Sarah Jane Murray

Sarah Jane Murray, Ph.D., is an Irish-born story designer, EMMY®-nominated writer and (executive) producer, and award-winning researcher and educator. Her work has played at major film festivals and has been acquired by PBS and Netflix. Working in short-form content with entrepreneurs, non profits, and movements, she has also been awarded more than a dozen international awards for branding and marketing, including the Silver Telly and Communicator Award of Excellence.Born in Ireland, she graduated from Auburn University with a BA in French and Philosophy, and studied at the École normale supérieure de lettres et sciences humaines in Lyon before getting her MA and PhD from Princeton University. Murray is also a graduate of the UCLA professional program in screenwriting. During her studies at Princeton, she leveraged the power of emerging technologies to code, study, and archive the contents of medieval manuscripts. It was in doing that work, and traveling to private collections and holdings across the world, that SJ became interested in the recognizable traits that led to some stories making the cut and being passed around for hundreds, or thousands, of years. In an age when going viral meant copying stories and manuscripts by hand and getting in a boat and rowing them across oceans, or fleeing the Vikings and carrying them across the continent, the stakes were higher than many of us can imagine. The core of what makes us human evolves little (if at all) over time, and it’s no surprise to her that what made ancient stories go viral is closely connected to what makes a great feature film, documentary, or short today — one that is both marketable and connects with viewers’ hearts to incite them to action. She now imparts that wisdom to her students in oversubscribed workshop-style classes at Baylor University as an Associate Professor of Great Texts and Creative Writing.Murray’s university teaching engages questions of intellectual tradition, the art of storytelling, and the importance of story in shaping culture. Her latest research explores the relationship between genius and faith at the intersection of creativity and innovation. She is the author of From Plato to Lancelot: A Preface to Chretien de Troyes (Syracuse UP, 2008)., Basics of Story Design (2017), and “From Idea to Impact: The Business of Documentary Film” (coming 2018). As a sought-after speaker on creativity, SJ has keynoted, hosted, and facilitated conversations across the world, including at Harvard, the Sorbonne Nouvelle, NYU, the White House, the US Institute for Peace, Microsoft HQ, the United Nations, and WeWork.Her popular 2014 TEDx on storytelling in San Antonio was followed by a second talk at TEDx Santa Cruz on storytelling ethics, entitled Write and Wrong.Murrays interest in storytelling spans from the films and VR experiences of the 21st century all the way back to the origins. In 2011, she was awarded a major grant from the National Endowment of the Humanities (NEH) to translate the Ovide moralisé, an important cultural story of the Middle Ages (in editing for publication). Murray is also the founding co-chair (emeritus) of the Working group on Film, Media & Storytelling, and the industry advisor for entertainment and media for the Nexus Global Youth Summit and a member of Summit Series. In 2018, SJ was selected for the inaugural cohort of #50WomenCan Change the World in Media & Entertainment, celebrating the rising female stars in the media and entertainment spaces, most likely to revolutionize the industry and help achieve gender parity in Hollywood and across the industry.

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