USF's CyberHerd: Hackers become movie stars in documentary on collegiate cybersecurity

By Paul Guzzo, University Communications and Marketing

Yes, they are the nation's next professional cyber defenders, but the University of South Florida's CyberHerd team is far more than a group of coders who spend countless hours training and competing in national collegiate cyber defense contests.

They're also musicians, artists, athletes and even a boxer.

"Our different backgrounds and talents bring something unique that comes together perfectly," said Michelle McAveety, a crocheter and one of this year's team captains.

They can now add movie stars to their résumés too.

CyberHerd's story hits the big screen Wednesday, Sept. 24 at 6 p.m., when "The Making of a Defender" premieres in the Marshall Student Center's Oval Theater on the Tampa campus before streaming on YouTube. The documentary chronicles the team's vibrant mix of skills and personalities and rise from upstart challengers to prominence throughout the national 2024-25 competition season.

"This is the first public showcase of the work that we do with the students and what they do in and outside of competitions too," said Sriram Chellappan, professor in the Bellini College of Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity and Computing and faculty advisor for CyberHerd. "It is an enormous honor for the CyberHerd to be featured in such a way."

The Mission

McAveety is most excited about the documentary providing a behind-the-scenes look at collegiate cybersecurity competitions that challenge students to defend or attack simulated computer systems - testing skills in real-world cyber scenarios.

"I didn't know what a cybersecurity competition really looked like before I got to the CyberHerd," said McAveety, a junior majoring in computer engineering. "This will give them a first-hand view into our world."

Teams tackle either offensive challenges, like ethically hacking systems to find vulnerabilities, or defensive ones, such as safeguarding networks and data. They score points by rapidly identifying threats, prioritizing fixes and communicating under pressure to protect or penetrate simulated systems.

CyberHerd coach and Assistant Professor Marbin Pazos Revilla hopes the film builds school pride for the team.

"When our football team wins, they are all over the news," he said. "Well, these are our cyber athletes. They do similar things. They also overcome hardships, respond to their academic demands and responsibilities, and spend many, many hours working at their craft to reach competitive levels."

As their victories and documentary premiere draw attention, CyberHerd is also headed to CyberBay 2025, a cybersecurity summit Oct. 13-15 in Tampa. The summit unites students, industry leaders and government officials to tackle challenges in digital defense and AI.

Retired U.S. Marine Gen. Frank McKenzie believes the documentary and event together can create more of a groundswell for USF's growing cybersecurity program, which falls under the umbrella of the newly launched Bellini College of Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity and Computing - Florida's first, and one of the few in the country, to focus on these subjects.

"The United States runs on a cyber backbone," said McKenzie, who leads Cyber Florida, the state's cybersecurity center based at USF. "Everything we do involves the web and the net. So, the security of the web and the internet is vital to all of us. Teams like CyberHerd allow programmers and coders to have a real-world opportunity to work in dynamic learning environments where challenges arise that mirror what's going on in the real world."

Founding the Team

CyberHerd was launched in August 2023.

Within the Department of Computer Science and Engineering (now part of the Bellini College), USF already had the Whitehatters Computer Security Club, which advocates for enhanced standards in cybersecurity. USF President Rhea Law and department leadership wanted a team focused primarily on representing USF at competitions.

"We realized that to go to the next level we really need to form a group specifically that will be focused on competitions, and we will train them," Sudeep Sarkar, interim dean of the Bellini College and distinguished university professor, said in the documentary. "So, that's when the CyberHerd was started."

Chellappan and Pazos Revilla were tasked with putting it together.

And like any competitive university team, someone couldn't just join. They recruited the best of the best USF had to offer - a mix of student experts on topics such as web penetration testing, network security, operating systems, programming, binary analysis and cryptography

The Production

As victories piled up, the team caught the attention of Rex Wilson, brand manager for Cyber Florida, which partners with universities like USF to provide funding, mentorship and statewide visibility for rising cybersecurity talent.

"I'm always looking for opportunities to tell our story and promote what we do," he said. "As I watched CyberHerd grow, I thought there was a great story to tell."

He recruited Kevin Echemendia, documentary filmmaker and head of Tampa Bay-based Two Stories Media, as director and co-producer, and pitched it to the team with the promise that only those who wanted to be on camera would participate. Everyone agreed.

"I figured it was my only chance at being a movie star," McAveety said with a laugh.

To produce it, the filmmakers were embedded with the team through many of their meetings, practices and competitions from January through May 2025, capturing about 200 hours of footage that was then cut down to a 75-minute documentary.

For the team, it was a surreal and fun experience. But it might have annoyed teams from other universities. Sometimes, the camera lights accidentally blinded them during competitions.

Defying Stereotypes

The documentary was initially centered on the team's goal of qualifying for the Southeast Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition, a regional contest where teams race to keep networks secure while fending off live attacks from professional hackers and handling real-world business challenges.

But as production continued, filmmakers added a second dimension - the colorful lives of the competitors. Or, as the documentary bluntly puts it, how they are more than typecast hackers in hoodies in a basement.

"Maybe we could enjoy a little more ambient lighting," McAveety said with a laugh, "but we're not vampires."

Team member Jacob Hammargren is a saxophonist in a jazz band. Jackson Liveringhouse is in the National Guard. And Yeran Gamage founded the USF Boxing Club, which has more than 1,000 members.

"I went in blind, so I was expecting introverts; there is no sugarcoating that," Echemendia said. "But they were a great group of colorful individuals who defy stereotypes and prove that cybersecurity is a career for people with all types of passions."

The more people who realize that, the larger the talent pool grows, which benefits the country.

"Cybersecurity is important to us, whether we choose to acknowledge that or not," McKenzie said. "Our nation depends on it. USF, through its cybersecurity students, is going to become an increasingly important part of the fabric of our national security, and CyberHerd is our visible manifestation of that. It's an exciting time to be here at USF."

How to see the movie

"The Making of a Defender" premieres Wednesday, Sept. 24 at 6 p.m., in the Marshall Student Center's Oval Theater on the Tampa campus.

Admission is free but tickets should be reserved in advance.

For tickets, click here