Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/1316563
N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 0 | P E R S P E C T I V E 7 C O N T R I B U T O R S H O W A R D C U M M I N G S , a California native raised mostly in Virginia, received an MFA in Set Design from New York University. Howard's early career included designing period dramas for the PBS series American Playhouse. During that time, he was mentored by the Oscar-winning screenwriter and legendary playwright Horton Foote. After years of loving living in New York, Howard made the move to L.A. to broaden his connections. Cummings has been fortunate enough to learn from and collaborate with a veritable 'Who's Who" of esteemed directors. His affiliations include such directors as Francis Coppola, Bryan Singer, John Schlesinger, Bruce Beresford and Chris Columbus. Howard's single biggest influence and longest standing relationship has been with Steven Soderbergh for whom he worked exclusively for about seven years, working on five films and multiple television projects. Cummings received an Emmy Award, an Art Directors Guild Award and a BAFTA nomination for the HBO film Behind the Candelabra. He also received another Emmy Award and additional Emmy nominations for The Knick Seasons 1-2. Searching for a home to house his collection of mid- century modern furniture, Howard settled in Palm Springs where he happily discovered that several of his neighbors are fellow Production Designers. S U Z E T T E E R V I N serves as Art Director of Upside-Down Magic. Growing up in Nashville, Tennessee, in a family of Art Directors, fine artists, comedians, writers and magicians, it was decided that only a career in art or entertainment would be acceptable. After studying art and film history, she received her BA in theater arts from Middle Tennessee State University. Ervin began her career at Disney and has worked on numerous television and film projects, including The Tick, Good Luck Charlie and Richie Rich. J E S S K E N D E R began her career as a Scenic Artist, painting for shows on and off Broadway, after graduating from Carnegie Mellon University. Raised in New Jersey, where only the strong survive, she moved cross-country to Los Angeles, where she began her motion picture work as a Set Designer and Art Director. For the past 16 years, Jessica has been the Production Designer for a variety of looks for Hulu's Little Fires Everywhere, HBO's The Brink, Showtime's Dexter, Amazon's Goliath, ABC's Shondaland The Catch and Station 19, TNT's Rizzoli & Isles, NBC's Medium and FOX's Life in Pieces, along with the feature film Soaked in Bleach. She received an Art Directors Guild nomination for her work on Hulu's Future Man S1. These shows have taken her around the world from Pakistan to Switzerland and around the country from New England to Seattle—all from inside the zone. Currently, she resides in beautiful downtown Burbank with her husband, Set Designer Sam Page, their daughter Madeline and son Maxwell, her best designs to date.