Meet Leo Charney: A Yale graduate with a masters in Film from New York University who is the public voice of Provost Ron Daniels.
DP: Where are you from?
Leo Charney: New York City.
DP: Do you miss New York City now that you live in Philadelphia?
LC: I'm happy not to live [in New York City.] It is a great place to grow up, but a harder place to live. It's crowded, noisy.
DP: What is your favorite childhood memory?
LC: Going to the movies. A huge part of growing up in New York is going to the movies. First as a child and then as a teen, the focus of our social life was going to the movies on a Saturday night.
DP: Do you have a favorite movie?
LC: Yes. Nashville.
DP: Why? What are you looking for in a good movie?
LC: I tend to like movies that are strongly about characters and people and life.
DP: What exactly do you do at Penn?
LC: I manage communications and outreach for the Provost.
DP: What is the hardest part of your job?
LC: A lot of times when we can't talk about certain things for legal reasons.
DP: What is a typical day in the life of Leo Charney?
LC: A lot of, well, it's hard to say. A lot of the nature of the job is dealing with things that come up. Dealing with reporters, the DP, some long term strategy, but a lot of dealing with [issues on] a day to day basis. You need to be flexible.
DP: What is your favorite animal?
LC: I don't want to say cats, because I don't want to get in trouble with dog people. That's the way communications people think. But really, cats.
DP: Would you ever get a lion as a pet?
LC: No. I have a 5-year-old son. I shudder to think of the implications of getting a lion. He can get into trouble with just stuffed animals!
DP: Do you have a message to the Penn student body?
LC: College is one of the greatest times of your life, and everyone should just totally make the most of it - try new things, try crazy things, try things you never thought you could or would do, learn something new, have new experiences, try things and fail, etc.
And, if you want to learn more about Leo, be sure to take one of his film classes, which he teaches twice a year.
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