Georgia Dentel and Grinnell Concerts History, 1960-2001 - Interviews

Bowen Wei '25: Interview is conducted with F Hudson Miller. On behalf of the Georgia Dentel Summer Mentored Advanced Project for Grinnell concerts: Georgia Dentel and Student Life in History and Memory Project.

The interviewer is Bowen Wei‚ and the note taker for this interview is Maya Albanese. It takes place on July 25th‚ 2024‚ on Webex. This video interview will be recorded. Before we start this interview‚ I will reveal the legal release one last time.

F Hudson Miller: Pardon?

Bowen Wei '25: I will review the legal release one last time before we start.

F Hudson Miller: Good. Sure.

Bowen Wei '25: Yep. All right‚ we got it. Okay. Yep. So‚ there's gonna be a lot of questions I asked in the pre interview‚ but since I didn't record it last time‚ so there's going to be some repetition.

F Hudson Miller: That's fine. That’s fine.

Bowen Wei '25: Yep‚ could you please introduce yourself as a starter?

F Hudson Miller: Yes‚ my name is F Hutson Miller. I'm a sound editor and a supervising sound editor in Hollywood on making theatrical feature films and some television.

Bowen Wei '25: Ok. So‚ your class here Grinnell is 1980. Is that correct?

F Hudson Miller: That's correct.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. Could you tell us a little bit more about your hometown and where do you live currently?

F Hudson Miller: I grew up in a little town called Interlock in Michigan‚ which is in the northern part of the lower peninsula. If you are a Michiganer‚ you would know that it's always a hand of the UPs up here and the lower peninsula is here‚ and I lived right about there and right on Grand Trevor's Bay. And‚ I grew up there‚ I went to high school there at the Interlochen Arts Academy where my father was an instructor.

And then I went to Grinnell college‚ where I majored in American studies. After graduation from Grinnell I went to USC cinema‚ studied film production.

Then after graduation‚ I moved to Los Angeles. I left the university and established housing in Los Angeles. Then I went‚ and I have worked in the professional sound business for motion pictures for the last what‚ 35-40 years.

And‚ in a lot of part of my career I have also become vice president of the Motion Picture Editors Guild‚ which is the post production guild or union for motion pictures and television.

Bowen Wei '25: Thank you so much. Could you also describe the atmosphere of your high school?

F Hudson Miller: It was an arts prep school. It would be the short‚ would be the short term‚ whether it be the short name. It's called the Interlochen Arts Academy. It is called Interlochen Arts Academy. They have studies in music‚ dance‚ theater‚ visual arts‚ creative writing‚ and cinema. I don't think I left‚ I don't think I left anybody out. I hope not.

Bowen Wei '25: So since your high school is a very artsy preppy school for future‚ people who wanted to pursue a career in arts.

F Hudson Miller: In professional training‚ yeah.

Bowen Wei '25: So‚ could you tell why you decided to apply to Grinnell rather than in art school?

F Hudson Miller: Well‚ I wanted to go from Interlochen directly to film school‚ but consulting with my parents who were both had liberal arts backgrounds‚ and my father had gone to Hamilton college and‚ and then he was a professional musician and walked to Eastern School of Music and had gotten a doctorate at USC. They were able to convince me and rightfully so looking back that film school is more like a trade school‚ like dentistry or music or lawyer than the general education.

And they thought I would‚ because of the type of person I was‚ that I might benefit from a classical liberal arts education and they were right. So I applied to a number of schools and went to Grinnell.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. Could you also elaborate on‚ like‚ what motivated you to think about applying to a film school?

F Hudson Miller: Well‚ I fall in love with movies when I was in high school. I'm growing up as a kid I didn't have I didn't have a lot of exposure to the‚ to movies and theaters or in television. We didn't really have a television. All my friends and neighbors had televisions‚ but my parents thought it was kind of a waste of time. They may not have been wrong‚ but.

So I just didn't have a lot of exposure‚ but when I went to high school at the Arts Academy‚ they had a film service. And they ran a movie on every‚ every Saturday or Sunday night.

And it was my first exposure to a lot of classical Hollywood cinema‚ and it was a great experience. After a couple of years there‚ I managed to take over the film service there and ran it for a couple of years‚ which allowed me to‚ you know‚ learn a lot about films.

Not only in the exhibition of it‚ but also just sort of the general understanding of how it worked and‚ and what I liked about it. And then I went and so‚ I decided I said hey this is pretty good stuff. I want to make my career and I really haven't decided what I wanted to do with it. And truthfully it didn't matter. I could have‚ if I wanted to be a writer or a director or a producer or a sound person or a picture editor or a production designer‚ it would have all been fine with me. I was more interested in the medium and the expression and expression in the medium than I was in any particular job.

So that's why I wanted to go to film school‚ and I looked around and found the best four or five film schools and was looking at them rather seriously before I got sidetracked and went to Grinnell.

Bowen Wei : Gotcha. And that leads very well into the next question. Could you talk about your extracurricular activities at Grinnell.

F Hudson Miller: My activities at Grinnell‚ were related to around the radio station KDIC‚ where I was an engineer‚ a student engineer there. I came to it kind of naturally‚ because when I was in high school I had Interlochen and they have a big classical FM station. So‚ and a recording studio.

So I had spent a lot of time hanging around in the recording studio and at the‚ at the station and had been given the privilege of‚ you know‚ engineering and a lot of broadcasts and recordings. So over that four year period‚ so I sort of had a background in it by the time I got to Grinnell. So‚ so I‚ so I got involved with KDIC with Kurt Anderson who was running the station of the time.

And I fulfilled the requirement for a student engineer because I had the right background and so I did a lot of that. I also got a job as a projectionist on the film series because I had a lot of experience projecting and running a film series.

The first two years‚ I was dying to get my hands on the thing to run it. It took me a couple of years before I was able to‚ but‚ yeah‚ after a couple of years I was able to get a hold of the‚ the Grinnell Film series and.

We screened about something 80 to a hundred films a year from Thursdays to Sunday nights. So it was that while I was taking classes‚ I was also‚ you know‚ running this operation‚ but it also dovetailed very nicely into my actual academic work because I was able to do a lot of independent studies utilizing film. And it allowed me to‚ you know‚ make my film school application a lot stronger because I had‚ you know‚ a very‚ by the time I finished‚ I had a pretty broad understanding of American film history and some international film history. And‚ so that was a good start and it dovetailed nicely into my American studies nature. Yeah.

Bowen Wei '25: From your answer now and our previous conversation in the pre-interview‚ it sounds like you have a very sort of very various extracurricular activities during your time at Grinnell.

F Hudson Miller: I was a busy‚ very busy boy. I was‚ I didn't sleep a lot for four years‚ which was ok‚ because I just didn’t sleep a lot in the next‚ in the next two and a half either. Yeah.

Bowen Wei '25: Yeah. And the S&B archive also shows that you were the lightning crew for some shows‚ some plays in 1962. Could you elaborate on that a little more?

F Hudson Miller: On when?

