Michael Manasseri has had a career most people would envy in one of the burgeoning sectors of the Michigan economy.

Manasseri, executive vice president for independent film distributor Big Screen Entertainment, is coming to Oakland University Thursday night at 5 p.m. in 204 O’Dowd Hall. He’ll show his directorial debut, “Babysitter Wanted,” and share his insights on how to successfully pursue a career in the film industry.

According to Manasseri, the horror film aims to provoke psychological distress rather than sensationalistic reactions through gory imagery and editing tricks.

“It’s really more like an old-fashioned horror film out of the 70s,” Manasseri said. “I wanted to make a movie kind of like ‘Rosemary’s Baby’ or ‘The Omen’ … It starts off like any other babysitter horror movie.”

After the screening, Manasseri will hold a question and answer session, which he hopes will not be confined to only film majors and film buffs.

“Anyone who has been curious about movies and how to make a movie, how to be in a movie, how to work on a movie, how to make money in movies or any of those should come,” Manasseri said. “The good thing is I have a movie coming out, and we can talk about it. What I want is to utilize the movie to try to give solid information to students or the general public who are looking to make a career out of movies or just learn more about the whole process.”

Kyle Edwards, director of the cinema studies program that is hosting the showing and other workshops for people interested in various aspects of filmmaking, including screenwriting, directing and film editing, said he hopes they will have wide-ranging appeal.

“We’re hoping that this is a way to bring people that are working in the film industry to campus but also create special events to students and the wider community,” Edwards said. “This will hopefully expose students to a different side of the film industry, not just the latest films but also give a complete picture of what independent cinema is like from the film you see to what goes into making it.”

Manasseri grew up in Maryland and has worked out of California in recent years, but he does have ties to OU. His brother, Jason, and sister — both from Austin, Texas — attended OU.

Jason interns for Manasseri and said he is half the reason Manasseri is coming to OU. The other reason, he said, is that the film incentive program initiated by the state government is creating a great number of opportunities for students wishing to pursue a career in film.

Manasseri himself recently moved from Los Angeles to take advantage of the growing opportunities.

“Michigan did something right,” Manasseri said. “Students interested in film can now get a job in a really great industry right here in Michigan. That’s exciting, and I would want to see students take advantage of it.”