Brenda Lilly

Biography

Professor Lilly is an award winning screenwriter, playwright, director and producer whose work has been viewed internationally. She is the creator and Executive Producer of the critically acclaimed television series, STATE OF GRACE and has written and produced hundreds of hours of network television. Her plays have been work-shopped and produced across the country. As an actor she appeared at The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts as part of the American College Theatre Festival. Sponsored by The United Arts Council and the NC State Arts Council, she formed the ACT Co., a professional theatre troupe. The Company produced <i>avant garde</i> theatre in non-traditional spaces and began nurturing new playwrights, which she continues to do today. The Company participated in fundraising efforts for the purchase and renovation of the Carolina Theatre in Greensboro, NC and produced the first stage plays in the space in more than fifty years. She has appeared in films and on television directed by Academy Award winning director William Friedkin, Emmy Award winning director Lee Shallot and many others. She was elected to the board of the Writers Guild of America, west and the Council of the Writers Guild Foundation. She served on the board of the Asheville Community Theatre and is a member of the Arts Commission of the Cathedral of All Souls.<br><br>Ms. Lilly continues to work in the entertainment industry. She is often an adjudicator for the Writers Guild and Emmy awards and often serves as a panelist for festivals and professional gatherings. She a member of the following professional guilds: Writers Guild of America, Writers Guild of Canada, Dramatist Guild, Screen Actors Guild and Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. For the past ten years she has Executive Produced WCU Film and Television Program's Controlled Chaos Film Festival. She designed, created, and teaches the writing curriculum for the television portion of the Film and Television Production Program. She introduced and Executive Produces a Web Series which provides students aspiring to work in the television industry with the opportunity to create an original series and produce it in the high-pressure atmosphere of episodic television alongside faculty. <br><br>Professor Lilly helped to create and secure a scholarship for outstanding work by underclassmen, She was recently nominated for the Excellence in Teaching Liberal Studies Award.

Education

• BFA, University of North Carolina at Greensboro

Teaching Interests

Identifying, encouraging and supporting students is critical to me. Having worked professionally in numerous areas of the entertainment industry as I worked with the previous Program Director to increase enrollment of extremely talented Women and Students of Color to make our program wonderfully diverse. But our goal is to bring in the most creative applicants. This, however, is not the endgame, Once enrolled, we hold our students to high standards of excellence, examining their growth throughout their tenure in the FTP program as we strive to embed the skills and tools to effectively enter the highly competitive entertainment industry. As my career was in this industry, I am constantly seeking out extraordinarily talented students and pushing them towards internships and opportunities which I feel they are likely thrive. <br><br>I am constantly told by students who seek a critique of their work that they appreciate me pushing them to be better, try harder, reach higher. The most appreciated comment I get from them is that I am always honest without being demeaning. I am asked to perform or or provide vorice-ver in their films. I always try to accommodate if I am available. When possible, I bring in professional actors for students work with. As an advisor, I urge them explore as much as they can handle outside the program as a broad education is transformative in the arts. While I enjoy teaching a liberal arts class, I find having a 100+ students without a TA to assist in grading pulls me away from my primary purpose of teaching writing to our aspiring film and television students. I am asked each semester to create special independent courses for students, interested in television writing and as the only professor with this expertise, it is disheartening when I have to turn them down due to my teaching schedule. <br><br>I remain a mentor to students after graduation and that is important to me. Former students who are succesfuk in the industry are an encouragement to those I teach. Continuing these relationships is critical to their success and the success of future graduates. This is extraordinarily satisfying part of being a professor.

Research Interests

This past year I applied for a grant to produce a documentary about the affects of Helene's destruction and recovery in Biltmore. As a resident of Biltmore Forest, we were tremendously affected by the storm. More than 50K trees came down in our small community, leaving many without power, internet and water for more that four weeks. I have spoken to our mayor, town manager, friends and neighbors about the impact and recovery.