Bowen Wei '25: 1976

F Hudson Miller: I honestly I don't remember anything about. I'm sure I was‚ I don't remember‚ I don't remember anything about it. I took a bunch of I took some classes in the theater department. They weren't all that consequential‚ but‚ but so I'm sure I worked on the tech crew I just don't remember. Sorry.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. So‚ since you mentioned that your‚ your‚ your job at KDIC was a student engineer‚ could you explain what kind of stuff‚ what kind of like‚ what's you‚ what did you do?

F Hudson Miller: What I do? What I did was I made sure the station stayed on the air. I made sure the equipment worked‚ I fixed it and installed new equipment‚ made sure that it was that we‚ the equipment wasn't set in such a way that we violated FCC rules and regulations. I also recorded a lot of concerts that were‚ you know‚ by guest artists on campus that were later used as broadcast material at the station.

So I was out running around with my little one with my tape recorder and‚ and it wasn't in the old days I wasn't‚ you didn't just have a little box. It was‚ you know‚ a big full sized tape record‚ real real machine that I had to lodge into Roberts or the South Lounge or ARH.

To record concerts for the KDIC library‚ which they're probably a bunch of them still there if nobody's throwing them out‚ that was pretty good stuff.

Bowen Wei '25: Yeah‚ actually one of my coworkers Hayden‚ the concert chair for last academic year. He's been trying to scavanging around the recordings. Probably some‚ some of the recordings you made during your time.

F Hudson Miller: Oh Sure.

Bowen Wei '25: Yeah. And. He's been trying to sort of find recordings for this project too. It's very exciting.

F Hudson Miller: Good‚ great‚ good. Glad they're not all gone.

Bowen Wei '25: Yep. So‚ could you also talk about how KDIC was functioning during this time?

F Hudson Miller: It was a 24 hours a day FM station‚ all a hundred percent student run‚ student managed‚ student engineered‚ student programmed‚ ran 24 h a day‚ ran local and national. It was you know‚ non-commercial‚ but it did have it did have‚ we did have an affiliation‚ a non commercial affiliation with ABC or someplace I've forgotten who. Who provided‚ you know‚ a live news feed‚ national news feed and special reports and all the stuff that comes from a radio network. So we had‚ so we had that. We also had a certain amount of student produced news where we would go into the field through an event and interview a‚ interview a guest. And if it was like an important enough guest‚ we would build a‚ what we call‚ what we called actualities‚ which are short recorded bytes of sound that that you provide to.

To the press in general so that if they want to use a sound clip from an event‚ they call you up and get it‚ it used to be. Now you just do it online‚ but you actually had to call the station and then somebody would play the recording for the news‚ for the media service and they'd record it and then they use it.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. So‚ it sounds like KDIC was very involved in creating a student campus life.

F Hudson Miller: Yeah. It was a bit it was a‚ it was‚ you know‚ it was what social media is today. It‚ though‚ had the disadvantage or advantage of being one way. So you couldn't talk back to it very well. So.

But the great thing was‚ you know‚ if you wanted to do a show‚ if you wanted to have a show on the radio‚ you just applied and pretty much you were able to get it. I mean‚ they were‚ it was‚ you know‚ a little bit of open access there‚ you know. Some shows were really very good‚ and some were‚ you know‚ sort of falling apart‚ but that was all part of the experience of‚ you know‚ of amateur student radio.

Bowen Wei '25: Yeah‚ so. How do students feel about KDIC? How do they like it?

F Hudson Miller: I thought they liked it. It wasn't like‚ it's not like it is today. It wasn't this constant‚ constant communication between people. So the S&B‚ KDIC‚ and what amounted to just a ton of flyers‚ you know‚ pieces of‚ pieces of papers with‚ with announcements on them. That were up on all the doors and doors to all the dorms‚ so that's you communicated to people with flyers‚ with KDIC and with the S&B. And‚ so it's just a different world. Bowen: Gotcha

Much more one way‚ you know‚ top down. Well‚ top‚ not necessarily top down‚ because it was student run‚ but it was‚ you know‚ there wasn't like‚ like Facebook or Instagram‚ you‚ it's not‚ there was no comment section‚ let's put it that way.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. So KDIC was a very important sort of venue to‚ for some students to communicate to the general students. Is that a correct description?

F Hudson Miller: Sure‚ yeah. Well‚ I mean a lot of it was‚ you know‚ what their musical phase was‚ and‚ and we I mean‚ I mean I'm sure there was I don't remember‚ it's been long time I'm sure there was some opinion‚ but mostly it was a musical outlet.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha.

F Hudson Miller: Because to be honest the general radio stations in the greater central Iowa area were not that‚ mostly not that interesting to Grinnell students.

You know‚ they were all‚ they were they. It was interesting but you know‚ the South Belley futures and the and the you know pioneer hybrid reports were not all that useful to‚ you know‚ students.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. So how would you describe the work environment of KDIC during your time?

F Hudson Miller: Huh. More professional than before I was there. Kurt Anderson who has gone on to run a large classical FM nonprofit‚ noncommercial station‚ I think in Connecticut was the station manager‚ and he was determined to raise the level of the state‚ of the quality of the station‚ not only in this programming‚ but‚ but it's our organization and structure.

And he brought a lot of that to the station. So it was‚ it was much more tightly‚ it was much more tightly organized and run during the latter time latter period of my time there.

Bowen Wei '25: So‚ how would you characterize the petty catch call‚ that incident? Do you still remember that?

F Hudson Miller: No. So. No idea what you're talking about.

Bowen Wei '25: It was the sort of conflict between the DJ Doc Elliot Pollock.

F Hudson Miller: Long time ago I don't remember. The name is familiar‚ but what actually happened‚ I don't remember.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. So‚ could you also tell me a lot‚ tell me more about the sort of your role as the film projector and the film chair?

F Hudson Miller: Well after the first two. I was I got to campus in new student days‚ and I I knew they had some kind of film program‚ but I didn't really know what it was. So I went to a couple of screenings‚ and I walked and they were at ARH and I walked up to the booth and the projection booth‚ and knocked in the door and met whoever was in there. I don't remember who it was.

At this point‚ but said‚ hey‚ you guys need any projectionists? And they said yes‚ we actually‚ we do. So‚ I got a job pretty quickly within a few weeks of being a projectionist.

With the film series. And so that ran for the first two years. First two years I was there. The third year‚ that's correct. third year I applied to student government to be the film head and got the job based on my previous heavily running a series before. Also‚ I had also been‚ you know‚ I knew‚ I knew everybody in the student government.

So I wasn't an unknown‚ you know‚ entity. So they knew who I was and I applied and I gave them my background‚ but they hired me to be the film head at that point. And which I was for three semesters because the first semester of my senior year I was in Grinnell in London and passed it off to other folks to run.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. So what's your‚ what did you do as a film chair?

F Hudson Miller: What I do? It was pretty‚ pretty‚ pretty simple. I mean actually it's pretty simple‚ the actual work's more complicated‚ but you know you choose‚ you choose the programming‚ you choose what films are going to be‚ be played on campus through the student film series. And you also program it. So you're programming it but the complexity comes in trying to decide what the programming is. It's not just‚ you know‚ randomly choosing movies‚ you're trying to figure out how to choose movies that will benefit your personal education but also the education of the full student body. And‚ also you have to‚ you're on a budget and you have to‚ you know‚ make the money go as far as you can‚ and‚ I mean you have to pay‚ you have to pay for projection out of that‚ you have to pay for.

