UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — An accomplished director, screenwriter and showrunner who has worked on series for Showtime, NBC, the CW and other outlets, will serve as Professional-in-Residence for the Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications during the spring semester.
Kamran Pasha, who served as a writer and producer on television shows such as “Reign,” “Nikita” and “Roswell, New Mexico” on the CW, and “Kings” and “Bionic Woman” on NBC, will work closely with a screenwriting class at Penn State. He’ll also conduct a series of workshops and serve as a resource for faculty and student filmmakers.
Dean Marie Hardin said Pasha’s accomplished career is the kind that many students dream of for themselves — so his expertise and experience are important to bring to the University. “Our Professional-in-Residence program is designed to bring accomplished professionals with a diversity of background and experience to the Bellisario College,” Hardin said. “Their time with faculty and students lifts our programs.”
Pasha recently worked as writer-producer on Showtime Network’s drama series set in the American military prison at Guantanamo Bay, directed by Oliver Stone. Previously, Pasha served as a writer and co-producer of Showtime’s Golden Globe and Emmy-nominated series “Sleeper Cell,” about a Muslim FBI agent who infiltrates a terrorist group. Pasha also served as head writer for the “Tron: Uprising” animated series on Disney XD.
Pasha’s movie-making career launched when he sold his first feature script (an historical epic on the love story behind the building of the Taj Mahal) to Warner Bros. Pictures. He is developing a movie on the famed Sufi poet Rumi, as well as a feature film about Ibn Battuta, which follows the adventures of an Arab traveler who journeyed from Morocco to China in the 14th century.
“I am honored and look forward to working closely with everyone at Penn State to bring maximum value to the students and community,” Pasha said. “It’s an exciting opportunity. The Bellisario College of Communications is producing fine young artists and filmmakers and I am looking forward to working with the next generation of storytellers who will shape the future of Hollywood.”
Pasha is a published novelist as well. In 2009, Simon & Schuster published “Mother of the Believers,” a novel showing the rise of Islam from the eyes of Prophet Muhammad’s wife Aisha. His second novel, “Shadow of the Swords,” follows the conflict between Richard the Lionheart and the Muslim leader Saladin for control of Jerusalem during the Crusades.
Pasha earned a bachelor’s degree and an MBA from Dartmouth College, a juris doctor from Cornell Law School and is an alumnus of the MFA Producers Program at UCLA Film School.