Cyrus Toulabi

Infobox Actor
name = Cyrus Toulabi


caption = Cyrus at the NATAS award ceremony in May 2007.
birthdate = birth date and age|1991|06|22
location = Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
birthname = Cyrus Jonathan Toulabi
yearsactive = 2006–"present"

Cyrus Jonathan Toulabi is an American high school student and winner of the 2006-2007 National Student Television Award for Excellence (a.k.a. Student Emmy in the "Arts and Entertainment/Cultural Affairs" category for five episodes of the award winning first season of "What's On Your Screen" [ [http://nationalstudent.tv/2006-2007_student_winners.asp Student Winners: National Student Television Award for Excellence ] ] ). This award is given by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences for students who excel in the art of television. Cyrus attends Highland Park High School in Highland Park, IL and is currently a junior. He hopes to attend a film school and continue his career in Filmmaking

Early life

Cyrus Toulabi was born in Chicago on June 22, 1991. At age 2, he moved to Lincolnwood, IL where he was raised until third grade. In fourth grade, he moved to Highland Park, IL where he currently resides and attends high school. In his eighth grade year, at age 13, Cyrus brought along a video camera and completely filmed and documented his grade's school field trip to Washington D.C.. This was his first project ever made.

Career/Accomplishments

Cyrus Toulabi is the creator of the series "What's On Your Screen", a weekly segment that reviews the most popular television shows in pop-culture. The series uses a combination of green screen technology and advanced editing programs. "What's On Your Screen" is originally aired on HPHS's Daily Video Announcements on Fridays throughout the school year and can also be found online on YouTube and Tv.com. This series as well as being Nationally recognized by the NATAS [ [http://nationalstudent.tv/2006-2007_student_winners.asp Student Winners: National Student Television Award for Excellence ] ] , has also been recognized locally by the NATAS Chicago/Midwest Chapter with an award in the "Arts and Entertainment/Cultural Affairs" category in 2007 and an award in the "Writing" category in 2007 as well [ [http://www.chicagoemmyonline.org/news/news/two-winners-from-illinois-for-national-student-awards-for-excellence.php National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences - Chicago/Midwest - Two Winners from Illinois for National Student Awards for Excellence ] ] . The "24 episode" was also awarded a second place award at C-TEC -- a local competition for Chicagoland public schools.

In spring of 2007, Toulabi and Lexi Heller, a fellow student, created a new series that went hand-in-hand with "What's On Your Screen" called "Focus on the Stars". This title, created by Toulabi, is a combination of the popular American Dance Show Dancing With the Stars and the event that the new series covered Focus on the Arts -- a biannual event that brings artists to Highland Park High School to share their passion with its students. Over three days, world-renowned artists come to Highland Park High School to showcase their talents and encourage students to explore the arts themselves. During this series, Toulabi and his co-host interviewed several artists and celebrities from Jeff Perry to Rent's Anthony Rapp. This series has yet to become available online due to its length in time.

Cyrus has also created a new series called "Shattered Glass" that premiered in February 2008. This documentary-type show allows viewers an inside sneak peak look into the lives of students of Highland Park High School highlighting and documenting a certain quality or event that the student has or lives through. This show also originally aired on HPHS's Daily Video announcements and can also be found on YouTube.

Appearances in the Media

Cyrus has been featured on the front cover of the Chicago Tribune [ [http://www.isbe.net/news/2007/newsclips/070504.htm#tw Illinois State Board of Education Bot generated title ] ] along with another fellow Chicagoland national award winner in a different category, Tracey Preasley. He along with Preasley were also featured on CBS's "Eye on Chicago" with Antonio Mora and the Chicago Sun-Times.

References