You have to pay for the the actual rent film rental on the screening‚ you have to like pay for shipping of the film to the campus and back. So it's not it's not a complicated budget‚ but if you're‚ if you're showing 80 or a hundred films on Multiple times‚ you have to keep track of how much money is going out and you have to‚ you have to keep track of all the scheduling. I think it must have been the‚ I think Georgia must have handled scheduling of the projectionists because I don't remember having to do that. So‚ all I had to do is pay for them.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. So how did you and Georgia work together to schedule all of those films?

F Hudson Miller: Pretty well. I since I already had a background and when I was in my high school series at Interlochen‚ I had to‚ there was NO Georgia Dentel person. I had to do it all myself‚ so I had to go through the catalogs‚ choose the films‚ write the pos‚ take the pos to purchasing.

You know‚ and run the whole thing totally by myself. That's not totally true. I had student workers that were assigned to me to you know run the screenings and.

And things like that‚ but you know the all the budget‚ all the money‚ all the choosing‚ all that malarkey had to be‚ that I had to do. So when I went to Grinnell‚ it‚ and even though the program was three times as big‚ excuse me.

Three times as big‚ it wasn't that hard much of a‚ that much greater a lift because Georgia was doing all the actual ordering I would say. Hey‚ how about we run this‚ this‚ and this on that weekend or.

She would actually deal with film rental companies. So that part of instead of having to deal with it personally and make all those phone calls myself‚ she handled it so it made my life a lot easier‚ made me able to do that and KDIC‚ and go to school. Without her I wouldn't have been able to do all of it.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. So‚ since it seems that Georgia almost did a lot of heavy lifting for.

F Hudson Miller: Yeah‚ she did. She did a lot of the mechanics of how to‚ of making it happen‚ you know‚ the idea came from my fevered brain and then she executed.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. So what were other impacts of the college’s financial circumstances on the film committee during your time?

F Hudson Miller: Can you elaborate? I don't know where exactly where you're heading. Can you‚ can you rephrase the question or tell me what‚ what you're‚ what you're looking for because I'm not quite understanding.

The school was very wealthy when I was there so that wasn't a problem.

Bowen Wei '25: So the College was financially ok or?

F Hudson Miller: Yeah‚ no. All my time there and since it's been‚ you know‚ pretty rich‚ wealthy place. I mean‚ there's enough money. But during my time and since‚ I don't know of any financial hardships the school actually had. So totally it never affected‚ you know‚ my programming. Besides‚ my programming budget came‚ didn't come from the college. It came from activities fee that was charged to the students on their tuition bill.

So it was a direct fee‚ that was dedicated to concerts and film. So it didn't have‚ it didn't have‚ it wasn't from the college's large assay‚ it was a dedicated fund for that activity.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha.

F Hudson Miller: So even if the school had been in deep‚ deep hard times financially‚ it wouldn't have affected the program in any way because it was a different source of funding.

Bowen Wei '25: So‚ the film committee was very heavily funded by‚ sort of‚ by students rather than the college.

F Hudson Miller: Yes‚ it was funded by SGA from the activities funds‚ and the activities funds went to SGA and SGA‚ you know‚ divided them up for concerts and films and other special events that they got.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. So how do students feel about the film committee and film screen on campus?

F Hudson Miller: I think they liked it. I mean‚ attendance‚ attendance went from ok to fantastic over my period of leadership‚ so they must have liked it or they wouldn't have come‚ you know‚ how you determine the film business whether your film is working is‚ is how many butts and how many seats‚ and we always had‚ we always had lots of butts and lots of seats.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. So do you have a favorite concert or a film that you screen on campus?

F Hudson Miller: I don't know. I don't think so. I think it's a… To me what was best was not any individual piece of it‚ but the total‚ the totality of all the films and all the concerts‚ the entire‚ you know‚ package.

That was pretty special‚ but‚ you know‚ individually‚ you know‚ it's like the bits and pieces of a centipede. Which is your favorite part of the centipede? The third one‚ I know and what’s important is still the whole package‚ and that's what was important to me‚ and that's what I have with thought memories of‚ not any individual screening.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. In our pre interview‚ you also talked about you successfully established a‚ sort of a‚ mix of both entertaining and artistic genres of films. Could you elaborate on how you balance that?

Sure.

F Hudson Miller: When I took that over‚ the film‚ there was a‚ it was a mixed bag. I don't think that the‚ I think that it was a good program‚ but I don't think it was a great program because I don't think there was an overall‚ overarching concept to it.

Which was fine. I mean everybody runs these projects and these programs individually‚ and as they see in their worldview. For me‚ it was always an educational function for me. So.

For myself‚ but also I viewed it as an education function‚ or an educational program for the student body‚ because Grinnell didn't have any kind of film literacy or film appreciation classes‚ it sort of fell to me to figure out how to‚ introduce‚ different genres‚ different kinds of filmmaking‚ different films from different parts of the world‚ both modern and‚ you know‚ classical and historical.

So‚ so in the beginning I programmed a little more‚ you know‚ entertainment‚ a little‚ you know‚ current Hollywood for lack of better description. Then over time I introduced more international cinema‚ more classic Hollywood cinema.

And gradually what happens is‚ if you are successful at‚ as a film programmer on kind of a series‚ you build an audience and the audience starts to trust you as the programmer.

And that's why our our our butts and seats‚ our attendance grew so significantly is because of whether they knew it or not‚ they had learned to trust me with the programming‚ and that they were gonna‚ that even if what they were seeing was weird and something they had never thought of before‚ it was probably going to be ok because of.

Because I wasn't going to take them down a path to a bad experience. So they saw a lot of stuff they never would have seen just in the‚ in the general course of life. So‚ there you go. That's sort of my phases of that.

Bowen Wei '25: So there's a very strong sort of‚ personal and interpersonal bond between you and your audiences?

F Hudson Miller: Yes absolutely. Absolutely. You can't‚ you can't‚ and it's what's missing in a lot of commercial theatrical exhibitions these days. There is no‚ there is no relationship between the audience and the theater programmer or a manager. It's just a place to go see a movie. It's just a box‚ and that was never my goal. My goal was to‚ to build a relationship between the audience and the actual medium‚ actually the film.

I was just the go between that‚ that helped them get to see things they wouldn't normally see. We didn't‚ you know‚ we didn't have the internet. You didn't just dial up the Seven Sammari and watch it right there on your iPhone this big.

We actually had a vaguely big screen‚ not‚ not really. I mean‚ it was ok. It wasn't like a big movie theater screen‚ but it was a decent screen. And‚ people were able to experience things that they wouldn't have been able to experience.

Had I not brought that to them. That sounds a little self-serving‚ but it's kind of how it was. Yeah.

