Armed with a last-minute ticket to Las Vegas and “no place
to stay,” Ron Velasco’s journey to become an American
Idol began the same way it ended ““ up in the air.

For most students, Powell Library is seen as the gate to such
works as Shakespeare and Chaucer, not Scorsese and Spielberg. But
with the help of the Archive Research and Study Center, located on
the second floor, watching classic films and spending time in the
halls of Powell are becoming more integrated.

Bad labels and obscurity can often hurt good movies.
That’s why the UCLA Film and Television Archive uses
“The Film That Inspired Me” series to help big-name
artists catapult little-known, underrated films into the limelight
they deserve.

For UCLA extension student James Ayala, taking a class for the
third time has nothing to do with failure.
In fact, having the opportunity to learn how to market movies
and impress industry people, including directors and producers,
keeps him returning to a class titled “The Marketing
Challenge: Selling New Movies From the Sundance Institute
Filmmakers.”
The first time was for credit, but since then, Ayala has gone
back for Ira Teller’s inspirational teaching and the hands-on
creative work.