Anthony B. Major, M.F.A.

• Program Director
• Anthony.Major@ucf.edu
• 407-823-3448
• Office Hours: Daily but varies, call first
• Campus Location: CAH190E
• View personal website

ANTHONY B. MAJOR is Program Director for the Zora Neale Hurston Institute for Documentary Studies, CAH, Dean's Office and Associate Professor/Film Department at the University of Central Florida. Mr. Major has produced and directed several theatre and film productions here at UCF, in collaboration with the nationally renowned, Zora Neale Hurston Festival of the Arts, in Eatonville, Florida. Among them: Celebrating Fifty Years of Black Theatre, honoring Sidney Poitier and the late Ossie Davis; Zora! Celebration of New Black Cinema Film Festival,honoring Mr. Gordon Parks, with Mr. Richard Roundtree and a world premier of the film Against The Ropes directed by Charles Dutton.

His students document the Zora Festival for research purposes. He produced documentaries and exhibits on Jesse L. Brown, the 1st. African- American Navy Ensign Pilot, shot down during the Korean War and Goldsboro, An American Story about an African-American incorporated town, unincorporated by the town of Sanford, Florida. He won a Grant for the UCF Theatre Department for teaching and directing the 1st. place winners in the A&E Great Gatsby National Screen Test. Booker Performing Arts High School in Sarasota, FL. recently honored him with the first "Leaving a Legacy" Award by renaming their rehearsal hall the Anthony B. "Tony" Major Rehearsal Hall.

Prior to coming to UCF, Mr. Major was Vice President of the Redd Foxx Corporation for six years, where he produced Foxx and Friends on Broadway, worked on The Royal Family - CBS-TV Series, negotiated Redd FOXX's contract for the movie Harlem Nights, Ghost of a Chance - a CBS-TV movie of the week with Dick Van Dyke and Geoffrey Holder, and The Motown Christmas Special. Mr. Major returned to Florida to work as Stage Manager with Dolly Parton on her television series Heavens to Betsy at Disney/MGM Studios. He has a BA in Theatre Arts from Hofstra University and an MFA from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts. He began his teaching career on the Tisch School of the Arts Graduate and Undergraduate Film faculties. He has been listed in the Black Directory of Performing Arts and was appointed by Florida's Secretary of Education to the board of The Florida Institute of Film Education (FIFE) and also served on the State Board of Independent Colleges and Universities of the State of Florida.

His career spans three decades of directing, acting, teaching, producing, and working with Academy Award winners Alan Pakula, Robert Mulligan, Robert DeNiro, Hal Ashby, Beau Bridges, Sidney Poitier, James Earl Jones, William Friedkin, Harry Belafonte, Eddie Murphy, Della Reese and Gil Lewis, to name a few. He wrote and directed the Award winning short Off-Duty, segments for the NBC-TV syndicated That Teen Show and the nationally and internationally distributed feature film, Super Spook, a parody on super heroes. Mr. Major was the 1st. Assistant Director to Sandy Tung on the feature Across the Tracks, which starred Brad Pitt and Rick Schroder. He again worked in Hollywood with Mr. Tung as Assistant Director on the feature film Confessions of a Sexist Pig, starring Orlando's own, Traylor Howard.

Mr. Major served the Dean of UCF/CAS as the Acting Program Director of the UCF Film Program for the school year 1998-1999, Associate Chair/Film Department 2002-2003, Assistant Director, School of Film and Digital Media 2003-2005 and as Managing Director of the UCF CIVIC THEATRE, (currently known as The Orlando Repertory Theatre), 2001/2002. He spent seven years in UCF Conservatory Theatre where he directed A Raisin in the Sun, The Odd Couple, To Be Young Gifted and Black (which he also guest starred in), No Place To Be Somebody, I'm Not Rappaport, Biloxi Blues, In The Well Of The House, with Broadway Guest Star Mr. Gilbert Lewis playing Adam Clayton Powell Jr. and Nunsense. He guest starred in Theatre UCF's production of an African-American version of Death of a Salesman, as Willy Loman; Sgt. Waters in A Soldier's Play, and the 'Woodcutter' in Rashomon. Mr. Major began his acting career with the New York Shakespeare Festival, acted on Broadway in We Interrupt This Program ... and toured in the Negro Ensemble Company's award winning production of Charlie Fuller's Pulitzer Prize winning Drama A Soldier's Play in the lead role of Sgt. Waters. He directed the play Home, with Broadway Guest Star, Mr. Gilbert Lewis, for a United Negro College Fund college tour. His music background led him to manage and record Grammy and Tony award winning, million-dollar recording artists.

Education

• M.F.A. in Film and Television from New York University (1973)
• B.A. in Theatre from Hofstra University (1964)

Research Interests

• Documenting the history and contributions of under served communities.

Recent Research Activities

• Developing a ZNHIDS Digital Repository/Archive of Zora Neale Hurston and her work here at UCF.
• Developing Exhibits on Zora Neale Hurston, Goldsboro and Jesse L. Brown to tour nationally and be permanently housed in the national Navy Museum in Pensacola. Fl.
• Developing Documentary of Zora and her Eatonville and Sanford roots.
• Developing Documentary on History of Black Churches in Winter Park, Fl.
• Developing Documentary series on Minorities at UCF.

Awards

• 2009 - Mr. Major was the recipient of the EXCELLENCE IN EDUCATION AWARD by the Black History Committee of Orange County.

• Booker Performing Arts High School in Sarasota, FL. (his former H.S.), recently honored Mr. Major with it's first "Leaving a Legacy" Award by renaming their rehearsal hall the Anthony B. "Tony" Major Rehearsal Hall.

• He won a Grant for the UCF Theatre Department for teaching and directing the 1st. place winners in the A&E Great Gatsby National Screen Test.

• Judges Best Film short Award "OFF-DUTY", Long Island, N. Y. Film Festival - Writer/Director/Editor

• Best Director Oscar, For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When The Rainbow Is Enuf, Los Angeles, Ca.

• Best Director Award, Heritage Players of Florida, Sarasota, Fl.

• Best Acting Award, Hofstra University.

• Listed into Directory Of Blacks In The Performing Arts.

• Highest Rating/FIFE workshop on Acting for Film and TV, given at the Fifth Annual TV and Video Production Conference for High School Teachers

Activities

• Developing a ZNHIDS Digital Repository/Archive of Zora Neale Hurston and her work here at UCF.
• Developing Exhibits on Zora Neale Hurston, Goldsboro and Jesse L. Brown to tour nationally and be permanently housed in the national Navy Museum in Pensacola. Fl.
• Developing a TV Special Documentary on Eatonville's 125th. year anniversary celebration as the oldest incorporated African-American town.
• Developing Documentary of Zora and her Eatonville and Sanford roots.
• Developing Documentary on History of Black Churches in Winter Park, Fl.
• Developing Documentary series on Minorities at UCF.

Courses

Updated: Dec 6, 2011