Bowen Wei '25: I talked to Ed Senn about a few programs during this time. 131 Bowen Wei 0000:34:02

Yeah. And he told me the film programs during your time it was fantastic.

F Hudson Miller: That's nice. It's interesting. It's one of the things that surprises me most is when I talk to my fellow‚ you know‚ my fellow classmates from Grinnell either at reunions or on social media. It's just‚ it's surprising how many of them still thank me for the films that we ran.

And thank me for the exposure to things they never would have seen. And so now that later in life they have a much greater appreciation of film than they would have if they didn't hadn't had gone through effectively gone through the Grinnell film program and.

And‚ that's very satisfying to me. It was never consciously‚ it was never that conscious about‚ you know‚ affecting people's lives more than‚ you know‚ right now. But it's nice to have heard repeated from many people that they got something out of it more than just the temporal experience.

Bowen Wei '25: Yeah‚ that's very right. So what was the general atmosphere on campus during your time?

F Hudson Miller: I would probably‚ it's probably typical Grinnell. I suspect it hasn't changed all‚ I mean in degree it surely has‚ but not that much since the mid. There was a big social change in the late sixties‚ early seventies‚ where the college changed dramatically. I mean‚ introduced coed dorms‚ you know‚ introduced you know‚ there was‚ there was a lot of anti-war protesting.

For the Vietnam war. There was a lot of‚ a very activist student government and‚ that had not been in place I think before‚ much before that. So I was there pretty much during sort of the end of the‚ of its initial burst. And so student government and the student body was still very quite activist at the time and fairly aggressive in international affairs.

And protests and‚ and consciousness raising for lack of a better term‚ I think that there's probably a lot of the same kind of activity at Grinnell today.

Maybe‚ and I can't tell cause I haven't really been there except‚ you know‚ for reunions and‚ you know‚ guests‚ parents and things like that. But I've never really been exposed. I'm not exposed to the day-to-day lives of the students today‚ but I do get the feeling that.

That the student government is a lot less active and a lot less involved with student life and student affairs than when I was there. When I was there‚ the student life was pretty much heavily run by student government. There was an administrative function.

Obviously the dean of students‚ when there were serious problems‚ was getting involved‚ but most of the day-to-day activities of student life were handled by‚ you know‚ run by students and like the film program‚ there was no real oversight except Georgia who acted as a facilitator.

But there was no real oversight of the programs and‚ and there wasn't a lot of oversight in the day to day life of the students from the administration. I think things are a little different now. I don't think the students.

Student life is as independent‚ I get the impression as it was back then. Maybe I'm just romanticizing‚ but I think‚ definitely I get the idea that student government is not as aggressive and controlling of student life as it was when I was a student.

Bowen Wei '25: Yeah‚ could you elaborate a bit more on how the student reacted to the Vietnam war and international affairs during your time?

F Hudson Miller: The war was over by the time I got there. So what we were seeing was the echoes of the you know anti-war movement. Though they were involved in‚ you know‚ in the apartheid fights in South Africa and‚ and other international ethical issues. So there was always a little consciousness raising going on. And it was independent; it wasn't run by the university or the college rather. It was run by the students.

You know‚ groups would get together and say we're gonna raise a little consciousness about apartheid in South Africa. And we're gonna start to try to pressure the college to‚ you know‚ divest it's South Africa assets‚ that kind of thing. So there was‚ there was a certain amount of that going on.

Bowen Wei '25: So‚ how did student react to like the debate debates between Professor Moyer and the former Iowa Attorney General Turners debate on the American sovereignty on the Panama Canal?

F Hudson Miller: Well. I remember it but not enough to be‚ to speak to it in any‚ I mean it's been a long time. I haven't thought about it in 30 years‚ though‚ I can't really tell you.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. So generally‚ there were a lot of participation from the students. Is that a‚ like‚ good generalization?

F Hudson Miller: Yes. I think even if individual students were not involved with any particular‚ you know‚ individual protests or just or consciousness raising for‚ as I say‚ they were certainly‚ you know‚ aware and appreciative of it even if they weren't necessarily deeply personally involved.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. So the sort of general atmosphere is political even if some individuals are not. Okay.

F Hudson Miller: I mean‚ when I was there and it probably hasn't changed‚ it was a school where‚ where you worked hard and you played hard and that it was‚ there was a lot of serious work that being done academically and there was a lot of serious play being done.

In the off hours. As I recall‚ the accreditation facility‚ one of their big complaints they did a big‚ one of their regular accreditations was that Grinnell students spend too much time studying. So I'm not sure what kind of accreditation you would want from an organization that says the students are spending too much time studying.

So maybe you don't even need that accreditation.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha.

F Hudson Miller: Most schools would die for that problem.

Bowen Wei '25: Yeah. So‚ speaking of playing hard‚ how do you remember the student body's sort of participation to Georgia's events? Well.

F Hudson Miller: You see‚ for a lot of them‚ for them‚ they didn't necessarily know that it was Georgia. She was the‚ you know‚ the woman behind the scenes. I mean‚ they were turning out for my events‚ they were turning out for the concert events. They were enthusiastic. So‚ I think they loved it. I think they‚ I think they were‚ you know‚ landlocked in the middle of Iowa. And.

With no availability‚ with no availability of this stuff‚ so it‚ so the college had to make sure it came to them and they did. Georgia had a lot to do with that.

Bowen Wei '25: Did Georgia sort of remain kinda enigmatic to a lot of students or?

F Hudson Miller: Yes‚ because she was sort of cutting edge‚ at the time‚ she worked at home. I mean‚ she had an office on campus in the‚ in the in the forum‚ the basement of the forum‚ but she was there to pick up her mail and‚ and check on some things‚ but she didn't have regular office hours. She wasn't.

She was working from home and worked as far as I could tell from 08:00 in the morning till midnight every day. I'm sure that wasn't quite true‚ but‚ but I would get phone calls from her at 100:30 at night. I get phone calls from her at 08:00 in the morning. So I think she worked all the time‚ but she was not working from her office.

She was working from her home‚ and so a lot of students didn't actually get to know her. They may have heard of her‚ but mostly it was the film heads and the concert heads that‚ and committees‚ that got to actually interact with her. And most of my interaction was telephonic. I had‚ I had‚ you know‚ I probably had‚ you know‚ ten meetings in person over‚ over the my four years with her in person‚ but I talked to her ten times a week‚ on the phone.

Bowen Wei '25: Speaking of this‚ could you tell me a little bit more about how you first met Georgia on the phone?

F Hudson Miller: Oh‚ I was getting ready to screen a movie in ARH. Can't have no idea which one it was. I've been there for years‚ and there I was and I'm in the booth‚ I'm setting up the film‚ getting it ready‚ making sure the house lights are set‚ everything's coming along.

I've got‚ you know‚ I've got‚ you know‚ 10 min before the screening and the phone rings‚ there's a phone booth ring‚ ring‚ ring. And I‚ so I've only been at Grinnell maybe three weeks‚ and this is like one of my first‚ this is like my first screening.

