by CalArts Community Arts Partnership
OUR INSTRUCTORS
Photography and Printmaking
Valeria Costa
Photography and Printmaking
As a young human, I am mainly working to find balance and peace in my life and the lives of the people I connect with. As a young artist, I enjoy exploring contrasting themes, asking questions, and learning. When it comes to my career focus, graphic design, I gravitate toward motion graphics, design thinking, and storytelling. With that said, I am open to the many other pathways in design since I feel parallels can be drawn from them.
Congyu Liu
Congyu (Zoe) Liu, born in Beijing, China 1999, is an interdisciplinary artist who uses photography, film and video installation to exploring the themes of female visibility and the Asian diaspora’s generational traumas and loss. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Melbourne and a Master of Fine Arts degree in photography at the California Institute of the Arts. Her recent work explores commodification, alienation of the Asian visibility. Congyu has recently exhibited her work in California Brand Library & Art Center, Palos Verdes Art Center, Santa Clarita City Hall, Good Mother Gallery, The Winchester Gallery (British).
Photography and Printmaking
Ella Blanche Rose
Ella Blanche Rose is Los Angeles photographer studying Photo & Media at CalArts.
Photography and Printmaking
MUSIC
Lucian Meisler
Music
Lucian is a multi-instrumentalist and song writer with a specialization in music production. He has experience with the drums, bass, guitar, keyboard, and composition. He is passionate about cultivating a safe space for learning and is looking forward to a summer of fun and creativity!
Music
Lazer Cohen
Lazer is happy to be returning to teach at the Capsa program for another year. A Calarts graduate with a composition and jazz guitar degree, Lazer has been working in LA as a guitarist, producer, and educator. He has worked and performed with artists such as Eric Benét, Chaka Khan, Jackson Lundy, and others.
Dylan Marx
Music
Dylan Marx is a composer, musician, and producer based in Los Angeles. He writes music for dance, film, and creates sound installations. He plays in a few bands in the Los Angeles area, and teaches at both CalArts and Irvine Valley College
Amir Isakhunov
Music
Amir is a freelance composer that mainly writes music for characters, games, and animation. He takes commissions online and occasionally works with Calarts animators. His style is inspired by modern videogame soundtracks.
FILM
Taylor Thomas
Taylor Thomas is a Black artist based out of Los Angeles. She graduated Magna cum Laude with Distinction from Amherst College in 2017 where she double majored in Sociology and Film & Media Studies. After receiving her undergraduate degree, Thomas spent 6 years developing feature films at Netflix and The Walt Disney Company. She’s currently pursuing her MFA in Fine Art at CalArts.
Film
Marceline Chevako
Film
Marceline Chevako is an illustrator and filmmaker based in Echo Park. Her work bridges a number of mediums and approaches, and has been featured at both local and international film festivals. She graduated with a BFA in experimental animation from California Institute of the Arts in 2023.
Yasaman Alipour
Yasaman Alipour is a Los Angeles-based Iranian artist, educator, and filmmaker. Her practice expands on photography, video, and installation. Alipour's work explores the concept of place and its multiple layers, offering a poignant reflection on the intersections of identity, displacement, and memory. Alipour holds an MFA in Photography and Media from the California Institute of The Arts and an MA in Photography from the University of Art in Tehran.
Film
Sailor DiNucci-Radley
Film
Sailor DiNucci-Radley is a multimedia artist concentrating in time based mediums and moving-image formats. Her work concerns excess, transfeminist temporality and interiorities, as well as marginal orientations of the subconscious as mediated through text, screens, and data/streams. She currently lives and works in Los Angeles, CA. Her work has screened both nationally and internationally, with institutions such as San Francisco Cinematheque, BFI Southbank, and Shapeshifters Cinema.
ANIMATION
Yingdan Lai
Animation
Yingdan Lai is a Chinese-born educator and animation director who recently graduated from the CalArts MFA Experimental Animation program. She loves storytelling and focuses on creating 2D experimental narrative animations. Since 2023, she has been teaching in the CAP program, and she is passionate about engaging with young artists through their art work.
Rika Nakayama
Animation
Rika Nakayama is an experimental and stop-motion filmmaker from Japan, currently based in LA. Her works utilize tactile materials to express intangible memories, sensory experiences, and emotions. Rika holds a BFA from the Rhode Island School of Design and an MFA in Experimental Animation from the California Institute of the Arts.
Yumeng Chen
Animation
Ramona Chen(She/her) is a story artist and aggressive film watcher who earned a BFA in Character Animation from CalArts. Her work is playful, energetic, and comic-inspired. By capturing small sparks in life and turning them into memorable story moments, she aspires to use her personal voice to convey universal emotions. In her free time, she enjoys traveling with a sketchbook and walking her cat.
Vivian Le
Animation
Vivian Le is a storyboard artist in the animation industry and an animation instructor lead for CAPSA. Vivian has been teaching in various capacities for the past 4 years and is excited to share these experiences with the students at Dorsey High.
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