{"id":167372,"date":"2026-08-03T10:04:17","date_gmt":"2026-08-03T14:04:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/?p=167372"},"modified":"2026-08-03T10:04:17","modified_gmt":"2026-08-03T14:04:17","slug":"designing-dreams","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/2026\/08\/03\/designing-dreams\/","title":{"rendered":"Designing dreams"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"A<\/a>

Academy Award-winner Hannah Beachler \u201905 balanced parenthood, multiple jobs and her studies in Wright State\u2019s motion pictures program. (Photo by Chris Britt)<\/p><\/div>\n

There is no doubt that Hannah Beachler has made a name for herself in the film industry. Two Academy Award nominations and one win. Three Art Directors Guild Awards. And the list goes on.<\/p>\n

Beachler\u2019s story is rooted far away from the red carpets of Hollywood. It is the story of a young girl from Centerville, Ohio, who always had an eye for design. A student at Wright State University who juggled the responsibilities of being a single mother with the rigors of a demanding motion pictures program<\/a>.<\/p>\n

From fashion design to filmmaking<\/strong><\/h3>\n

A gift for design runs in the Beachler family. With a father who was an architect and a mother who was an interior designer, Beachler was exposed to the design world from an early age and, by 8, set her sights on becoming a fashion designer.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was all I ever wanted to do,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Beachler enrolled at the University of Cincinnati to study fashion design but soon realized the field wasn\u2019t as fulfilling as she had expected.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt started to feel more like work than a passion, and I sort of got lost,\u201d she recalled.<\/p>\n

She would eventually become inspired by the \u201990s music scene in Cincinnati, helping a friend make a music video on an 8mm camera they purchased in a thrift store.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was doing art direction with no idea what I was doing,\u201d said Beachler.<\/p>\n

She recalled telling her mother that she would like to work in film, possibly as a director. After her mother mentioned that Wright State had a film program, Beachler headed back to Dayton and began her studies as a motion pictures student in 2000.<\/p>\n

Like many nontraditional students, Beachler had to balance parenthood, multiple jobs and her studies. She worked as an outreach coordinator at the Boonshoft Museum of Discovery and helped with filing at a Dayton law firm. And she had a young son, Dominic, who was born in 1998.<\/p>\n

One special moment at Wright State came in Bill Lafferty\u2019s class when Beachler brought Dominic, who was home from daycare due to illness. As he rested on a blanket, Dominic raised his hand to ask Lafferty about his favorite Power Ranger.<\/p>\n

\u201cDr. Lafferty said, \u2018I like the pink Power Ranger, and I\u2019ll tell you why.\u2019 Then he flipped it into a color discussion about \u2018Red Desert,\u2019 which is the Michelangelo Antonioni film that we were studying,\u201d said Beachler. \u201cI just thought it was brilliant.\u201d<\/p>\n

While she rarely brought Dominic to class, she was grateful that she could.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe film program made it so I could go to school. They made it so I could keep learning, and I could have my family,\u201d she said. \u201cFor a young, single mother, it made life a lot easier.\u201d<\/p>\n

Beachler\u2019s family and peers were also a constant source of support. She developed a close friendship with Carol Trevino, a fellow classmate and single mother of three young children.<\/p>\n

\u201cCarol was so creative and more mature than me and everybody else. She had a lot more life experience, so she brought a lot more to her stories,\u201d Beachler said. \u201cShe just had this way about her that was very motherly, very nurturing. She was always there for me, no matter what.\u201d<\/p>\n

On Beachler\u2019s birthday, Trevino surprised her with a cake in the Creative Arts Center basement, where the motion pictures students would gather.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t even know that she knew it was my birthday,\u201d said Beachler. \u201cI certainly wasn\u2019t celebrating because I was trying to get projects done. She got everybody else in the program to come, and they sang \u2018Happy Birthday.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Following Trevino\u2019s tragic death in a car accident while working on a film in Louisiana, Beachler created a scholarship at Wright State in memory of her dear friend<\/p>\n

\u201cThat unconditional kindness is where the scholarship comes from, because that\u2019s who Carol was,\u201d said Beachler.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

Hannah Beachler\u2019s work on \u201cBlack Panther\u201d earned her her first Academy Award nomination and made history as the first African American to win the Oscar for Best Production Design. (Photo by Chris Britt)<\/p><\/div>\n

