Two CVPA students use their creative skills as interns on Capitol Hill

Colleen Rich — Tue, 16 Aug 2022 19:13:33 +0000

Two CVPA students use their creative skills as interns on Capitol Hill Colleen Rich Tue, 08/16/2022 - 15:13

Mirella Guzman-Escobar. Photo by Ron Aira/Creative Services

For George Mason University senior Mirella Guzman-Escobar, the summer internship in the office of the House Creative Services, Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) at the U.S. House of Representatives is more than great professional experience, it’s a foot in the door to a job she has dreamed of her entire life.

“I’ve always been interested in working in the government, mainly because my step-mom and my grandpa both work in the government, and I want to use my voice through my design,” said Guzman-Escobar, who is majoring in graphic design.

For Jacques Lykes, who graduates in August 2022 from Mason with a bachelor’s degree in film and video studies, it’s a step closer to achieving his dream of starting his own production company in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area.

Guzman-Escobar and Lykes are currently collaborating on a project called “A Day in the Life of an Intern.” Through captivating video and Instagram spotlights, this project highlights interns and their roles at the CAO, with the goal of promoting the internship positions and encouraging more engagement.

Jacques Lykes. Photo by Ron Aira/Creative Services

“They’re really letting us be creative and making me feel like part of the team because I’m working on things that they’re working on, too,” Guzman-Escobar said of her colleagues at the CAO.

The students apply skills that they have learned from Mason’s College of Visual and Performing Arts (CVPA) as they prepare for their respective futures.

Lykes, who is originally from South Carolina, works as a multimedia intern for the CAO. He transferred to Mason from Northern Virginia Community College in his junior year.

He said FAVS 366 Video Production for Social Change, taught by GMU-TV Executive Director Richard Wood, “really prepared me to take on an internship like this.”

“Jacques takes pride in his work. He’ll put in the effort and the time, because it matters to him personally,” Wood said of Lykes. “I’m not saying Jacques got that from my class, I think that is who he was before, but it’s certainly something I harp on.”

Lykes’ academic adviser Lori Yi shared internship opportunities with him. “They were very adamant about making sure that film program students had opportunities outside of Mason,” Lykes said.

“Jacques’ ability to learn quickly, ask questions, and be adaptable has made him invaluable on student films sets,” Yi said. “He’s been an engaged part of our community from the very beginning, and I’m excited to see his future contributions.”

While searching for professional opportunities for the summer and throughout the application process, Guzman-Escobar said her typography professor and mentor Juana Medina offered her guidance.

“[She] impacted me a lot,” Guzman-Escobar said. “I used a lot of assignments that she gave us in class for my portfolio pieces, and it really helped me.”

As a graphic design intern, Guzman-Escobar helps her team with many of their projects, she said.

Working on hands-on projects, and with fellow Mason students, has been exciting, the interns agreed.

“Working with Mirella has been really great. She’s a fantastic person and one of our strong suits is how well we meld together,” Lykes said.

Topics

Students

College of Visual and Performing Arts (CVPA)

internships

School of Art

College of Visual and Performing Arts Film and Video Studies

Tech Talent Investment Pipeline (TTIP)

Young Alumni Commissioning Project Announces Recipients of Fourth Round of Funding

Emily Schneider — Tue, 31 May 2022 20:27:39 +0000

Young Alumni Commissioning Project Announces Recipients of Fourth Round of Funding Emily Schneider Tue, 05/31/2022 - 16:27

In This Story

George Mason University’s College of Visual and Performing Arts (CVPA) is pleased to announce the recipients of the fourth round of its Young Alumni Commissioning Project Awards. Three alumni were chosen based on the artistic excellence, career impact, and feasibility of their proposals and will receive financial, marketing, and production support to have their projects presented by the College at a Mason venue during the 2022-2023 season. Two additional alumni were awarded an inaugural grant of financial support, designed to assist in the completion of their proposed projects, which were selected because of their timeliness and significance to the Mason community.

“In this fourth round of the Project’s commissions, we received proposals with uniquely personal and emotional perspectives,” said Rick Davis, Dean of Mason’s College of Visual and Performing Arts.

