daily list

Eighteen AFI Conservatory alumni, representing 11 television shows, received 15 nominations for the 65th Primetime Emmy^® Awards, the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences announced July 18. Winners will be announced live on CBS during the awards show on September 22. We congratulate our AFI alumni, bolded below:

AMERICAN HORROR STORY: ASYLUM
Bradley Buecker (AFI Class of 2003), Co-Executive Producer
Dante Di Loreto (AFI Class of 1991), Executive Producer
Brad Falchuk (AFI Class of 1996), Executive Producer
Outstanding Miniseries or Movie (Nominee)

AMERICAN HORROR STORY: ASYLUM
Juan Ruiz-Anchia (AFI Class of 1979), Cinematographer
Outstanding Main Title Design (Nominee)

AMERICAN MASTERS
"Mel Brooks: Make a Noise"
Robert Trachtenberg (AFI Class of 1985), Director/Editor
Outstanding Directing for Nonfiction Programming (Nominee)
Outstanding Picture Editing for Nonfiction Programming (Nominee)

THE AMAZING RACE
"Be Safe and Don’t Hit a Cow"
Petr Cikhart (AFI Class of 2012), Camera
Outstanding Cinematography for Reality Programming (Nominee)

BANSHEE
"Pilot"
Nick Sinnott (AFI Class of 2009), VFX Artist
Outstanding Special Visual Effects in a Supporting Role (Nominee)

THE BIG BANG THEORY
Eric Kaplan (AFI Class of 1998), Co-Executive Producer
Jim Reynolds (AFI Class of 2001), Co-Executive Producer
Outstanding Comedy Series (Nominee)

DA VINCI’S DEMONS
"The Lovers"
Shalena Oxley-Butler (AFI Class of 2007), VFX Producer
Outstanding Special Visual Effects in a Supporting Role (Nominee)

ELEMENTARY
Benji Bakshi (AFI Class of 2009), Cinematographer
Outstanding Main Title Design (Nominee)

HOMELAND
Gideon Raff (AFI Class of 2003), Executive Producer
Outstanding Drama Series (Nominee)

HOMELAND
"Q&A"
Lesli Linka Glatter (AFI Directing Workshop for Women, Class of 1982), Director
Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series (Nominee)

MAD MEN
"The Doorway"
Chris Manley (AFI Class of 1994), Cinematographer
Outstanding Cinematography for a Single-Camera Series (Nominee)

VEEP
Allison Jones (AFI Class of 1981), Casting Director
Outstanding Casting for a Comedy Series (Nominee)

THE VOICE
Lee Metzger (AFI Class of 2000), Executive Producer
Outstanding Reality Competition Program (Nominee)

THE VOICE
"Live Final Performances (Season 3)"
Guido Frenzel (AFI Class of 1994), Camera
Scott Kaye (AFI Class of 1979), Camera
Outstanding Technical Direction, Camerawork, Video Control for a Series (Nominee)

The American Film Institute and Sideshow Collectibles have teamed up to give PACIFIC RIM fans a chance to win a valuable collectible from the film – the Gipsy Danger statue! Gipsy Danger is the USA Jaeger (pronounced YAY-gur), the giant monster-fighting robot pressed into service to save the world in PACIFIC RIM, which opens worldwide on July 12. All AFI Insiders are invited to enter. Here's a link to the giveaway offer: sideshowtoy.com/AFIpacrim Good luck!

Please note: the Gipsy Danger image displayed here is not the final product. Statue will ship in April 2014.

What a night! The Dolby Theater in Hollywood was filled to the brim with A-list talent celebrating the genius of honoree Mel Brooks, recipient of the 41st AFI Life Achievement Award.