Setting the stage for success<\/strong><\/h3>\n

While Beachler initially thought she would become a director, her professors noticed her gift for art direction. Inspired by their encouragement, she spent time in the theatre department learning about scenery and honing her skills at computer-aided design.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was more visual because it was almost 3D,\u201d said Beachler. \u201cYou can turn things around and look at them in ways that you can\u2019t do on a hand-drawn blueprint.\u201d<\/p>\n

One of Beachler\u2019s film projects, \u201cPassion Fruit,\u201d featured Trevino and her children. After her professor told her it didn\u2019t have to be linear, she mixed mediums and genres.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was my best project,\u201d she said. \u201cIt gave me the freedom to not have to stay in a box.\u201d<\/p>\n

Film theory classes were her favorite, and those deep dives into cinema continue to pay off for Beachler to this day. Her command of film history and theory so impressed one producer that it helped open the door to a career-defining collaboration with Ryan Coogler.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe would just watch thousands of films, which gave me a leg up when I started in the industry. I stood out in that way, because I could talk to people about films and theory and the ideas behind them,\u201d she said. \u201cThat was nice, because you have to learn how to have a voice in the film industry.\u201d<\/p>\n

Wright State gave her the confidence and courage to pursue a career in the film industry, where there is far less representation for women, especially women of color. Julia Reichert, the late Wright State faculty member and Oscar-winning documentarian, is still one of Beachler\u2019s role models.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are not many women doing these jobs,\u201d said Beachler. \u201cSeeing Julia be a strong, powerful woman \u2014 a big voice in the industry \u2014 and being successful for as long as she was, doing what she loved, is an inspiration.\u201d<\/p>\n

Beachler believes that Wright State is among the country\u2019s top five film programs and ranks her professors\u2019 passion for the art of film as second to none.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey confirmed that it would never feel like work, like a job. It was purely from your soul and your spirit. That went into all of us. They were serious about it being a real career. It\u2019s almost like they had a stake in us. They were invested in us,\u201d said Beachler. \u201cWright State made it possible for me to do what I do.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>

Hannah Beachler was honored as Wright State\u2019s Alumna of the Year in 2018. (Photo by Erin Pence)<\/p><\/div>\n

Working toward a defining collaboration<\/strong><\/h3>\n

After graduating in 2005, Beachler packed her car and headed to New Orleans, where she started as a set dresser. She was at the bottom, but she focused on learning everything, and she kept working.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt took a while to get my first set decorator job. I can remember jumping up and down and screaming,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

A few years later, fellow Wright State alumna Karri O\u2019Reilly \u201994 offered her a production designer role. After a few jobs, the work dried up. One of her mentors helped her move past the setback.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe really straightened me out,\u201d Beachler recalled. \u201cHe said, \u2018Number one, stop feeling sorry for yourself. Number two, you\u2019re lucky to be working in the industry at all. And number three, go get an agent.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

After about 50 agencies turned her down, Beachler shifted her focus to boutique firms and ultimately secured an agent.<\/p>\n

The first script her new agent gave her was for \u201cFruitvale Station,\u201d directed by Ryan Coogler.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s when everything changed.<\/p>\n

Coogler was only 25 when filming started on \u201cFruitvale Station.\u201d The budget was so small that Beachler\u2019s lodging in Oakland during the five-week shoot wasn\u2019t covered. She dog sat during that time, so she\u2019d have a place to stay.<\/p>\n

\u201cRyan and I got along famously,\u201d she said. \u201cI just knew in my heart that he was going to be an important director.\u201d<\/p>\n

A year later, Coogler contacted Beachler about working on \u201cCreed.\u201d And then came the project that would change the trajectory of both of their careers \u2014 \u201cBlack Panther.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t even know what it was,\u201d said Beachler. \u201cMy son was freaking out. My agent was freaking out.\u201d<\/p>\n

Knowing that about 100 people were interviewing to lead production design on the blockbuster Marvel film, Beachler thought she had no chance of being selected. She was just grateful to be in the same room with some of the biggest names in the business.<\/p>\n

But Beachler still poured her heart, soul and pocketbook into landing the job.<\/p>\n

\u201cI spent every dollar I had,\u201d said Beachler. \u201cI was literally like, \u2018If I don\u2019t get this job, I\u2019m going to be homeless.\u2019 And that was real. I had put everything into it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The day after her presentation, Beachler was driving to the airport when Coogler called.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe said, \u2018You got the job.\u2019 And I just started crying,\u201d Beachler recalled. \u201cI\u2019m glad he told me to pull over, because I would have wrecked. We just screamed and cried over the phone.\u201d<\/p>\n

