VOL. 23, NO. 24	JUNE 12, 1998

Nickelodeon’s Albie Hecht.

s part of a new partnership that will encourage comedy writing at the School of the Arts’ Graduate Film Division, Nickelodeon Movies and Columbia recently co-hosted a screening in Los Angeles, sponsored by Polo Ralph Lauren, of the top films from this year’s Polo Ralph Lauren New Works Festival.

  The special screening, which included the four films that earned top awards from Polo Ralph Lauren and New Line Cinema, was co-hosted by Lewis Cole, chair of the Film Division, and Albie Hecht, president of Nickelodeon Film & TV Entertainment.

  A 3-year grant from the top-rated children’s cable television network will provide for a course in comedic dramatic narrative, new development grants for students, a screening of students’ comedy films and videos in Los Angeles, and an evening of comedy sketches and script readings by students in New York.

  “We are thrilled to be working with Columbia’s Film Division,” said Hecht. “Nickelodeon has a great tradition of discovering, encouraging and developing new talent, and we look forward to breaking new ground in our partnership with Columbia.”

  Cole said, “We are delighted to have had the opportunity to share these top films with L.A. audiences before they move on to festivals around the world, and are particularly grateful that Nickelodeon has joined other industry leaders in supporting emerging voices in filmmaking.”

  Recent graduates of the Film Division are making their mark in the industry with critically acclaimed shorts and feature films. Mark Christopher’s “Studio 54” with Salma Hayek and Cindy Crawford will soon be released by Miramax; Bob Puccini and Shari Berman will follow up “Off the Menu: The Last Days of Chasen’s” with “Esquivel,” starring John Leguizamo; Greg Mottola (“The Daytrippers”) is at work on his next feature, “Life of the Party,” and Benjamin Ross (“The Young Poisoner’s Handbook”) is in production on “Jack Sheppard and Jonathan Wild: A Tale of Old London.” Lisa Cholodenko’s film “High Art” took the best screenplay award at the Sundance Film Festival, which also featured Katerina Otto’s documentary “Beautopia” about the modeling industry. Alex Zamm’s film “Chairman of the Board” recently opened, and Adam Davidson made his network television directorial debut with an episode of “Law & Order.”

  Faculty in the Film Division include James Schamus (“The Ice Storm”), Michael Hausman (“Twilight”) and Richard Peña (Film Society of Lincoln Center).

  In addition to the new partnership with Nickelodeon, other grants that will broaden the depth and breadth of the curriculum include the Sloan Foundation Grant to encourage students to develop films and screenplays that treat science and engineers as their primary subjects and to create more realistic and compelling stories about science and technology.