Over the years, I had the opportunity to do some teaching at the ETC (and hope to do so again in the future!) and the ETC was instrumental in the very first in-cinema project that I did at the Brand Experience Lab almost 3 years ago. I was also one of the first people to commercially use their Synthetic Interview technology, for Court TV and Nicorette. The ETC program really is a right brain-left brain program that combines theater & technology into new forms of storytelling. Each year, they do a showcase of the best of the student work, so ping me if you're ever interested in attending.
The ETC is now in several countries and it really speaks to what can happen when you combine a comet with a tornado!
The Comet & the Tornado is currently available for pre-order and I just ordered my copy! So click at the link below and get ready to read a great story!
An intimate look at Randy Pausch (author of the blockbuster The Last Lecture) from his friend and colleague
It is impossible to pinpoint the moment Randy Pausch became a household name, but when he died, millions of people who either read or watched his last lecture on YouTube felt as if they had lost a friend.
One man who actually did lose a close friend that day was Donald Marinelli. Affectionately referred to as “the Tornado” in the last lecture, Donald was the whirlwind of energy and creativity who co-founded the Entertainment Technology Center (ETC) at Carnegie Mellon University with Randy. Donald recounts his remarkable journey from Carnegie Mellon’s drama department, through the years building the ETC with Randy, to today, as he helms the center on his own and leads its worldwide expansion. Central to his story are the six years he and Randy shared an office, their differences and commonalities (they both fought cancer), and their priorities, as well as the philosophy of the ETC. Most poignantly, Don reveals what he learned from Randy, whom he describes as “a comet who burst upon the scene like an astral body . . . illuminating his secrets for living life to the fullest for millions of folks who needed such guidance.”
The Comet & the Tornado, Donald Marinelli, Book - Barnes & Noble.