Keynote: From Pegtown to Tinseltown - The "Mattoon Mafia" on Their Journey to Hollywood
Location
West Reading Room
Start Date
26-9-2026 1:30 PM
End Date
26-9-2026 2:30 PM
Description
Join us for this keynote panel featuring three exceptional alums from Mattoon and/or EIU. Screenwriters Craig Titley and Luke Ryan are joined by independent film director Damien LeVeck to share their stories on their journeys from "Pegtown" Mattoon to "Tinseltown" Hollywood.
Moderated by Professor Todd Bruns, this panel discussion will explore how the "Mattoon Mafia" made their respective journeys to the entertainment capital of the world, and share insights on their experiences in the film industry.
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Keynote: From Pegtown to Tinseltown - The "Mattoon Mafia" on Their Journey to Hollywood
West Reading Room
Join us for this keynote panel featuring three exceptional alums from Mattoon and/or EIU. Screenwriters Craig Titley and Luke Ryan are joined by independent film director Damien LeVeck to share their stories on their journeys from "Pegtown" Mattoon to "Tinseltown" Hollywood.
Moderated by Professor Todd Bruns, this panel discussion will explore how the "Mattoon Mafia" made their respective journeys to the entertainment capital of the world, and share insights on their experiences in the film industry.
Comments
Craig Titley
Craig Titley is a feature film and television writer/producer whose credits include the first live-action Scooby-Doo movie (shared credit with James Gunn), Cheaper by the Dozen, and Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief. He most recently wrote the Ancient Aliens movie in development at Legendary Pictures and a modern adaptation of the classic Quatermain adventure novels. To date his movies and their sequels have earned nearly a billion dollars in worldwide box office receipts.
In television, Titley worked with George Lucas and Lucasfilm Animation, penning episodes of Star Wars: The Clone Wars. He was a writer/producer on the NBC super-hero series The Cape and an Executive Producer and writer on Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. He is currently developing a series for NetFlix and the producers of Stranger Things.
Titley is a graduate of Eastern Illinois University (with degrees in both English and Business Management) and spent countless hours in the stacks at Booth Library, which he considered his second home at EIU. He also received his MFA in Film Production from the University of Southern California’s Peter Stark Program, and is currently completing a Ph.D. in Mythological Studies.
Damien LeVeck
Damien LeVeck is quickly emerging as a distinctive voice and creative iconoclast in modern horror filmmaking. His debut feature, The Cleansing Hour (2020), became one of Shudder's most-watched titles, earning praise for its relentless pacing and inventive twist on the exorcism genre. He followed it with A Creature Was Stirring (2023), a holiday horror thriller starring Chrissy Metz (This Is Us), Annalise Basso( Oculus),and Scout Taylor-Compton( Halloween),further cementing his reputation for delivering stylish, unsettling, and emotionally grounded genre films.
Damien approaches horror not just as a vehicle for scares, but as a lens to explore morality, evil, and the deeper questions that haunt human existence. His films aim to provoke thought as much as fear, leaving audiences with narratives that resonate well beyond the final frame. His work as a director has been greatly influenced by over two decades of professional film and TV editing. As an Editor, he developed an intuitive sense of story structure, rhythm, and visual storytelling-skills that make him efficient and decisive on set.
Damien grew up in Mattoon, Illinois and graduated from Mattoon High School before moving to Los Angeles to attend the University of Southern California.
Luke Ryan
Luke Ryan is an American screenwriter, producer, and global franchise specialist who has over two decades of experience working with the largest entertainment properties in the world.
As a screenwriter, Luke specializes in adaptations of complex intellectual property as well as rewrites and on-set script work. He most recently delivered the official Fleetwood Mac biopic, RUMOURS, to Warner Music Group. Luke’s previous work includes an adaptation of History Channel’s ANCIENT ALIENS documentary franchise into a feature film for Legendary Entertainment, who came to their senses and hired his longtime friend, mentor and fellow EIU alum, Craig Titley after Luke delivered a script no one liked, as well as adaptations of Jon Milton’s PARADISE LOST, also for Legendary with Bradley Cooper attached to star, children’s favorite WALTER THE FARTING DOG for Paramount, Chinese classic THE WATER MARGIN for CMC Capital Partners/BaseFX, and Roger Zalazny’s epic sci-fi/fantasy book series THE CHRONICLES OF AMBER.
Luke is currently executive producing a tentpole streaming adaptation of Jennifer L. Armentrout’s fantasy novel series FROM BLOOD AND ASH for Amazon Studios with Anne Cofell Saunders (THE BOYS, BATTLESTAR GALACTICA) attached as showrunner and has previously served as a producer or production executive on hit feature films such as HAROLD & KUMAR GO TO WHITE CASTLE, HOT TUB TIME MACHINE, PACIFIC RIM, STRAIGHT OUTTA COMPTON, , and GODZILLA (2014).
Luke is also consistently hired as an expert in the management of global entertainment franchises and has spent the last decade consulting on the creative, marketing, and licensing aspects of titles such as AVATAR 2, LORD OF THE RINGS, WHEEL OF TIME, and DUNE.
He has served as a senior executive at New Line Cinema, MTV/Paramount, and MGM.