She then called her agent, who was also in a state of shock. Her agent said, \u201cYou just scorched the earth in Hollywood, because they had to call everybody back and tell them that you got the job.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>

Hannah Beachler visited Wright State after winning the Academy Award for Best Production Design for \u201cBlack Panther.\u201d (Photo by Erin Pence)<\/p><\/div>\n

A historic win<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Even after landing \u201cBlack Panther,\u201d Beachler still credited Wright State for her success.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think a lot of people in LA and Hollywood were shocked, because it usually takes years to get to that. And I kind of jumped in a really big way,\u201d said Beachler. \u201cAnd it was all because of what I learned in my training and my knowledge of film from Wright State. There were kids from NYU, USC and UCLA that weren\u2019t doing that and didn\u2019t have that same knowledge.\u201d<\/p>\n

Beachler\u2019s work on \u201cBlack Panther\u201d led to her first Academy Award nomination and her historic milestone as the first African American to win an Oscar<\/a> for Best Production Design.<\/p>\n

\u201cStanding up there, I was shaking like a leaf. I was fighting back tears, and I was overwhelmed,\u201d she recalled. \u201cBut the one thing that didn\u2019t leave me was the thought of Carol and the fact that this is way bigger than me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Beachler knew that the eyes of young girls and women of color with similar dreams were on her at that moment.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt wasn\u2019t just me getting a gold statue, but the ripple effect that it could cause and that I wanted it to cause,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

While Beachler is a trailblazer, she is far too modest to describe herself as one. She prefers to remain true to her Midwestern roots and stay grounded in an industry known for being cutthroat and soul crushing.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou have to keep your feet on the ground and your head out of the clouds to make it through Hollywood,\u201d she said. \u201cThe industry can eat you up. It can gobble you up and spit you out. Being from some place like Ohio, you will last longer because you have come from a place of being grounded.\u201d<\/p>\n

When she is not working, Beachler prefers to retreat to her Yellow Springs farm, not far from the Wright State campus where she first honed her craft. Away from the world of Hollywood, she is committed to putting her passion for design into projects that will help improve the human condition.<\/p>\n

\u201cDesign goes much deeper than just the facade of any one set,\u201d she said. \u201cFor me, it\u2019s: How can I turn some of these crazy ideas I have into working reality to make people\u2019s lives better? Can I make it easier for young girls in Africa to not have to spend their day walking for water? Can I figure out how to filter water from contaminated waterways and bring it to them? Now they only have to get an education. Maybe one of those girls will be the next big innovator. And if they\u2019re not going to school, we\u2019ll never know.\u201d<\/p>\n

In her immediate future, Beachler is busy collaborating with Coogler on a reboot of the television series \u201cThe X-Files.\u201d She has made sure to pay homage to the original series in her design.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love Easter eggs. I love to put things in there for people to look for,\u201d she said. \u201cI can\u2019t wait for it to come out. It\u2019ll be even more beautiful than you\u2019re expecting. It\u2019s such a cool story that Ryan wrote, and I\u2019m so excited.\u201d<\/p>\n

As she reflects on her life and career, Beachler acknowledges that her success has exceeded any dream that she ever had. She encourages current students to stay the course in any path they decide to pursue.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo the young people going to Wright State with a big dream \u2014 whatever that dream is \u2014 know that if I can make my dream come true, so can you,\u201d said Beachler. \u201cYou just have to look to the community around you to get there and then hold steady and keep moving forward. And just remember that a \u2018no\u2019 is never a \u2018no,\u2019 it\u2019s just a change in direction.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Oscar-winning designer\u2019s journey from Wright State student to Hollywood trailblazer is a story of resilience and reinvention. Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":167376,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[722,733,4309,4299,4859,725,747,4827,715,4297],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-167372","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-academics","category-alumni","category-alumni-association","category-alumni-profile","category-fine-and-performing-arts","category-home-news-sidebar","category-liberal-arts","category-magazine","category-news","category-people-of-wright-state"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/167372","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=167372"}],"version-history":[{"count":17,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/167372\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":167488,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/167372\/revisions\/167488"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/167376"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=167372"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=167372"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=167372"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}