Member Spotlight
Laci Morgan
Growing up near Yosemite, in Coarsegold, CA, Laci got an early start in animation. Her dad produced music for games, and Laci always tagged along. She grew up wanting to be an artist.
Michael C. Pizzuto
Michael C. Pizzuto is a full-time actor based in Los Angeles, California. "I was a child actor for the stage many moons ago, and started getting a paycheck for acting at age 16. My mom was involved with theater when I was young, and that sparked my interest. I would later go to university for a theater degree and have never looked back!"
Conlon Taaffe
Conlon graduated from Chicago’s DePaul University animation program. It's a fantastic program that allows first-year students to begin training in animation. He says the professors and labs are great, and the program includes 2D and 3D training.
Ariel Freeman
“Storytelling is a team sport,” according to our Spotlight Creators Society Member and undercover mermaid, Development Branch Councilor Ariel Freeman.
“I grew up drawing before I could write and it was something I did before bed every night. I would draw little comics!! When I was very young, my family and I went to Disney Orlando, and I started doodling stories and experiences in my Disney Princess journal. While my family was touring the studio, my Father, without my knowledge, talked to one of the animators. This was back in 2001 before the Florida studio was dismantled. He told the animator that I would get into animation someday, and they gave him a pencil. When I got into college with pursuits to study animation, my Father surprised me with the pencil. He knew before I did that I would be getting into animation!”
Malik O. Smith
‘Twas early afternoon on a Tuesday when Malik O. Smith and I spoke. The morning chill was shaken off the burgeoning sun, birds were chirping, and flowers outside were dripping with dew, reminding us that Winter will soon be an afterthought and Spring is upon us. Just kidding, we both live in Southern California where it’s always sunny and people freak when it drizzles. Malik O. Smith is an animator, storyboard artist, character designer, and illustrator. This Jack-of-All-Animation-Trades was drawn to Hollywood, where animation opportunities are abundant, from a city that is far more prepared for drizzle weather: Bronx, New York.
Melissa Peterson
A visual development artist/environment painter, currently living in San Antonio, Texas, is our Creatives Society Spotlight Member Melissa Peterson. How do you keep an organization moving forward during the Covid years?? With the help of our President Eric Miller, Melissa and other volunteers, kept us busy!
Diana Lansleen
The focus of this Member Spotlight article is Diana Lansleen; voice actor and Creators Society VO Branch member with a creative upbringing like no other. She is a person that has truly made the most out of the tools and circumstances from which she comes. On top of that she is really nice. I mean super nice. When we had an initial chat on the phone regarding this article, my four year old son was talking very loudly and non-stop, as he tends to do.
Jourdan Barnett
This subject of this week’s Spotlight is none other than the head of the Creators Society Diversity Branch himself, Jourdan Barnett.
Jourdan attended Columbia College in Chicago where he studied writing and producing for television. After graduating in 2015, he started doing freelance work as a character illustrator. He founded his own Youtube Channel, Madtownstudios, where he uploads his original animation projects.
Shyam Kannapurakkaran
Shyam Kannapurakkaran and I met by playing a little bit of FaceTime tag. For those of you wondering, FaceTime tag is like phone-tag, but with your face. Now that I’ve explained that really complicated concept, let’s move forward. Shyam was polite as can be, but I could tell something was going on in his workplace. There may as well have been a siren blaring above his head. He informed me that the increasing number of COVID cases on set has made the schedule unpredictable and tight. Although we had to cut our distressed meeting short, I was able to grab a lot of information from him that you will enjoy.
Greg Sgammato
A great score can make an audience feel things that a script alone cannot provide; Jaws, Indiana Jones, Batman, Sesame Street. How can you not hum a tune or think of a song when these iconic titles come to mind? Although we all have our favorite soundtracks that we love, not many of us have the talent to create such magic. However, the subject of this Members Spotlight article does just that. Greg Sgammato is a composer of immense talent who seems very determined to bring the magic to any project he is involved with.
Genevieve LeDoux
Genevieve (DeMars) LeDoux lives in a literal fairy world. Yes, I’m using the word “literal” correctly. Or maybe I’m hyperbolizing, whatever. Her home in Georgia is surrounded by lush, old trees, historic railroads, and a garden full of handmade fairy treehouses. It’s no wonder she is bursting with fantastical ideas for kids' entertainment.
Izzy Holder
Originally from Virginia, Izzy studied at Virginia Commonwealth University and attended graduate school at the Academy of Art in San Francisco with a focus on art and animation. Currently, Izzy is a freelance storyboard artist, but he also does 3D animation.
Shari B. Ellis
I think that we all can agree that there is something captivating and attractive about a person who displays great passion. I remember listening to my stage lighting teacher in college get so worked up and excited when talking about which gel would work with a particular Fresnel light for an upcoming production of The Cherry Orchard. As an actor, my only concern when it came to lights was whether or not I was finding it properly.
Jeff Brustrom
Jeff Brustrom has, well how do I say this correctly? A super awesome job. Not his words, those are my words. No, no. Forget that, never mind. I mean who even cares that his first task as Vice President of Kids, Family, and Animation at IDW Entertainment (IDWE) was to familiarize himself with their catalog by reading graphic novels for a month? Not me. Not jealous at all. Sounds super terrible.
Katie Leigh
The subject of this week’s Member Spotlight article is about a person whose work we are all familiar with. Katie Leigh, member of the Voice Actors Branch for The Creators Society, has acted in personal TV favorites of mine such as “Gummi Bears,” “Rugrats,” and “Darkwing Duck.” She has also taken on roles that span generations, i.e. Baby Rowlf in “Jim Henson’s Muppet Babies'' and Dumbo in “Dumbo’s Circus.” We often hear about people being “made for a career” or that things seem “destined” for certain people. I don’t know about all that, but if voice acting had its own Yellow Brick Road, Katie Leigh found some awfully comfy ruby slippers quite early into her journey.
Reuven Herman
Reuven Herman, member of the Editorial and Sound Branch of The Creators Society, began piano lessons at the mere, adorable age of four. His mother was a piano teacher. It only took baby Reuven one year to get bored with rehearsing the same old songs, and start messing around on the piano, making songs of his own. Reminds me of a little artist named Amadeus. For comparison, at age five, I was the head of a three-person club where our main mission was to eat our boogers. We called it hunting for treasure.
Clifton Yada
Introducing Clifton Yada, member of the Voice Actors Branch, and one of the important writers of The Creators Society’s Member Spotlight.
Born and raised in Fresno, CA., Clifton grew up in a family of grape farmers. What does this mean, I asked. Of course, my mind immediately thought of wine!
Denny Chou
Did you know who or what you wanted to be when you were 10? How about 15? 25? Heck, sometimes I feel like I will always be trying to figure out who I am or what I want. However, for some lucky few, their life’s work has always been clear. This is the case for the subject of this Member Spotlight article. Denny Chou knew that he was destined to be in the creative field at the age of 5.
Phuong Nguyen
This week we are shining the spotlight on Phuong Nguyen. Originally from Vietnam, Phuong majored in illustration and animation at CSU Long Beach. Currently, she is working as a freelancer while trying to find a position as a production assistant or as a storyboard artist.
Daniel Ross
American Actor, Producer and Voice Actor Daniel Ross, is a member of The Creators Society and Councilor on the Voice Actors Branch. In fact, he is one of the Top 50 founding members, at #48! Ross moved to LA in 2014 to pursue a voiceover career. In a short seven years, by Hollywood standards, he has and continues to make a name for himself!