The Loyola Marymount University School of Film and Television has received $13 million in grants and gifts from the Walter Lantz Foundation.
The total donation is comprised of a recent gift to the animation program, art from the Walter Lantz Foundation Collection and the remaining corpus of the Walter Lantz Trust, valued at over $5 million, to be used as the lead investment for a new facility designed by Gensler.
The new facility will include a screening theater, visual effects work space, editing suites and smart classrooms that will serve as a creative home for all students in the film program.
Stephen Ujlaki, dean of the School of Film and Television, announced the gift and plans for the new building at the opening reception of the “Woody Woodpecker and the Avant-Garde” exhibit at the LMU Laband Gallery.
“Today is a special day for the School of Film and Television, not only because of the opening of this exhibit, but because this is the official launch of our new building campaign,” said Ujlaki.
“This brings me to The Walter Lantz Foundation. I would like to acknowledge Trustees Ed Landry, who joins us today and Peg Jackson, who we sadly lost earlier this summer. They have been a significant partner of the School of Film and Television during my time here as dean. It was with their support that we were able to provide a new facility for the Animation Department, produce this exhibit that highlights Walter Lantz’s legacy, and provide a lead gift for the new building. We are well on our way to providing a new innovative creative space for future generations of students.”
The LMU School of Film and Television (SFTV) was established as its own entity in 2001.