EXCLUSIVE: Oscar-winning UCLA alum Dustin Lance Black is set to deliver the keynote address at the School of Theater, Film and Television’s 2025 commencement ceremony, taking place from 2:00 p.m. to 3:50 p.m at UCLA’s Royce Hall on Friday, June 13.
The ceremony will celebrate approximately 175 graduates receiving bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees across TFT’s programs in theater, film, television, and digital media. Interim Dean Chon Noriega will preside over the event to be held during UCLA’s commencement weekend.
“We are thrilled to welcome Dustin Lance Black back to UCLA as our commencement speaker,” said Noriega. “Lance is a distinguished alumnus and a remarkable storyteller and advocate whose career exemplifies the values we strive to instill in our students. Having seen firsthand the passion and purpose he brings to both his creative work and his commitment to equity, I know our graduates will find inspiration in his journey as they step into their own futures in the entertainment industry and beyond.”
For Black, “Returning to UCLA’s School of Theater, Film and Television to address the Class of 2025 is a profound honor and a meaningful homecoming.” Added the multi-hyphenate, “The education and mentorship I received at UCLA TFT provided the foundation for my career as a storyteller. I look forward to sharing with these talented graduates how the skills they’ve developed here can be powerful tools for both artistic expression and social change. In today’s complex world, their voices and visions are needed more than ever.”
A veteran screenwriter, producer, director, and playwright, Black won an Oscar and two WGA Awards for Milk, the acclaimed biopic of civil rights leader Harvey Milk, starring Sean Penn. Most recently, he created, wrote, and directed the Emmy, Golden Globe, and Critics’ Choice-nominated limited series Under the Banner of Heaven for FX and Hulu. Additional screenwriting credits include J. Edgar and the 2023 Netflix pic Rustin, which brought star Colman Domingo his first Oscar nomination for his turn as civil rights activist Bayard Rustin.
A founding board member of the American Foundation for Equal Rights, Black has long been a leading voice for LGBTQ+ equality. An honors graduate of UCLA’s School of Theater, Film and Television, he has taught screenwriting at UCLA and other institutions, and regularly appears in media as a political commentator. He’s represented by CAA and Hansen, Jacobson, Teller.
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