Profiles of Tenacity: Aidan Landrum

Aidan Landrum is a fourth-year entertainment and media studies major from Athens, Georgia, set to graduate in May 2027. Landrum was a finalist in the 2025 Austin Film Festival Screenwriting Competition and has recently been accepted to Loyola Marymount University’s Writing for the Screen graduate program.

Read his Q/A below.

Why did you choose your major?

I chose my major because all I wanted to do was write, and EMST was the place where I could do that. I remember glancing at the EMST Bulletin my first year at UGA and seeing classes like Writing for TV and Screenwriting, and knowing that I was in the right place.

What does tenacity mean to you?

Tenacity, to me, is simple: unfettered persistence; the ability to strive for your goals regardless of the obstacles you may face along the way. Tenacity requires a belief in yourself that, regardless of how unachievable your goal may seem, you are the person who can achieve it. One quote that I frequently return to is one that my grandmother would often tell me: ‘never get too high, but never get too low.’ I don’t think tenacity is just a synonym for unwavering confidence, but rather a pact and a promise you make with yourself to do everything you can to succeed.

What is one piece of advice that you would give to other Grady students?

Study your artistic medium’s history. Taking film history classes has been just as instrumental in my creative success as the writing and production classes I have taken. Understanding your medium’s history will provide a contextual, analytical and theoretical angle to your work, which will be paramount to your success. Understanding why you are making a creative decision is just as important as the decision itself. This will also help you develop a philosophical foundation for your work and help you recognize your identity as an artist.

What motivates you?

I am driven by creative catharsis. Few feelings can live up to the feeling you get when you articulate something you never thought you’d have the words for. It is the reason anybody gets into a creative field. We aren’t here for the money or the fame or the work-life balance. We are here because we notice things about the world, ourselves and our place within it, and have an innate desire to express them. Art is also wonderfully universal, and if you can find a way to articulate a feeling or idea artistically and thoughtfully, it is sure to resonate just as deeply with someone else.

What or who has had the biggest impact on your life during your time at UGA?

I would say my boyfriend, Lucas Nyman. Lucas and I have been together for quite some time and have collaborated many times on creative endeavors. Lucas is always the first person to hear my ideas, and as someone much smarter than I am, I know that when he likes an idea I have, it must have some creative weight to it—and when he is unsure of an idea I have, maybe it wasn’t as magnificent as I thought. He’s a wonderful creative barometer, not to mention all of his other excellent attributes.

What has been your biggest accomplishment in the past year?

My biggest accomplishment this year is probably being admitted to Loyola Marymount University’s Writing for the Screen graduate program. As mentioned previously, writing is my greatest passion and what I want to spend the rest of my life doing, so being able to continue to pursue that at one of the best film schools in the nation is a complete dream come true.

What is your favorite place on campus and why?

There’s something very sacred about the 4th floor of the MLC to me. Though it might not be the flashiest answer, I love to study among my peers. I prefer to study amidst other people on a similar journey to me, rather than in a faraway nook or cranny. Again, there is a communal aspect that’s very important to me.

What advice would you give to your freshman self?

Find your people. Find the people who share your same artistic philosophies and principles, and work with them on anything and everything. I find that having a community around you that can hold you accountable is one of the keys to creative success. Putting in the hours is hard, but if you can find others willing to put in those same hours with you, that time will fly by and the work you create will tower over whatever you would have created on your own.

Editor: Sarah Kate Maher, skm01341@uga.edu