“Knowing the vital role of the arts in strengthening community in challenging times, we are elated that this program continues to support the visions of these young artists.” Davis continued, “In response to the great range of proposals, and in order to ensure that we are providing as much support as possible to our incredible alumni, we established an additional award this year, which provides a grant to help these artists take their project to the next level while removing the time frame for production or exhibition that is otherwise required. As usual, I can't wait to see what these great project ideas turn into once they’re fully developed.”

For consideration, applicants must have graduated from CVPA from the class of 2011 and after. Proposals could include original new work in any art form suitable for performance, exhibition, or screening in a Mason venue. The size, length, duration, magnitude, and content are at the artist’s discretion. Potential venues include Mason’s traditional theater spaces, galleries, and cinemas, but proposals for non-traditional venues, including digital spaces, were also considered.

The Young Alumni Commissioning Project is made possible by a generous bequest from the estate of Linda E. Gramlich for the support of young artists and by donors to Mason’s Giving Day, including Shugoll Research.

2023 Recipient of the Young Alumni Commissioning Project Award Including $5,000 in Commissioning Support
Juan Megna

Juan Megna

Juan Megna (Doctor of Musical Arts, 2021) received the Young Alumni Commissioning Award and $5,000 in commissioning support. In 2015, Juan started a master’s degree at the College-Conservatory of Music, University of Cincinnati. In this city, he played with Phil deGreg group, Rusty Burge, Steve Alee, among others, and got the degree in 2017.

In 2017, Juan moved to Fairfax, Virginia to pursue his doctoral degree at George Mason University. Juan played with Wade Beach, Wayne Wilentz, and Steve Kirby in the Washington DC musical scene, among others. Also, he formed The Juan Megna Quintet. The repertoire is centered on a mix of Juan’s compositions, blended jazz, Argentinian and Afro-Brazilian rhythms.

At George Mason University he leads the Latin-American Ensemble. The DownBeat Magazine has awarded this group with the 42nd (2019), 43rd (2020), and 44th (2021) students awards as an “Outstanding Performance”.

As an active researcher, Juan performed a clinic at the Jazz Education Network, New Orleans 2020, entitled "The Brazilian 16th-note phrasing through Cabula rhythm, Samba, and Bossa Nova", focusing on developing Afro-Brazilian popular genres.

Megna's new project, which this award will fund, is titled Trailblazer, an album of original compositions that will build a dialogue between jazz and Afro-Brazilian genres. The concept for the project is inspired by traditional melodies and rhythmic patterns of Candomblé (a diasporic religion syncretized from traditional religions of West Africa and Roman Catholic Christianity). “It is a real honor to receive this generous award coming from my alma mater institution,” said Megna. “It will help me crystallize a project that I dreamed of for so many years.”

2023 Young Alumni Creative Development Award Winners Including $3,000 in Commissioning Support

Carlehr Swanson

Carlehr Swanson (vocalist, pianist, speaker) is a 1st year Ph.D. student at the University of Virginia. She is a graduate of George Mason University and the Frost School of Music at the University of Miami with degrees in Jazz Vocal Performance. Before college, Carlehr accompanied and directed multiple church choirs. She credits this experience as significantly influencing her musicality. Upon entering college, she realized the absence of gospel music in higher education. Consequently, she co-founded and directed the Frost Gospel Ensemble. Her research interests include gospel music, Black studies, women's studies, and civic engagement. Giving back to her community and connecting with others has been an important theme in Carlehr's life, as she brings people together to serve a greater good. She is the founder and director of the organization, "Music is Unity," where she takes music performances to people who may not experience them otherwise. Throughout this year, she has planned and performed more than a dozen virtual events for the community.

Swanson receives the Creative Development Award for Growing Pains, an extended play record of original music, combining the styles of jazz, R&B, and gospel, exploring love, loss, faith, and hope along the transition to adulthood.

Kyle Finnegan

Born in the same place as American cinema (the great state of New Jersey), Kyle Finnegan is a filmmaker living in Alexandria, VA. He graduated in 2017 with a BA in Film and Video Studies. After shooting and editing for several years, he currently works at 522 Productions with a focus on directing branded documentaries. His work won him a DC TIVA Peer award in 2021 and he’s interviewed all four of Time Magazine’s heroes of 2021. He has created short documentaries exploring subjects ranging from car hackers in Seattle to an artsy coal mining town in Utah. Whether it’s a film, a website, or a delicious meal, he aims to create something every day.

