UNCSA ties run deep in Amazon’s hit series 'The Summer I Turned Pretty'

When Amazon Prime’s hit series “The Summer I Turned Pretty” splashed onto screens in the summer of 2022, its mix of nostalgia, romance and coming-of-age drama quickly captured audiences around the world. But what many viewers may not realize is the ties the show has to North Carolina and specifically UNCSA.

From filming on our sister campuses of UNC-Chapel Hill and UNC-Wilmington to around the Wilmington area, including Carolina Beach, Kure Beach, Wrightsville Beach, Fort Fisher and Southport, this series is indicative of a larger trend of an increase in film industry investment in North Carolina. Other recent projects filmed in the state include “The Hunting Wives” filmed in Charlotte, “The Waterfront” filmed in Wilmington and Drama alumnus Angus McLauglin’s critically-acclaimed “A Little Prayer” filmed in Winston-Salem.

With an increase in locally filmed projects comes an increase in industry jobs for our locally based alumni as well as real-world opportunities for our students.

While for many this summer has been about finding out if Team Jeremiah or Team Conrad fans would win out, UNCSA has been busy rounding up the connections that our alumni have to UNC-System graduate Jenny Han’s beloved story.

Design & Production

Lizzie Lovett

School of Design & Production Costume Design alumna Lizzie Lovett (M.F.A. ’21) worked on “The Summer I Turned Pretty” as a Costume Coordinator under designer Jessica Flaherty.  As a Wilmington-based artist and an undergraduate alumna of UNC-Wilmington, Lovett has strong ties to the area and has worked on local projects such as “The Confession,” “Words on Bathroom Walls,” and a music video for “Punch Club 2.”

Filmmaking

Anna Ray Smith

School of Filmmaking alumna Anna-Ray Smith (M.F.A. ’20) has made Wilmington her home since graduating from the Creative Producing graduate program. In her time there, she has parlayed her training to land coveted roles, such as program coordinator for the Cucalorus Film Festival in Wilmington. In addition to working as a production secretary on Seasons 2 and 3 of “The Summer I Turned Pretty,” she has worked on projects including “Hightown” and “The Boys of Summer,” and is the growth and outreach director for North Carolina Black Creatives. Currently, she is the Production Coordinator on a film called “Venus: the Fibonacci Sequence” and under her Portray'd Productions banner, she is producing a documentary called “SeaBreaze: A Legacy” about the historic SeaBreaze community in Southeastern North Carolina and the families that started it. 

Did we miss a connection? Please email us at content@uncsa.edu to let us know!

By Melissa Upton-Julio

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