Tributes were given and jokes were told – very, very funny jokes. Martin Short and a string of high-kicking chorus girls opened with a classic Brooks-inspired routine, Billy Crystal, Larry David, Robert De Niro, Jimmy Kimmel, Cloris Leachman, Conan O'Brien, Amy Poehler and Sara Silverman shared Brooks stories and slayed the crowd. Martin Scorsese gave a warm tribute as he presented Brooks with the award. But Mel Brooks stole the show when he took the stage. We don't want to ruin the surprise for you. You just have to see it for yourself. And you can...

AFI members Three-Star and above receive a special DVD and Tribute Book of the ceremony with member-exclusive content. If you are a Mel Brooks fan, this is the keepsake memento you need to complete your collection. Become an AFI Three-Star member today for your copy of the Mel Brooks DVD and Tribute Book. Support all that is great about the movies that you love and enjoy a little Mel, too!

June saw the expansion of AFI DOCS from Silver Spring, MD, to Washington, DC, with brand new AFI member, Laura Cervin, in attendance as the winner of our AFI DOCS Sweepstakes. Laura and a friend flew out to the National Mall as our special guests to enjoy AFI DOCS and our Opening Night Gala for the documentary LETTERS TO JACKIE. Here's Laura with her friend, Paul DeCoursey on the red carpet.

AFI DOCS marked the return of AFI to the nation's capital, where it has a rich history both at the Kennedy Center and the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center. The festival, previously known as Silverdocs, expanded into the heart of DC, at iconic venues on the National Mall and in the Penn Quarter area. Also making their debut were our AFI CATALYST SESSIONS – THE ART OF MOVING REALITY, four public discussions between our nation's leaders and AFI DOCS filmmakers, shining a light on the issues of our times: "What Is an American?" "What Is the Future of Education?" What Is Intellectual Property?" and "What Is the Function of Humor in Politics?"

Congratulations to everyone involved – from the programmers to the filmmakers, sponsors and contributors. AFI DOCS is a yearly celebration. We hope you can join us next year for another extraordinary week of superb documentary filmmaking and catalytic conversation.

According to Alfred Hitchcock, "The silent pictures were the purest form of cinema." Get ready for some pure entertainment then as "The Hitchcock 9" is co-presented by AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center and the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC between July 13 and August 4.

The restoration of Hitchcock's silent films has been the biggest and most complex restoration project undertaken by the British Film Institute National Archive to date. Decades of damage and wear have been removed; the sharpness of the images improved; new shots discovered and inter-titles and tinting restored. The BFI has used elements borrowed from seven international archives in the restoration process, but film materials from the BFI National Archive – including a number of original negatives – have been central to the project. Hitchcock's silent films are essential to an understanding of his later work and these restorations now enable them to be seen afresh and discovered by new audiences across the world.

The Hitchcock 9 is a joint venture of the BFI, Rialto Pictures/Studiocanal, and Park Circus/ITV. Among the films to be screened at AFI Silver Theatre are THE MANXMAN, CHAMPAGNE, BLACKMAIL, THE RING and THE FARMER'S WIFE. Those presented at the National Gallery of Art will include EASY VIRTUE, DOWNHILL, THE LODGER and THE PLEASURE GARDEN. All screenings will have live musical accompaniment. For information on films screening at the AFI Silver Theatre click here; for those at the NGA, visit NGA.gov. And put a "hitch" in your summer movie plans.

On June 12, the 2013 graduating class of AFI took the stage – and their diplomas – at the historic El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood. Honorary degrees were presented to director/producer/writer Jon Avnet by fellow AFI Trustee Tom Pollock, Academy Award^®-winning director Kathryn Bigelow by actor Jeremy Renner and Academy Award^®-winning editor Anne V. Coates by producers Stacey Sher and Michael Shamberg. The class of 140 AFI Fellows became 140 Alumni, the culmination of two years of film and TV education passed down from artistic leaders in Directing, Cinematography, Screenwriting, Production, Editing and Design. Congratulations to the Class of 2013! We’ll see you at the movies!

