DePaul University’s School of Cinema and Interactive Media (CIM) will launch its 2011-2012 Visiting Artists Series with an A-list Hollywood player who has had a major influence on the entertainment industry over the past several decades.

On Sept. 23 2:00 p.m., Chuck Viane, president of global distribution for Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures and a DePaul Commerce grad and Chicago native, will focus on the past, present and future of global theatrical distribution and explore how the changing technological, economic and cultural forces affect which movies get released, promoted and distributed. Viane will offer his perspective as someone who has worked at the highest level of distribution at one of Hollywood’s largest and most successful studios. 

The program is free and open to the public. It will take place in the CDM Theatre on the lower level of the Daley Building, 14 E. Jackson Blvd., Chicago.

“We are excited to have speakers who have not only played a major role in shaping today’s film business but more importantly are shaping its future,” said Matt Irvine, director of the School of Cinema and Interactive Media.

Also speaking as part of the CIM Visiting Artists Series this fall are renowned Hollywood producer Paula Wagner on Sept. 30 and the celebrated New York City-based animator J.J. Sedelmaier on Oct. 28. CIM is also hosting a Documentary Filmmakers Panel as part of its continued sponsorship of the Chicago International Film Festival on Oct. 14.

About the CIM Visiting Artists Series

Now entering its third season, the CIM Visiting Artists Series continues to raise the bar by bringing in both emerging and established creative and executive talent from the fields of cinema, television, documentary, animation and digital media. The series continues to break new ground by hosting the best and brightest in the expanding number of disciplines that make up the School of Cinema and Interactive Media in the College of Computing and Digital Media at DePaul University.

About DePaul

With more than 25,000 students, DePaul University is the largest Catholic university in the United States and the largest private, non-profit university in the Midwest. The university offers approximately 275 graduate and undergraduate programs of study on two Chicago campuses and four suburban campuses. Founded in 1898, DePaul remains committed to providing a quality education through personal attention to students from a wide range of backgrounds. For more information, visit www.depaul.edu.