Commonwealth students tend to be a remarkably creative bunch–from studio to classroom, students are encouraged to make unexpected connections and then follow these new ideas. For many, that spirit continues after graduation, though rarely does it become the foundation of a career. Meet Kasi Lemmons ’77, Jesse Peretz ’86, Emily Botein ’87, Hamish Linklater ’94, and Luke DelTredici ’96. The work of these graduates from different periods in the school’s history gives a sense of what it’s like to carve out professional lives that don’t exactly follow linear progressions. While the four inhabit different (if sometimes overlapping) parts of the entertainment world as writers, directors, producers and actors, they all trace parts of their experience back to Commonwealth. The explanation for such artistic eclecticism, according to Jesse, lies in the school’s educational emphasis. “Because Commonwealth encourages experimentation and focuses on academics and art, it attracts a kind of student who appreciates and is curious about the arts. And because the school is so tough academically, people develop the intellectual tools they need to make more complicated art.” For more please click here.
