You might not have guessed that this celebrity attended community college in Arizona

Scottsdale Community College shared a video of actor, writer, comedian and director Bill Hader congratulating them for being named one of the top film schools in North America by Variety.

Hader, an Emmy-winning actor and filmmaker, graduated from Scottsdale Community College in 1999.

“I’m very proud to have gone to that school because a lot of film schools I talked to people who went to USC and NYU and I tell you what, SCC I made way more stuff than them,” Hader said in the video. “You just make stuff, and you got great teachers but it’s more about doing rather than I don’t know like pontificating.”

He jokingly said this will help students when they go to Hollywood because there’s a lot of pontificating.

Scottsdale Community College Outstanding Alumni Award

On March 30, 2022, Hader received the Scottsdale Community College Outstanding Alumni Award.

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In the article about the ceremony, the school mentioned how Hader is a successful actor and co-creator of HBO’s “Barry” and a former cast member of Saturday Night Live.

He was presented the award by then-Interim President Veronica Hipolito in an online ceremony. Department Chair for the Scottsdale School of Film+Theatre Bill True moderated the discussion.

Hader talked about his career and time at Scottsdale Community College, where he said he gained hands-on experience in screenwriting, acting, filming, editing and producing before moving to Los Angeles in 1999.

The article said Hader took out a minimum investment of $5,000 to shoot a short film to impress Hollywood executives. He also talked about how he struggled with anxiety when creating and performing in his career.

Hader said he would tell his younger self not to worry as much and to have fun with the process. He encouraged students to work on many different projects during their time at school.

“Constantly fall on your face,” Hader said. “Learn lessons from that and learn from everyone around you — it never ends. Become friends with failure.”

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2024’s Top Film Schools in North America

Variety ranked Scottsdale Community College 19th on their list of 2024’s Top Film Schools in North America.

The publication said the list includes universities “as old (or older) than the moving picture itself, to budding programs.” These schools have an “impressive array of educators, facilities and lessons to be learned.”

Variety also stated that countless alumni from these programs have become renowned names in the industry.

For Scottsdale Community College, Variety wrote that the school offers efficient two-year degree programs that develop students for entering the entertainment industry.

“The school’s curriculum is looking ahead to what film and theater professionals will need in the coming decade, and as such, updating courses to prepare students to work in both filmed productions and live events,” according to the article.

Variety said that Scottsdale’s TV/New Media studio is in the early stages of a $250,000 update, focusing on making a space with current equipment and tech that students can use post-graduation. 

Reach the reporter at dina.kaur@arizonarepublic.com. Follow @dina_kaur on X, formerly known as Twitter.

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