Two-time Academy Award-winning writer/director Quentin Tarantino was the keynote speaker at the 14th Annual Design Showcase West on Saturday, June 4, 2016 at the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television's Freud Playhouse where students from the nation's top graduate design programs will exhibit innovative costume, scenic, sound, lighting and production designs. Attendees had the chance to preview the portfolios of these emerging artists before they win their Tony, Oscar and Obie Awards.

Named one of the 100 Most Influential People in the World by Time, Tarantino has received multiple Academy, Golden Globe and BAFTA Awards and was nominated for an Emmy and a Grammy Award. He is one of the most celebrated filmmakers of his generation with cult hits such as Jackie Brown, Kill Bill, Pulp Fiction and Reservoir Dogs. In 2012, Django Unchained released to critical acclaim and became the highest-grossing film of his career exceeding $425 million at the worldwide box office. Django earned Tarantino his second Oscar for Best Screenplay, and the film received numerous Golden Globes, BAFTA's and Academy Awards, including Best Picture. His latest film The Hateful Eight, starring Samuel L. Jackson, Kurt Russell and Jennifer Jason Leigh, received three Academy Awards nominations. Tarantino's diverse work as a producer exemplifies both his commitment to first-time filmmakers and his support for his experienced peers and colleagues.

Design Showcase West, created by UCLA TFT, is the only national entertainment design showcase on the West Coast featuring the work of students graduating from the nation's top university design programs, including UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television; American Film Institute; California Institute of the Arts; California State University, Long Beach; Carnegie Mellon's West Coast Drama Clan; Chapman University's Dodge College of Film and Media Arts; New York University; San Diego State University; University of California, Davis; University of California, Irvine; University of California, San Diego; University of Missouri, Kansas City; University of Nevada, Las Vegas; and University of Texas, Austin. Exhibits range from costume design to scenic, sound, lighting and production design. Studio executives, film and television producers, artistic directors and professional designers attend DSW to meet the fresh rising stars in the industry.

As part of DSW, the UCLA TFT David C. Copley Center for Costume Design has established a unique partnership with Swarovski, the world's leading producer of precision-cut crystal, to confer its Swarovski Shooting Star Award upon a UCLA TFT M.F.A. costume design student who has shown exemplary strides in his/her work.

The Copley Center/Swarovski collaboration includes the annual Swarovski/Copley Center Sketch to Screen: Costume Design Oscar Celebration; the Swarovski Designer-in-Residence program; and the Swarovski Shooting Star Award for Excellence in Costume Design.

Design Showcase West is made possible through the support of our corporate partner Spylight and benefactor M·A·C Cosmetics. It is hosted by the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television's Department of Theater and distinguished members of the Art Directors Guild, Local 800; United Scenic Artists, Local 829; Costume Designers Guild, Local 892; Set Decorators Society of America; Motion Picture Costumers, IATSE Local 705; and International Silks and Woolens.