While the Writers Guild of America (WGA) strike is having an immediate impact on current television and film scribes, USC School of Cinematic Arts students and recent alumni learned during a special forum hosted by the Writing Division that it can have long-term consequences on them as well. An episode in the USC School of Cinematic Arts podcast series.

Jane Espenson is a former writer for Buffy the Vampire Slayer and has written episodes for shows including: Angel, Firefly, Gilmore Girls, Ellen, The O.C., Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Dinosaurs, Andy Barker PI and others. She is currently under a development deal with NBC/Universal television while working as co-executive producer on Battlestar Galactica. Espenson spoke as a guest of the Women of Cinematic Arts group at the USC School of Cinematic Arts. An episode in the USC School of Cinematic Arts podcast series.

Ron Howard has spent a lifetime in entertainment, as both a popular television actor and a prominent director and producer. Working in partnership with producer Brian Grazer, Howard's credits range from the Da Vinci Code (2006) to A Beautiful Mind (2001). Speaking with a group of graduate students, Howard offered his point of view on how collaboration shifts from those he calls "the gatekeepers" - agents, managers and executives - to the people involved in making a film, to finally the entire movie-making process. An episode in the USC School of Cinematic Arts podcast series.

Phil Rosenthal, creator and executive producer of the long-running sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond shares his experience running the show and working in television. Rosenthal, who has won multiple Emmy Awards for his creative endeavors, spoke as a guest of Pulitzer Prize-Winning television critic Howard Rosenberg, who teaches the television symposium class at the USC School of Cinematic Arts.

Ken Burns, is a highly acclaimed documentary filmmaker, whose epic pieces run the gamut from The Civil War to Baseball to Jazz and many others. His novel use of "moving" still images and other techniques is cited by many observers as a leading catalyst for the revival of the documentary genre. Burns spoke at Howard Rosenberg's television symposium class at the USC School of Cinematic Arts.