page_title: Amar Kaleka
section_title: Graduate School Career - Savannah College of Art and Design
hierarchical_section_title: Amar Kaleka / Biography / Graduate School Career - Savannah College of Art and Design
caption_attribution_description: English: SCAD Photo - Bob Jones
context_page_description: Amardeep Singh Kaleka is an Indian-American film director who won a regional Emmy Award for his direction of the short film Jacob's Turn in 2010 and another one for Esperanza. Following his father's death in the Wisconsin Sikh temple shooting in 2012, Kaleka became involved in politics, supporting gun control, progressive economic reform, and the peace agenda. During the summer of 2014, he ran unsuccessfully in the Democratic primary for the United States House of Representatives in Wisconsin's 1st congressional district, losing to Rob Zerban.
context_section_description: In September 2004, Amar entered an M.F.A. program at the Savannah College of Art & Design, focusing on film and television production.
  In addition to his studies,  Amar played flag football and was the founder and first president of the Savannah Film Collective, a student-run film group. Amar directed over twenty short film projects including the following list:
  Grass Between My Lips (2008) - Winner of the Remy Award at the Houston International Film Festival
  Love Letter (2008) - Made for Project Greenlight: Finalist submission.
  We The People (2008)
  Binding Faith (2007)
  Kaleka was the cinematographer and editor of many more films during his time at SCAD including the following list:
  Threads (2005)
  Employee of the Month (2005)
  Kaleka graduated with a MFA in Film and Television production in 2009 with the submission of his thesis entitled: Crouching India, Hidden China: A Glimpse Into the Global Entertainment Marketplace.
  An excerpt of the thesis reads: 
  For many reasons Hollywood has enjoyed a century of dominance in the worldwide film industry.  Though it continues to thrive, trends and technologies are threatening the comfortable position that Hollywood has been accustomed to holding.  Production and markets outside of California are continually growing, and studios are beginning to respond to the cultural shift.  While Hollywood has organization and experience on its side, international entertainment industries are training their slingshots on the American Goliath.
caption: SCAD photo (2007, age 28).
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