May 15, 2026 1. What first drew you to filmmaking and production, and how did that evolve into your current role today? Ever since I was a kid, I told people, “I want to make movies,” before I even knew what that meant or how that would even be possible. All I knew is that […]
May 8, 2026 Poulter, a two-time Olympian, along with seven other elite Illini athletes, will be honored at the Hall of Fame Gala and Induction Ceremony on Friday, Sept. 11, at State Farm Center. Poulter helped lead the United States to Olympic Gold at the 2020 Tokyo Games and Silver at the 2024 Paris Games, while […]
April 13, 2026 About Kavitha Cardoza Her work has been seen, heard, and read by millions on outlets like NPR, BBC World News, The Washington Post, The Guardian, and The Atlantic. She was also the host of Breaking Ground with Kavitha Cardoza, a documentary series on education that aired on more than 150 public radio […]
March 23, 2026 | Kelly Youngblood Now the executive creative director at the Los Angeles–based ad agency Special U.S., Burke most recently oversaw the 2026 Uber Eats Super Bowl campaign, bringing his total number of Super Bowl commercials created to 18. Although Burke didn’t originally set out to become a leader in Super Bowl advertising, […]
March 12, 2026 | Thomas Bruch, University of Illinois News Bureau Evans is the co-creator and host of the popular YouTube show Hot Ones, where musicians, professional athletes, and television and movie stars join Evans in eating chicken wings doused in progressively spicier hot sauces within the format of a talk-show interview. He notched a […]
March 10, 2026 1. What first drew you to filmmaking and production, and how did that evolve into your current role today? My first real appreciation for film and filmmaking began when I was 13. My older siblings, Paulina and Orlando, took me to the theater to see Kill Bill, directed by Quentin Tarantino. I remember […]
February 6, 2026 1. What is your current role at Peacock? Currently, I’m the director of web strategy on the growth go-to-market team here at Peacock. I’ve been at the company for six years now and have been one of the key acquisition and experimentation leaders who have helped launch and grow the business. Put […]
November 6, 2025 Carlye Wisel (BS ’09, journalism) was a lifestyle reporter interviewing famous musicians and celebrities like Mick Jagger and Kim Kardashian before a bachelorette trip to Disney World changed her career trajectory. Now, as a freelance journalist covering Disney and Universal theme parks, Wisel has contributed to magazines like Travel + Leisure, Glamour, […]
September 29, 2025 Jason Kim (BS ’13, media and cinema studies) is a director of photography and editor at Omnicom Studios in New York as well as director and executive producer of his own production company, House Productions LLC. Kim has earned numerous awards for his film work including a 2018 Telly Award for “General […]
August 14, 2025 Annie Crawley (BS ’90, journalism) was one of two recipients to win the University of Illinois Alumni Association’s 2025 Illini Comeback Award. Crawley, a.k.a. “Ocean Annie,” is a pioneering underwater filmmaker, environmental photojournalist, author, and ocean advocate whose career spans more than three decades. She has become a driving force for […]