Yeah‚ I mean‚ I had screen filmed for years‚ so the mechanics of screening‚ of running screening were‚ you know‚ second nature to me‚ it was not‚ that was not the problem. So I pick up this phone‚ you know‚ why is anybody calling this number? I mean‚ nobody knows I'm here and.

I don't know anybody who knows‚ knows how I'm here. I pick it up and hi‚ this is Georgia Dentel. And then she explained to me who she was‚ and we got a nice conversation. No‚ the screening's gonna be fine‚ everything's good. She was just checking up to make sure that everything was.

That I was in the booth‚ the film was threaded‚ there was no audience present. I would tell her how full the theater was and we would chat‚ and I chat for a little minute‚ few minutes and I said‚ I gotta go I gotta start this screening‚ and so we did goodbye and that was my‚ that was my first meeting with Georgia on the phone.

Bowen Wei '25: So what was the first impression of her after that call.

F Hudson Miller: Consiencious? I'd never I had never actually had anybody call me to make sure my screening was gonna go well ever in my life. It was So‚ so it was nice‚ it was nice that somebody actually cared enough to‚ to actually‚ call and make sure it was gonna be fine. Not that she didn't trust me‚ she just didn't know me. So‚ over the next years I had many conversations with her in the booth before the screening. Sort of‚ hi‚ good.

Bowen Wei '25: Could you also tell me a bit more about your working experience‚ working experiences with her?

F Hudson Miller: She's very knowledgeable‚ about concerts and film‚ and she'd known what we've‚ would have been screened the previous years when I hadn't been there. So that was useful information because‚ you don't want to really screen stuff that just because it's your‚ your first year program yet‚ you don't want to program all the same stuff that‚ that the people who are two years ahead of you or one year ahead of you have already seen. So she was‚ that was very useful‚ and‚ and‚ and she also brought‚ you know‚ had a pretty good understanding of film‚ film literacy but also.

Film criticism because I think she read a lot of the film critics and so she had a pretty‚ and had done so for many decades. So she had a pretty good understanding of the New Yorker and other publications.

What‚ what films have been well reviewed and badly reviewed. She also because she was enough older than I was‚ she would‚ when I wanted to screen a film‚ a film from a‚ from a certain period‚ she would be able to give me a little more perspective on how it was received.

When it originally came out or a film that I‚ that I have overlooked because I just didn't know about it‚ that should say‚ hey‚ take a look at this‚ see if you want to run this. So‚ she was very helpful in my education in that way‚ but she was also so as well as‚ as well as the‚ even though I had a pretty.

Good basis of knowing what I wanted to do. She was‚ she was a great resource too‚ you know‚ you know‚ keep me a little bit grounded in‚ in reality.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. Did you‚ did she know a lot about like international films or it was your idea?

F Hudson Miller: No‚ she had a pretty good understanding of international cinema. I‚ I don't know. I‚ I don't know much about her background before‚ before Grinnell. I think she went to Colorado College. Is that correct?

Bowen Wei '25: Yes.

F Hudson Miller: And‚ I don't really know‚ I‚ she told me I just don't remember the time between Colorado College and the time she ended up at Grinnell. I don't know what I don't really. I knew it one time but not anymore. It's been too many years. So‚ but she‚ but she seemed to have a pretty good grasp of‚ of‚ of certainly.

Of European cinema‚ maybe less so of Asian I don't know. But as I said‚ it's been many years. 188

Bowen Wei '25: Yeah. So‚ did you help‚ help you a lot to sort of diversify the genres of films your screen on campus?

F Hudson Miller: I don't know about that. I mean I‚ I had a‚ I I have a very‚ very broad taste and film so I‚ so I I have a pretty‚ I had a pretty good idea‚ idea what‚ what to do and‚ and she left me‚ she left me alone in that respect because she‚ she‚ it was clear to her that I knew what I‚ I wanted to do with it. I think she provides more guidance.

She provided more guidance to‚ to film heads who were less sure of themselves. I mean‚ I was never in a‚ for an instant in doubt of what I wanted to do and how to do it. I‚ that's just my personality. So.

So she was‚ it wasn't that she wasn't helpful. It's just that I didn't need that kind of help‚ but I'm sure that film heads who were less‚ were less‚ not educated but less.

Less‚ maybe‚ less experienced cause I've been a film programmer before I came to Grinnell from back from‚ in my high school days. So‚ I already had developed a pretty good sense of the diversity of cinema because it was an art's school too‚ so we were showing international cinema.

So‚ I think‚ as I said I think she helped other people probably in that respect more than she helped me. That I mean‚ I did get lots of tips and we did discuss a lot of it.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. Could you also tell me how often did you and Georgia talk about various films that you two are gonna screen?

F Hudson Miller: Oh‚ all the time. I might probably spoke‚ talked to her. I'm trying to think‚ it's been a while‚ I would say that we probably talked on the phone on average.

Four to six times a week‚ usually at about 1030 at night for whatever reason‚ and‚ and‚ yeah‚ we‚ we would talk‚ we would talk‚ I'd say I wanted I needed to schedule a film that that's‚ that will dovetail into‚ I've forgotten what they‚ we called it. Black Culture weekend‚ I've forgotten what‚ there was a diversity‚ weekend.

And there were a lot of diversity weekends and we would figure out‚ try to figure out what‚ what kind of programming would work well with that. But I'd also work with the heads of those committees saying‚ hey‚ what do you guys want to screen? And I would‚ and so if they wanted to screen one particular film‚ I would take their one film and then see if we could figure.

Figure out how to work a program around them to make it‚ you know‚ to give it some context. So‚ and Georgia would help me with that‚ sure.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. Do you have a sort of‚ do you have memories on the president during your time‚ Richard Turner's decision to fire Georgia?

F Hudson Miller: Yeah‚ that was the one I think during my freshman year. So that's sort of how I first got to know of Georgia Dentel is it is because she does. I don't know why he decided I don't know if the‚ it was cost saving‚ it was something he didn't understand. I have no‚ I have no idea what his motivations were‚ but I noticed that he wanted to‚ he was trying to fire her and also.

So fire Susan. Do you remember who was the other person they were trying to fire?

Bowen Wei '25: Yes‚ Susan.

F Hudson Miller: What was her last name?

Bowen Wei '25: I don’t quite remember that part.

F Hudson Miller: Okay‚ but it. But there were two of them‚ and I‚ I think I think he thought they weren't‚ they weren't reasonable expenditures of college funds‚ but he was wrong.

Bowen Wei '25: So how did students and faculty perceive that incident?

F Hudson Miller: Well‚ I mean they were up and arms‚ they didn't really know‚ they didn't really necessarily know Georgia and Susan‚ but I knew Susan because she was‚ it was in the I think it was an outdoor program?

Bowen Wei '25: GORP‚ the GORP program.

F Hudson Miller: So that a lot of them knew her‚ but a lot of them didn't know Georgia‚ but they knew that‚ that‚ that he was striking at‚ at their film and concert program‚ which they did like. So they may not have‚ so they protested and complained because of‚ it was going to‚ you know‚ limiting her with was going to‚ you know‚ wreck havoc with their programming. So‚ it was a pretty messy‚ it was a pretty messy few weeks till they got that sorted out.

