Emerson Bolsters Board with Powerhouse Lineup from Entertainment, Finance, and Marketing

The Emerson College Board of Trustees is welcoming four new members, and one returning member, representing the worlds of film, television, popular fiction, finance, and marketing.

Screenwriter, producer, and New York Times bestselling author Seth Grahame-Smith ’98; Joseph J. Johnson III, P ’27, managing director and head of liabilities at Lafayette Square Holding Company, LLC; Adele Lim ’96, LHD ’22, screenwriter of Crazy Rich Asians and director of Joy Ride; and Paul J. Morra ’95, founder of production and creative agency Swift River Productions are all new additions.

And returning to the Board is Max Mutchnick ’87, LHD ’13, creator and executive producer of the groundbreaking sitcom Will & Grace.

The Board of Trustees (link) reviews and approves the strategic direction of the College, and stewards the use of its resources. Its 24 members, plus President Jay Bernhardt, set College policies and procedures, approve additions or changes to academic programs, authorize and/or establish financial policies, and approve real estate transactions, among other powers. 

Seth Grahame-Smith

Seth Grahame-Smith is a Los Angeles-based writer and producer who’s worked with filmmakers including Steven Spielberg, Ron Howard, and Tim Burton. To date, his movies have grossed more than $2 billion at the box office, ranging from family fare like The Lego Batman Movie, to the highest-grossing horror movie of all time, Stephen King’s It.

As an author, Seth is credited with creating the ‘mash-up’ literary genre with his bestselling novels Pride and Prejudice and Zombies and Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, both of which were adapted into feature films.

Along with his producing partner, David Katzenberg, Seth is the co-founder of KatzSmith Productions, a film and television company dedicated to telling elevated genre stories. His current projects include the upcoming Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, and a new Star Trek film.

Joseph J. Johnson III

Joseph Johnson is a Managing Director and Head of Liabilities at Lafayette Square Holding Company, LLC, a New York-based firm focused on delivering capital to low- and moderate-income communities. He has worked in finance and investment banking for his entire career, including almost 23 years at Goldman Sachs. Johnson chairs the board of the Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone, and sits on the boards of directors for Columbia Children’s Hospital and the Classical Theatre of Harlem.

He holds a BA in Economics from Maryville College in Tennessee, and ABD status for a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. He also attended the University of Michigan and the Kennedy School at Harvard University as an Alfred P. Sloan Fellow.

Adele Lim

Adele Lim is a film and television producer, screenwriter, and director based in Los Angeles. She co-wrote the screenplay for the blockbuster hit, Crazy Rich Asians (2018), one of the highest grossing romantic comedies of the last decade, as well as the Oscar-nominated animated film Raya and the Last Dragon (2021). In 2023, she made her directorial debut with the Asian woman-centered road comedy Joy Ride, which was nominated for several awards, including an NAACP Image Award and an Audience Award at SXSW.

Over the past 20 years, she has worked with various community groups and organizations to nurture the next generation of storytellers in Hollywood and promote diversity both in front of and behind the camera. She has mentored up and coming film artists through the Writers Guild of America, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, The Sundance Institute, CAPE (Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment), Gold House, and American Film Institute.  Lim is a member of the WGA and DGA, and sits on several industry committees and boards.

Paul J. Morra

Paul Morra is partner, executive producer, and director of Swift River Productions, a Los Angeles-based film, television, and brand marketing agency with offices in New York City. The Swift River team has earned industry awards and recognition for their work with international brands, including Microsoft, Xbox, Adidas, Amazon, Samuel Adams, and Wynn Resorts. He is also co-founder of Power to the Patients, a bipartisan effort and campaign to pass healthcare price transparency legislation for all Americans.

As a member of the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, he also co-created a number of television shows, including IFC’s critically acclaimed The Henry Rollins Show. The Emmy nominee began his career as an assistant cameraman and member of the IATSE Local 600, working on the sets of Titanic, The Peacemaker and Bowfinger, among other films.

Morra has stayed very involved with the Emerson community, serving as Vice Chairman of the Alumni Board of Directors, working with Emerson Los Angeles’ internship program to mentor dozens of Emerson students; and helping to launch ELA’s mentorship program the Career Advisory Network (CAN).

Max Mutchnick

Max Mutchnick is the creator and executive producer of the Emmy Award-winning sitcom Will & Grace, along with several other television shows. He previously served as an Emerson Trustee from 2005 to 2018.

Mutchnick grew up in Los Angeles. After school, he would take cabs to Paramount Studios, where his mother worked, and roam the sound stages of Happy Days and Mork & Mindy. He began writing with his best friend from high school, David Kohan, working together on shows including The Wonder Years and Boston Common, and forming a production company, KoMut Entertainment. 

In addition to his Emmy, Mutchnick has been honored with People’s Choice Awards and multiple Golden Globe nominations. He and Kohan currently are in post-production on Mid-Century Modern, a sitcom starring Nathan Lane, Matt Bomer, Linda Lavin, and Nathan Lee Grant, for HULU and Disney, directed by James Burrows.