We visited the Advancement offices at AFI's Hollywood Campus to speak with Jess Tsuei, Manager of Alumni Relations. The downtown skyline of Los Angeles was shrouded in mist and barely visible through the windows. And, while the weather may have been unseasonably cool, Tsuei was warm and welcoming as she reviewed her first year on the job, tackling our 10 questions with enthusiasm.

1. Where are you from? I'm originally from Northern California, a small town called Saratoga. It's in the Bay Area. I always just say I'm from San Jose because no one knows where Saratoga is.

2. Where did you go to school? I went to UCLA and graduated with a degree in Economics in 2006. I bleed blue and gold.

3. What did you do before you came to AFI? I was actually working for my alma mater for six years – first in Development at the UCLA Foundation, then I worked with the parents of undergraduate students and built UCLA Parent & Family Programs.

4. How long have you been at AFI? Short of a year – about 11 months. My first day was the week of Commencement. Before that I had volunteered for LAA [Life Achievement Award]. Greg [Copeland, Director, Individual Giving, Advancement] offered to have me attend as a volunteer to see what it was all about. He thought it would be a shame if I missed the big event just because my first day started the week after.

5. What do you do at AFI? I'm the Manager of Alumni Relations. And this position is fairly new. [AFI President and CEO] Bob [Gazzale] and his staff have seen the need for an alumni program. They brought me onboard to reach, engage and serve all AFI alumni, to foster lifelong intellectual and emotional connections between the graduates and the Conservatory and to provide the Institute with good will and support. We have about 4,300 alumni, and we have a range of initiatives and programs that will build an affinity with alumni. We have a better idea of what our alumni needs are, what they want to see, what's feasible within our budget. We've repeated P.O.V., which is our big alumni reunion in the fall and had an alumni reception at [AFI] FEST. We've started an alumni script-reading series, where screenwriters and other alumni have the opportunity to submit their screenplays for review, and we have professional actors come in and read those screenplays – a great opportunity for those screenwriters to get feedback on their works in progress. We've had alumni-Fellow breakfasts this year within each discipline. We've had several alumni back to speak with the Fellows about what to expect after they graduate. We also publish Alumni Connection, our monthly newsletter, which has a new look. We're focusing more on opportunities we can provide alums – not just reporting on their credits, but celebrating their talent and artistry.

6. How does that affect our members? Well, I think that AFI is as prestigious as it is due in large part to our alumni. They are the storytellers, and I think members see that and want to support the Institute and the Conservatory and preserve that legacy. Members support AFI and the mission of preserving our film heritage and educating and honoring filmmakers. Our mission with alumni mirrors that. We want to preserve the legacy of our storytellers and maintain the caliber of excellence that we have here. We want to honor the alumni and their accomplishments and have their artistry and talent be recognized and valued. We also educate the alumni on AFI's goals. So I think members and alumni tie very closely and reflect what the mission of AFI is all about.

7. What was your best day at AFI? There are so many good days! I think one of the most memorable days was the Life Achievement Award last year, being able to see what I was going to be a part of, and seeing it all culminate in celebrating Shirley MacLaine. That excitement has carried on.

8. What are you working on today? We had our Life Achievement Award invitations going out to alumni. Today, we're polishing up Alumni Connection, which will be going out Monday, next week. I'm also building an alumni strategy because, as I mentioned, this past year was about evidence gathering and testing what works, what didn't, what we want to continue, what we want to change, what we want to improve. We're working on a five-year plan and we'll be sharing this strategic vision across all departments of AFI.

9. What don't your colleagues know about you? Most of them know that I moonlight as a bartender at a dive karaoke bar in Santa Monica on Wednesday and Friday nights. I also was a wrestler in high school, so you don't want to mess with me. And I like to take all sorts of classes. I did ninja training. So I am a ninja. I can do floral arranging. I've taken trapeze swinging. So I'm kind of a Jill of all trades.

10. What's your favorite film? My favorite film this week is SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK. I just watched it and I love it! I love Jennifer Lawrence. She's my favorite actress now.