Bowen Wei '25: So the students were very heavily participated in this sort of protest against Turner‚ right? Is that correct?

F Hudson Miller: Yeah .It's been a long time‚ you know‚ it's been what? 80 to been 40‚ what‚ 44 years? So it's‚ it's a‚ it's it's‚ it's‚ it's the details have escaped me‚ but yes‚ there was there was there was a lot of student outreach and eventually I re as I recall‚ he backed down and everything went back to normal.

Bowen Wei '25: Yeah.

F Hudson Miller: Not a very auspicious way to start your presidency. Is to lose a battle with the students.

Bowen Wei '25: And I think he actually retired as a president‚ I think in‚ yeah‚ the year you graduated.

F Hudson Miller: But he had a very‚ he did very well for himself. He had a very distinguished career as a history author and when he died‚ there was a big write up in the New York Times. So I never felt too bad for him. He did just fine.

Bowen Wei '25: Yeah. So do you still remember like the film committee's response to that‚ to nope?

F Hudson Miller: Cause I wasn't on the film committee. Cause I was I would just work for them at that point because I was just a projectionist instead. So I don't‚ so no‚ I don't. I'm‚ I'm sure there was one but I don't remember what it was. They probably published on S&B.

Bowen Wei '25: How would you characterize a general‚ your general working experience as the film projectionist and then film chair?

F Hudson Miller: I loved it‚ it was great! Right‚ that's the best time best part of my time in Grinnell. I mean‚ like how many I got to program my film series. That's pretty good. So I had a great time‚ one of my happiest times.

Bowen Wei '25: What was the sort of atmosphere at your‚ sort of‚ workplace?

F Hudson Miller: Sorry‚ can you come again?

Bowen Wei '25: How would you characterize your workplace during your time at Grinnell?

F Hudson Miller: Difficult question because there really wasn't one‚ it's a‚ there's no place. I mean it was happening all the time.

I was taking phone calls from Georgia at‚ you know‚ in hallways‚ in my room‚ in the reaction booth‚ I was planning SGA offices‚ I was… I mean it it was a‚ it was a job‚ it wasn't like a job I went to and sat in an office for 2 hours a day or.

It was just sort of happening all the time. So‚ it was just if there was a hole in my schedule‚ we were‚ I was programming a film where I was‚ you know‚ making up posters to hang around campus or writing an article for the S&B‚ telling‚ saying what the programs were for this week.

I mean it was‚ it was sort of happening all the time. So‚ and it was just blended into my‚ into my‚ the rest of my college life. So it wasn't it wasn't the thing‚ it was just sort of part of me. Does that sound stupid?

Bowen Wei '25: No‚ definitely not!

F Hudson Miller: It wasn’t a place‚ it wasn't a thing. It was just a life.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. So. How would you and the rest of the film committee tell people what kind of films you guys were going to screen on campus during your time?

F Hudson Miller: So I mean we used ADIC‚ we used S&B‚ I would write‚ and I'm sure the film heads before me did the same thing‚ would write articles. I would‚ I would get the film the week ahead because it would come in‚ it would be sitting there. I'd go down to the bottom of Burling.

Which there's now a computer lab where there used to be a little screening room. It's I‚ I would go in the projection booth I put the film on the projectors and I would watch it and I would read other I read‚ read some other people's reviews‚ some of the big reviewers‚ reviewers of the film and if I had time‚ and then I write a little‚ a little description review and.

And‚ you probably can find them‚ they were probably piss-poor writing‚ but I don't remember. You probably can find them on Fridays in the S&B. And so‚ and then we would also‚ at‚ this will really date me.

We didn't have‚ you know‚ computer processing. I would get rub on letters and cut‚ cut photographs out of film catalog and build up posters and I would actually‚ you know‚ I would get‚ and I would also get posters from‚ from the film companies.

And we'll do my own graphic arts with press on letters and typewriter and and then we print them and then we'd plaster the campus with them on like on‚ on Monday or Tuesday the week before‚ so everybody‚ by the weekend‚ you‚ there was not a door you could go through on logia or or.

A building that did not have a film schedule on it. So there was no way to miss it!

Bowen Wei '25: So the schedules were posted basically everywhere on campus.

F Hudson Miller: Everywhere! Any‚ any service that was not covered with a‚ with a flyer had one of mine on it. There were a lot. And they were in all different colors‚ they were‚ there was‚ it was‚ we had the‚ we had to print them over at‚ they were printed over at the college printing service. Somehow it never got a bill for that. I don't know how that ever worked out. Somehow it just ran through the system and the film department.

was never billed for all those thousands and thousands of flyers that I printed. Don't know how that happened.

Bowen Wei '25: Yeah‚ that is kind of mysterious . Was that covered in your budget?

F Hudson Miller: There was never a charge. I don't know‚ it got absorbed by the college someplace.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha.

F Hudson Miller: I just discovered‚ I mean‚ I just I asked Georgia I said‚ hey‚ I want to get some stuff printed‚ because I had done‚ done that when I was in in in when I was in in in running my series in high school‚ I did the same thing and‚ and she'd always send it over here. So I would make up these posters and sometimes they were the‚ the‚ the key art from the actual movie. Sometimes they're old movies‚ I wouldn't cut a picture out of a magazine and build up a flier with it and just paper the place.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha.

F Hudson Miller: I have no idea who paid for it!

Bowen Wei '25: Yeah.

Since you talk about that your sort of main interactions with Georgia happened on the phone. So how does she ever find where you are?

F Hudson Miller: Well‚ that's why I think they probably were kind of 1000:30 at the night in my room. I mean I think she knew when I would be.

Likely to be in my room. So‚ also‚ I called her a lot. I mean‚ I mean‚ and I knew that her‚ day her day ran from early morning to late at night‚ so it never bothered me to call her. So she never seemed to be bothered by it. We had long conversations with her. Interesting woman. Very interesting woman.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. So‚ how often did you and Georgia like meet in person talking about stuff?

F Hudson Miller: Once or twice a semester? I mean‚ and always on the phone‚ always‚ always‚ always.

Bowen Wei '25: So could you elaborate a bit more about what the procedure like‚ for film committee to decide what kind of films to be screened and how to schedule projector and or projectionists?

F Hudson Miller: The decide what to be screened came out of my fevered brain and there was a committee and we worked together‚ but an awful lot of it came just came out of my head.

So‚ we worked together a little bit‚ but mostly‚ as I said‚ but mostly just came out of my head‚ and then‚ not all of it‚ obviously‚ but‚ and then I would tell her that I I'm.

And then why I want to do and then she'd go‚ well‚ we‚ you know‚ we've got‚ you've got the Ramones and I‚ I she had a book‚ had to book a big act like that‚ you know‚ months in advance‚ so she said‚ Well‚ we're gonna have the Ramones that weekend. Maybe you wanna do.

I've forgotten the name of their movie at the time. So we ran their movie on that weekend‚ but so but so she was able to tell me what was‚ what was coming up‚ you know‚ much farther down the line than I just as a student would know. So‚ so.

