Fueling student creativity through industry insight
Ringling College of Art and Design’s Green Light Speaker Series brings acclaimed artists, filmmakers, and entertainment industry leaders to the Sarasota community in support of the Film Program’s Green Light Fund—an initiative that provides aspiring student filmmakers with the resources, mentorship, and real-world opportunities needed to bring their creative visions to life.
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2025 Guest Speaker
An Evening with Dennis Quaid
Thursday, November 20, 2025
6-8:30 pm
Ringling College Studio Labs Soundstage and Post-Production Complex
Proceeds support the Ringling College Film Green Light Fund, which gives students critical resources, hands-on experience, and direct access to industry professionals—key reasons The Hollywood Reporter consistently ranks us among the “Top 20 U.S. Film Schools.”
Dennis Quaid is an Emmy® Award and two-time Golden Globe® nominee with 150 television and film credits to his name. He is known for his roles in hit films The Rookie, The Day After Tomorrow, Traffic, Vantage Point, Frequency, The Parent Trap, Soul Surfer, The Right Stuff, Breaking Away, Midway, and many more. Most recently, he plays the title character in the Paramount+ series Happy Face, a true crime drama based on the story of Melissa Jesperson-Moore, who at age 15 discovered that her father was the Happy Face Killer.
In 2024, he portrayed the 40th president of the United States in the biopic Reagan. Quaid’s other recent big-screen credits include The Long Game, which earned the audience award at SXSW in 2023 as well Oscar nominated film, The Substance.
Alongside his acting career, Quaid is also a respected singer-songwriter with hundreds of thousands of miles under his belt as a recording and touring musician who’s been playing music since his grandfather bought him his first guitar. In 2023, Quaid released his Christian inspirational album, Fallen. The record tells the story of Quaid’s personal faith journey through classic hymns he grew up with and original songs.
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2024 Guest Speaker
Laura Linney
Golden Globe, SAG, and Emmy award-winning actress Laura Linney was a guest speaker for the Green Light Speaker Series on November 19, 2024.
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