UCLA alumna gains acclaim for work in reality genre

By Mayra Marquez
DAILY BRUIN CONTRIBUTOR
[email protected]

Most reality shows are likely to draw groans and revulsion, but
for producer, director and UCLA graduate Mary E. Glynn, her work on
episodes of MTV’s TV show “Flipped” has gained
positive reviews and feedback for the strikingly real scenarios
plaguing young people today.

“It’s been challenging, great and ultimately
rewarding,” said Glynn, who has worked on a total of three
“Flipped” episodes ranging in subjects from class
clowns to racism to her most recent, teen violence.

“Flipped” is a show in which real people’s
lives are essentially flipped for them to see the alternate side of
their actions. Past episodes have taken school bullies and flipped
them into nerds, the ridicule of an entire school, in hopes that
they realize the consequences of their previous lives. According to
Glynn, many times after the episodes air, the teens portrayed will
take a 180 degree turn for the better.

“They’re just really hard subjects because they are
very real and when involving young people, it gets more
difficult,” said Glynn.

The episode on teen violence is scheduled to air in late July or
early August. The issue of teen violence is one that Glynn spent
much time researching for the episode only to find some alarming
realities.

“What I’d like to see people get out of it is that
it’s real and it’s happening, and to try to help people
out in the situation,” said Glynn. “And also to be
aware of the signs, because what we found out in our research is
that there are precursors to potentially violent relationships. I
just want people to be more aware of what’s happening around
them.”

The reality genre is one that Glynn has explored before and
calls one of her favorites. She produced a documentary,
“Hidden Victims,” on domestic violence for Lifetime
Television and an MSNBC documentary “Betrayal,” which
tackled acquaintance rape.

“When people think of reality TV, what they start thinking
about is “˜Survivor’ or “˜Temptation Island,’
but before all that what reality TV meant was real people, real
lives not done in tabloid style. It was more hardcore
documentary-style programming … and that’s the kind of
style I really like,” Glynn said.

Glynn’s other favorite genre is film, in which she is also
active and has just produced her first feature, “The Kingston
High.” The film, directed by Stephen Townsend, also a UCLA
alumnus whom Glynn became acquainted with while at UCLA, follows
the story of a high school goody two-shoes and his last attempt at
the girl of his dreams. 

“He brought the story to me years before we produced it
when I was still working in development,” said Glynn.
“I tried to get it sold for him in a couple places, but they
wanted us to attach famous people and we were like, “˜Wait a
minute, no one knows who we are.'”

“The Kingston High” received favorable reviews from
its premiere at the Hollywood Black Film Festival and at the Pan
African Film Festival, where the film was shown twice due to the
overwhelming positive buzz from the premiere.

Glynn’s career in the entertainment industry has spanned
over 10 years and began here at UCLA in her days as an
undergraduate student.

“I came from a really small town and didn’t know too
much about the world. I think the way UCLA influenced me is that
they really showed me that there are a lot of opportunities out
there for people of all races no matter what color. UCLA is like
this huge melting pot of people,” Glynn said.

The opportunity that started Glynn’s career rolling was
working for Academy Award-nominated director John Singleton
(“Boyz in the Hood”) through an internship class. She
was a communication studies student, but found her home in films,
having worked on Singleton’s “Poetic Justice” and
“Higher Learning,” which was filmed at UCLA.

“UCLA is a school that allows you to find a balance and
that’s the biggest thing that I learned at UCLA. I know that
I don’t just have to do one thing. I can do a lot of
different things in different areas. UCLA is a perfect example of
that kind of school,” Glynn said.

Balance is what Glynn has kept in mind in her pursuits of
various arenas of the entertainment industry. According to Glynn,
it is not easy to move around from different genres, but that
doesn’t stop her pursuits.

“Well I think it’s crazy,” said Glynn.
“I wish I wanted to be a doctor or a lawyer. My mom probably
wishes that too, but you know it brings me joy and I’m
passionate about it. Even though I’m starving, I might as
well keep going for it.”