So she was able‚ she was‚ she enabled me to‚ you know‚ she helped me program‚ coordinate the programming with that. Also‚ but as far as the actual‚ you know‚ projectionists and all that‚ I think‚ I think there was a head projectionist‚ I think he actually did the actual schedule of everybody and‚ but that but all the money ran through SGA. The money itself didn't run through Georgia. She‚ the budget was‚ I had a budget that was I was responsible to SGA for‚ not to Georgia.

Bowen Wei '25: Yeah. So she kind of worked as a coordinator between different.

F Hudson Miller: Yeah absolutely. She coordinated within the film committee‚ within the concept committee‚ but also between them and between other events on campus.

Yeah‚ I mean they would bring in even they would bring in‚ you know‚ shows would come in like‚ they brought in‚ the mom and shots‚ they brought in Stars of the American Valley theater. They brought in.

The Bell of Amherst. They brought in‚ you know‚ you know‚ theatrical and‚ and stuff that wasn't necessarily on the concert program‚ but it was coming from other places. So‚ that all had to be coordinated so we didn't program something directly against it. I mean we did a certain amount of counter programming so that.

That‚ if there was an event on campus that everybody wouldn't necessarily want to go to‚ there was something else‚ there was a film for them to go to if they didn't want to do that. But‚ we also tried to coordinate.

With what was happening‚ what was‚ if they were doing kind of event‚ we would try to do an event that was both similar and‚ also something that wasn't similar. So there was‚ there was always a variety.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. So how would you describe the films committee's contribution to the general student life during their time?

F Hudson Miller: That was everything. Ha ha! No‚ for me it was everything‚ because that's what‚ what‚ what I was going to make my‚ I knew I was going to make my career and living in and and what I did. So for me it was a very‚ a very‚ visceral and real experience. For some students it was very casual‚ just entertainment.

Experience. Some have told me years later that it was very educational and they learned a lot about film appreciation that the school wasn't giving them‚ should have been. Really no excuse that the college wasn't providing film education. It's the only new art form in like 6000 years‚ and to.

To be failing that‚ to take it seriously‚ was a shortcoming on their part. I think they've started to finally get their act together‚ talk to the the head of the film program or the film studies department recently and she seems to be‚ she seems to take it very seriously and‚ which is good because it‚ as I said it does like.

There hasn't been a new art form in thousands of years and‚ and film is it‚ so two of to have just ignored it was kind of a mistake.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. Speaking of this‚ it is kind of personal‚ a kind of personal question for me. I recently came across an article in S&B talking about why there was no Jimmy Stewart film during your time.

F Hudson Miller: Sure we ran Jimmy Stewart.

Bowen Wei '25: In 78 specifically.

F Hudson Miller: 78. In the fall‚ let's see‚ 76‚ 78 would have been somebody else's film program.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha.

F Hudson Miller: Cause I only took over the film program in fall of 78. So‚ the spring of 78 wouldn't‚ wouldn't have been my program.

Bowen Wei '25: So the article was actually Fall semester.

F Hudson Miller: Okay. Yeah. Well‚ I mean‚ I have no idea. Don't remember‚ probably didn't even read it.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha‚ understood.

F Hudson Miller: I‚ I don't remember. No‚ those‚ those‚ if I if I do the truth I would tell you‚ I just did‚ it's one of those memories that is been filed under unimportant and thrown away.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha.

F Hudson Miller: But I’m sure I ran some Jimmy Stewart movies over the time I was there. I know I ran Mr. Smith Goes to Washington and I know I ran that.

Bowen Wei '25: So‚ to wrap up this interview‚ how did your interactions with Georgia and like the events planning during your time at Grinnell impact your life after graduation?

F Hudson Miller: Well‚ it was very important. Because‚ it‚ helped me build my understanding of film criticism and film literacy that I was able to take and use as a lever to get me into a very competitive film school. A film school that without it‚ I‚ without my Interlochen background and my Grinnell film background‚ I'd never I probably never would have gotten into that film program.

Because it was‚ it was very exclusive and very difficult to get in‚ and‚ you know‚ I didn't even know at the time how difficult it was. Wasn't until years later that I was there that I understood that I had actually accomplished a great deal just by getting in. And that.

That can be laid at the feet of‚ of Grinnell and the film series because‚ it gave me a literacy and it gave me an exposure that I wouldn't have had otherwise.

It built on what I had gotten to Interlochen‚ but it reaffirmed that that's how I wanted to spend my career and it also built in me a fundamental understanding of the business film‚ which is‚ you know‚ there's an economic model that goes with it. And that at least in the commercial cinema‚ and that running a film series‚ you very quickly start to understand‚ we talked a little bit about it earlier‚ about butts and seats.

And what success in the movie business is‚ what success in the film programming‚ in a college series‚ is all about butts and seats. It's are people‚ are people going to watch what you're presenting either in your making or your programming.

If you‚ if you aren't deliver‚ if you don't have butts and seats‚ if you don't have an audience‚ you can program‚ you can make movies to your blue in the face‚ and it makes no difference‚ therefore you might as well throw them away because without an audience‚ there is no film business.

So‚ Grinnell taught me‚ that series taught me‚ and my work with Georgia taught me‚ that how important it is‚ even if you have a somewhat captive audience‚ to program and to eventually to make movies that.

That the audience wants to see and that‚ they also will learn to trust you. I worked‚ a lot of my career I worked on what we call tempo movies in Los Angeles and Hollywood.

They were the‚ they were I did a whole bunch of the Jerry Bruckheimer‚ action pictures‚ and it was it's it's the same deal. It's‚ does the audience have‚ does the audience learn to trust you? The audience on those movies learns the trust that you that it's going to be a certain kind of movie. It's going to be big action‚ it's gonna be loud‚ it's gonna lots of visual effects‚ lots of sound effects‚ lots of loud music‚ lots of big name actors. It's gonna be kind of fluffy and light.

And not necessarily got a lot of‚ you know‚ in depth stuff‚ but that's what it is. And‚ the audience learns and the audience has trusted him to tune of billions and billions of dollars. Just like the audience trusted me and other film heads at Grinnell.

To program films that and to that they will like and they will become‚ and they will educate them and the result was butts and seats. So my answer is butts and seats.

Bowen Wei '25: What would have been differently if‚ like‚ you decided to go to an art school instead of instead of Grinnell?

F Hudson Miller: I have no idea. I probably wouldn't be as smart. I mean‚ I think I think all the decisions in my life after Grinnell are better for having‚ having been at Grinnell and had a rigorous undergraduate education that a lot was expected. And‚ I‚ and I think I did a pretty good job with the education part of my Grinnell life. I also think I did a pretty good job with the‚ with the social aspects in this particular case‚ the film program.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha.

F Hudson Miller: I think I think it all added up to being a really good life‚ one that would’ve certainly been very different if I had taken a different path.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. Could you also tell me a bit more about like the‚ how did Grinnell prepare you for the cause you made a lot of films in different genres. Could you elaborate a bit more on how Grinnell allows you to sort of‚ produce films in different genres.

