January faculty and staff features

Anne Schaeffer, a well-known and experienced direct marketing educator, has been named managing director of Virginia Commonwealth University’s Interactive Marketing Institute.

Schaeffer previously led the education, conference and councils events departments at the Direct Marketing Association. During her nearly 25-year tenure, Schaeffer was instrumental in creating the DM Certificate, the Insurance DM Certificate and the SEM Certificate, as well as in expanding the DMA’s curriculum by more than 30 courses. She was responsible for numerous other educational events, delivering innovative and cutting edge information to thousands of direct marketers annually.

“We’re incredibly excited to have Anne join IMI,” said Judy Turk, director of the VCU School of Mass Communications, home of the Interactive Marketing Institute. “It’s a great way to celebrate the Institute’s 10th anniversary of delivering the most respected professional certification in direct marketing. I know she’ll be a tremendous asset as we update the curriculum to reflect the challenges of the current economy and the opportunities that today’s developing technologies present and continue to provide the most valuable DM education available anywhere.”

In addition to her role as managing director of IMI, Schaeffer is the membership director of the Direct Marketing Idea Exchange and a marketing consultant to the American Institute of Chemical Engineers. 

Sterling Hundley, assistant professor, Department of Communication Arts
Hundley has been recognized with two Gold Medals from the Society of Illustrators in New York. These awards are among the highest annual merits of honor in American illustration. The international competition receives thousands of entries every year. Hundley has now won five Gold Medals, including four over the past three years. Hundley’s award-winning illustrations this year include “Shipwreck,” which was created for Virginia Living magazine, and an illustration for Arthur Miller’s “Death of a Salesman,” which was commissioned by Arena Stage in Washington, D.C., for a performance of the play. Tyler Darden, an adjunct professor in communication arts at VCU, served as art director on the “Shipwreck” piece. Hundley will also be featured in the January/February issue of Communication Arts magazine. 

Sonali Gulati, assistant professor of filmmaking, Department of Photography and Filmmaking
Gulati’s short film, “24 Frames Per Day,” was selected for the 14th annual Slamdance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. The film was one of fewer than 100 chosen for a screening at the prestigious festival, which received more than 3,500 film submissions this year. The film will have two showings during the festival, which runs from Jan. 17 through Jan. 25. “24 Frames Per Day” is a seven-minute film that uses time-lapse photography to show 24 photos of the same scene taken each day for nine months. Each photo shows the front entryway of Gulati’s home. The images are juxtaposed with a conversation between an Indian woman and a taxicab driver.