Diana Wells came to Tigertown from North Augusta, SC, with her future clearly in focus.
“I just love film, I wanted to go into film, and I wanted to work in film,” said Wells, a World Cinema major. The person who sealed her decision to choose Clemson was Senior Lecturer John Smith, who, for several years, has led the World Cinema program, establishing the major’s solid grounding in film theory.
Wells arrival at Clemson coincided with another arrival to the program: Professor of Practice Sam Sokolow. An experienced film and television producer, Sokolow introduced courses in film production expanded students’ opportunities for experiential learning. Soon, Wells and her classmates were making movies both in and outside the classroom.
“Most of the films we make are not because we have an assignment, it’s because we have an idea and want to do it,” she noted.
In the summer of 2025, two opportunities opened up for Wells that continue to expand her future in film.
The first was a “Maymester” program at the Trilith Institute near Atlanta. Clemson is the accrediting academic partner for the Trilith Institute — the educational arm of Trilith Studios, which is the largest production facility in North America and a filming location for three of the ten highest-grossing films of all time.
In two short weeks, ten Clemson students worked with professionals at Trilith to create a short film called “Unstuck.” Wells calls it one of the top ten experiences of her life.
“It was so gratifying to be there with my peers, witnessing a professional piece of work that we had done together. It was gratifying knowing that we were the first,” she said. “We learned so much about the industry we want to work in in such a fast amount of time.”
The day she returned to Clemson from Trilith, she began an even more ambitious project: Student Film: The Movie. Produced by Sokolow and made possible by a grant from the South Carolina Film Commission, Student Film was the first feature film produced by Clemson University. Wells had the opportunity to serve as associate director, working directly alongside writer and director Julia Fowler (Netflix’s Country Comfort, YouTube’s Southern Women Channel).
“My favorite part of directing is working with actors, Wells explained. “Often [Fowler] would send me on individual missions with specific actors because some of our student actors had never been in anything before, so I was able to kind of work one-on-one with them, which was a lot of responsibility.”
Her experiences at Trilith and on Student Film: The Movie led directly to other film production opportunities with Atlanta-based production companies, including one that filmed on location on the island of Nevis.
This February, she had the opportunity to walk the red carpet as Student Film: The Movie had its invite-only premiere in a packed Brooks Center for the Performing Arts, trading the sweat of production for the sparkle of the theater. Most importantly, she was able to share the moment with the students, faculty, and professional educators who shared her Clemson Experience.
“We have a family of people who are willing to ride for each other, who are willing to really sacrifice their time and our resources for each other, and support each other creatively,” she said.