F Hudson Miller: Well I may think it comes down to. I mean anybody who's they may have been through Grinnell‚ understands that it imprints on you a certain degree of critical thinking and in particular my‚ my‚ my major‚ which is American studies‚ which is no longer thought as a major it's now an emphasis. But‚ it is a culture‚ as American studies student is a study of the culture of the United States and film culture in the United States film culture is a very important part of American culture.

And certainly‚ in the 20th century‚ less so now obviously. But I would say that the understanding of American and a world culture that comes from that.

It makes‚ it all ground you in a‚ in a way that you're able to‚ even if you're just picking sound effects for a movie‚ you could think of it more complexly than just a door closed‚ you could think of it as‚ you know‚ what is this door closed saying?

In and how does it reverberate against‚ you know‚ movies that have come before‚ culture that's come before‚ and history that's come before‚ and how does so and that and that sort of occurs all the way through the filmmaking process and fill makers with‚ with‚ with good‚ good liberal arts‚ backgrounds tend to be better filmmakers.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. Since you mentioned your major‚ could you also elaborate‚ tell me a bit more about like your favorite class‚ your favorite professor‚ that sort of stuff?

F Hudson Miller: No. It's it's‚ it's a long time ago. I was not‚ I'm not the kind of student who had a‚ that individual professors had a profound effect on. I was‚ I'm a little too independent.

Of spirit for that. So for me‚ I enjoyed my classes‚ I enjoyed my learning‚ but for me it wasn't a. There was not a deep personal relationship. It was a little more distant relationship than a lot of students have with their professors and their classes. To me‚ it was a.

It was a tool for me to‚ for my growth‚ not so much as an experience to go through. I don't know if that makes any sense. I'm a little more distant from it than.

Yeah‚ I'm a little‚ I'm not a‚ emotionally deeply involved student. I tend to be more analytic‚ so‚ while I had great times in‚ in many of my classes‚ I didn't I I don't really have favorite professors or I mean I didn't bond that way that some students did.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha.

F Hudson Miller: Because I was so. I mean I was taking my class and I was doing my stuff‚ I was getting my education‚ but my‚ but my passion was‚ was the film series and doing the other things. So could I mean I was an ok student‚ I did just fine. If I had spent a little less time on the film series and a little more time in the classroom‚ would I have been a better student? Yes.

Sorry. Would I have been a better student? Yes. Would I have turned out as a better human being? No. So I mean‚ for me‚ the balance was the balance‚ the balance I chose was the correct balance‚ and so the classes were good. I enjoyed them. I learned a lot‚ but it was not‚ it was not the. It was only part of the Grinnell experience.

Bowen Wei '25: So‚ is it correct to characterize that your extracurricular activities sort of were more impactful on your education and your career?

F Hudson Miller: No. It's this name‚ I mean it's all one package. You can't set‚ you can't peel one from the other. I mean‚ the thing about the extracurricular stuff‚ the filmed series was self-directed. I mean‚ I was in charge‚ I was in control of my‚ of my own life.

Learning what I wanted to learn. When I was in class‚ that was a much structured‚ you know‚ formal education. So you can't peel them apart. You can't say this part A is responsible for this and part B is responsible for that. It's a package and‚ and for me‚ the Grinnell package was great.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. So‚ is there anything that you would like to share or anything you would like to ask from us?

F Hudson Miller: No‚ I don't think so. So I look forward to seeing the results of the project. I know it‚ I know it's a handful. I know there's a lot because part of the problem is‚ you know‚ like interviewing me‚ it's a long time ago‚ it's 40 years ago‚ 44 years ago‚ and almost 50 from the time I first met her‚ so that's a lot of water under the bridge since then.

Bowen Wei '25: Yeah‚ definitely.

F Hudson Miller: I'm sure you're gonna‚ you may get more interesting stuff for people who‚ who knew her later in her career because‚ you know‚ also people who‚ who depended on her more than I did. So‚ yeah.

Bowen Wei '25: So‚ Professor Purcell‚ the instructor for the summer project and the following fall project is planning to have an interview with history professor Don Smith. Who has worked with her‚ quite a lot during her time. Do you also know‚ like‚ if there's anyone you would recommend to interview?

F Hudson Miller: They're all dead! Yeah‚ I know not really. I mean it's neat.

Bowen Wei '25: Is there any like a specific student that you think interviewing then that would be very?

F Hudson Miller: Me! In my relationship with Georgia‚ I mean it was a personal relationship‚ it was‚ I mean‚ it was me working with her or she working with me. It didn't really involve other people‚ so it's‚ so I can't every and I'm sure it was different for everybody‚ but I would just‚ you know‚ flip through the‚ if see if you can figure out who the film heads were at various times and‚ and the concert heads. I think.

I think she was in many ways may have been more influential in the concert program than she was in the cause there are a lot more logistics than concerts than there are in film programming. Film programming you know is‚ you have a fixed facility and fixed dates and you can pretty much.

Within reason get anything you want as long as you can afford it. So it's not as complicated. I think where she was earning her money was building‚ building on the complex relationships that she had with agents and managers of acts that I never saw. That's the world of her‚ of her doing that I never was involved in‚ I knew my own‚ you know‚ I was on my own path in my own world and she‚ she dealt with me perfectly fine and she‚ I mean it was like she approached everybody on the‚ to the need that to best fit their needs and she‚ as she did with me.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. So how would you characterize her influences on you and your career?

F Hudson Miller: I don’t know. She helped me‚ she‚ well‚ she helped me bring well‚ bring the life to the film series I wanted‚ the film series that allowed me.

To learn about the business of film‚ but also to learn about the history and the criticism of film that enabled me to get into USC cinema.

And‚ USC cinema got me because Hollywood works on who you know‚ basis‚ and there's what we call the USC Mafia and in Hollywood there are a lot of us out there who spend a lot of time helping each other.

Get ahead in Hollywood and I wouldn't have gotten into that environment‚ had she not helped me realize my dream for this film series.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. So‚ was she sort of the‚ what's the‚ what's the word for it?

F Hudson Miller: She was a facilitator in my life.

But it’s really hard to pin down. Was there any one thing? No. Was there a whole series of a lot of little things? Yes.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. So‚ can I say that your interactions with her were a kind of process?

F Hudson Miller: Oh‚ absolutely. It's literally a process. Yes.

Bowen Wei '25: Gotcha. Well‚ thank you so much for participating in this project.

F Hudson Miller: My pleasure‚ I wish my memories were fresher‚ but‚ but I've enjoyed it and I hope I hope I hope it's successful for you.

Bowen Wei '25: Okay‚ thank you so much for providing just a ton of good information‚ a lot of a lot of good information now for the project.

F Hudson Miller: Thank you and tell me how it comes out. Yep‚ I'll do that.

Bowen Wei '25: But thank you for providing all of those like wonderful films.

F Hudson Miller: Yeah‚ I enjoy them. Okay. Have a good one. Yep‚ beat here.

Bowen Wei '25: Have a good day sir. See you. It's not going away.

F Hudson Miller: Yeah.

Bowen Wei '25: I‚ I kept hitting the X.

F Hudson Miller: Button and it's not leaving.