University of Illinois Springfield graduate Paul “Pizza” Pianezza is celebrating the upcoming release of “Code 3,” a feature film starring Rainn Wilson, Lil Rel Howery and Aimee Carrero.
Pizza, who graduated from UIS in 2005 with a bachelor’s degree in communication, served as a lead producer on the film, which he developed with his brother, Patrick. The movie follows a burnt-out paramedic on his final 24-hour shift.
The project took more than a decade to complete.
“Anything worth doing is hard,” Pizza said. “I remember early on people said if you want to produce, you just have to outlast everyone else, and there’s a bit of truth to that.”
Pizza came to UIS on a soccer scholarship and was part of the first Capital Scholars Honors Program (CAP) class. He said the flexibility of the curriculum helped him explore his interests.
As part of a CAP group project, Pizza chose to film a documentary on Walmart founder Sam Walton. The team handled all aspects of planning, including travel and budgeting, which gave him early experience in project management. He said his business courses also played an important role.
“Producing is basically project management,” Pizza said. “They call it show business for a reason.”
Pizza moved to Los Angeles after graduating to pursue filmmaking, working for production companies while developing “Code 3”. He credits his success to the strong foundation he received at UIS and his determined work ethic.
While working on “Code 3,” he continued to take on roles with other production companies to sharpen his skills and stay connected in the industry.
Pizza said watching the film during an audience screening was a powerful experience.
“I get so much joy from bringing joy to other people,” he said. “The communal feeling was awesome.”
While the movie is entertaining, Pizza said the story also has a social message. His goal with “Code 3” is to create respect for EMS workers.
“Advocate through humor, and hopefully something changes,” he said.
Pizza hopes that students realize the significant impact they can have on the world and the power they have to enact change.
“When I think about how tied in everything at UIS is and the power that a story can have…it can be really, really impactful,” he said. “Even if there are students at UIS who don’t want to go to Hollywood, but they want to do social impact, this is another avenue of using the same skillset.”
He and his brother are working on their next project, an animated series that focuses on the American healthcare system.
When asked what advice he would give current UIS students, Pizza kept it simple.
“Go for it,” Pizza said. “Making a movie is a lot of fun. It’s like being at summer camp, where everyone gets together to do this thing, and then everyone goes away. The dream is, as a producer, that…summer camp never ends.”
Collaboration opportunities
Pizza welcomes opportunities to collaborate or speak at events. He can be reached at connect@realdream.com or contacted through LinkedIn. For legal reasons, he asks that unsolicited scripts not be sent.