Finnegan’s award will support his new documentary film, exploring the complicated role of MSG (monosodium glutamate) in the United States, as influenced by pervasive misinformation and the uniting love of food across cultures. "I'm excited to have received a grant from the institution that has supported so much of my development as an artist," said Finegan. "I'm looking forward to making a mouthwatering film about the complex world of MSG."

2023 Young Alumni Artistic Support Grant Winners Including $2,000 in Unrestricted Support

Mohammed Saffouri

Mohammed Saffouri is an award-winning Palestinian-American filmmaker based in Fairfax, Virginia. Saffouri distinguished himself early on in his film career by earning a Capital Emmy for his debut documentary film, The First. His next film, Touchline, was recently selected to participate in Tribeca Film Festival. Touchline will be the first Jordanian film to be screened at Tribeca, and Saffouri will be the first alumni from George Mason University to have a film screened at Tribeca in the festival’s history. Saffouri graduated from George Mason University in 2020 with a degree in Film and Video Studies and a concentration in Film Directing. Throughout his eight years in the film and media industry, he has directed three films, produced four films, written three films, and created more than ten promotional videos for companies and non-profits. His work has been screened at such festivals as the Washington DC International Film Festival, the Virginia Film Festival, the Malmo Arab Film Festival, and others. Saffouri is currently developing his first narrative feature film.

Saffouri’s award will support the development of his first narrative feature film, a deeply personal story about the experience and perseverance of a Muslim-American immigrant woman in the United States. "I'm always happy and thankful to see how George Mason University is the first to support its alumni and students," said Saffouri. "This is the first grant I get into this project, and I'll make sure to make them proud when this project is done."

Left to Right: Meagan Arnold, Hannah Looney, and Mike Rose

Meagan Arnold (Film, 2018), Mike Rose (Film, 2016), and Hannah Looney (Film, 2018) began collaborating on creative projects together as students in the Film and Video Studies program at Mason. Over the past 6 years and alongside Film at Mason alumnus Jason Cortez (BA, 2015), the group has produced numerous fashion, narrative, and music video projects. Often working under the alias ‘negativs,’ their recent project FLORENCE toured internationally at the Sarajevo and Croatia Fashion Film Festivals.

Arnold, Rose, and Looney receive the award to assist in the creation of Momentum/Memoriam, an experimental music video that explores and contextualizes the group’s grief over the loss of their late collaborator and Mason alum, Jason Cortez (Film, 2015).

"Jason Cortez was an award-winning filmmaker and a 2015 graduate of the Film and Video Studies program at Mason. He lost his life on September 10, 2021, at the age of 29. Momentum//Memoriam is an experimental, fashion music video honoring Jason’s legacy as an artist, as well as the impact he left on his closest artistic collaborators," said Arnold.

"We are at the beginning of a long process in creating art for, and posthumously with, our dear friend. Jason left behind many projects unfinished, and we bear a responsibility to complete his life’s work. We have several projects planned in the coming years to celebrate Jason and to continue his artistic vision. Momentum//Memoriam will be our first venture into creating art as a collective since he passed."

Information about the next round of applications will be announced at a later date. Details on previous year's recipients and criteria for consideration can be viewed on the Young Alumni Commissioning Project website.

Topics

Young Alumni Commissioning Project. alumni support

alumni

College of Visual and Performing Arts

College of Visual and Performing Arts Film and Video Studies

Dewberry School of Music

Student film productions

Film

Film at Mason

latin-american ensemble

Mason Jazz

College of Visual and Performing Arts Film and Video Studies

Two CVPA students use their creative skills as interns on Capitol Hill

Topics

Young Alumni Commissioning Project Announces Recipients of Fourth Round of Funding

In This Story

2023 Recipient of the Young Alumni Commissioning Project Award Including $5,000 in Commissioning Support Juan Megna

2023 Young Alumni Creative Development Award Winners Including $3,000 in Commissioning Support

2023 Young Alumni Artistic Support Grant Winners Including $2,000 in Unrestricted Support

Topics

2023 Recipient of the Young Alumni Commissioning Project Award Including $5,000 in Commissioning Support
Juan Megna