a Practical Emphasis in Film

Today, the emphasis on craft over artistry gives the school a split personality. U.S.C. relies heavily on its connections to the towering talent that has passed through its halls — which, not incidentally, are everywhere adorned with signed posters from landmark films by Mr. Lucas ("Star Wars"), Robert Zemeckis (another alumnus, director of "Forrest Gump" and "The Polar Express") and Mr. Spielberg.

But as dearly as U.S.C. holds its connection to the greats of the 1970's, the current emphasis is elsewhere. Indeed, only a few directors stand out among U.S.C.'s more recent graduates as at (or near) the top of Hollywood's artistic or commercial heap: Doug Liman, who directed "Mr. and Mrs. Smith"; Jay Roach, director of the "Austin Powers" films; Richard Kelly, who wrote and directed the cult hit "Donnie Darko"; and Judd Apatow, who co-wrote and directed the hit comedy "The 40-Year-Old Virgin." (Ron Howard, who won the Oscar for "A Beautiful Mind," left U.S.C. after two years.)

"We can't point to someone recently who's made the same impact as Lucas, or Walter Murch," the Oscar-winning cinematographer, acknowledged Mark Jonathan Harris, a film professor at U.S.C. and a two-time Oscar-winning documentary filmmaker in his own right. (He went to Harvard and studied English, not film.) "What is the purpose of film school?" he continued. "It's a large question worth asking. At the undergraduate level, we teach people to see more clearly, whether or not they're going to be George Lucas."

At U.S.C., a Practical Emphasis in Film