Steven E. de Souza, the screenwriter of “Die Hard” and “Commando,” spent two days at Utah Valley University this week teaching seminars and providing insights from his decadeslong film career with students.
Over the next year, de Souza will mentor eight UVU students who aspire to work in the entertainment industry as part of the Green Room program — a student mentorship program launched in 2024 through UVU and FanX Studios.
“I was lucky enough to have some great mentors when I started out,” de Souza told the Deseret News. “I learned from all of them, and they learn from people before them. So I feel like I am sort of passing along knowledge I’ve gained from giants who went way before me, and this is the next group of giants.”
On Wednesday night, de Souza hosted an exclusive screening of “Die Hard” for UVU students, and presented eight students with the Brandon Fugal Fellowship.
The goal is for student screenplays to progress into development at FanX Studios.
“This initiative isn’t just about lectures or workshops, it’s about mentors and collaboration and giving students the real life connections to work in our industry,” Brent Baum, a FanX Studios executive, said. “The Green Room is opening doors for the next generation of creators.”
Students were selected because they “demonstrated exceptional storytelling ability, originality, condition,” Baum said.
The eight selected students will spend the next year writing a screenplay, with direction and insight from de Souza. They were also awarded $5,000 as part of a writing contract.
“This is a moment we have been working toward for a couple of months, so the culminations of it finally happening was definitely shock ... shock but also extremely grateful,” Kaylee Hoth, one of the selected students, told the Deseret News.
Hoth continued, “I’m really excited to get a feature script written and to have the support of not only Steven (de Souza), but also our faculty mentor, Max Burnett.”
Andrew Weech, another selected student, described winning as “pure euphoria,” adding, “The chance to work with (de Souza) is just a dream come true.”
After presenting the eight selected students with their awards, de Souza told them, “I think there’s all kinds of professional things I can tell you to sharpen your craft, and particularly your own critical sense, to make your own work better.”
