In the late ’90s, a group project in a UC Berkeley rhetoric class sparked a decades-long friendship and creative partnership for Sanjay Shah and Rachelle Mendez, leading to parallel paths in the television industry, multiple hit shows and prestigious awards like the Emmys.  Or as Shah puts it, the “rhetoric major, Russell Merritt, and a four-DVD Netflix plan was my film school.” Shah is a writer, showrunner, and executive producer on everybodystillhateschris, and has worked on a string of comedies, including Fresh Off the Boat, southpark and kingofthehill. And Mendez is a television producer, writer, and showrunner for unscripted television, producing shows like Queer Eye and Undercover Boss. Today, they are reshaping Hollywood through intentional storytelling—a mission rooted in their shared history at Cal. One of the most transformative chapters of their Berkeley years began when Professor Stephen John Hartnett invited them to serve as teaching assistants at San Quentin State Pri...