We asked some of the most talented folks in the community to talk to us about projects they’ve worked on that they still think about, projects that really meant something. Have you had such an experience? Are you looking for inspiration for your next project? Check out the stories below, they are exciting, entertaining, and most importantly – inspiring.

Jim Ousley

The most meaningful project that I’ve worked on is inevitably the latest project I’ve worked on. In the case of The Atonement Bell though, my latest series with artist Tyler B. Ruff, I have to say that I think this will always remain as one of my favorite stories. Like most of my stories, the lessons of empathy, particularly the absence of it, are what tends to run through the narrative. Read more>>

Shey ‘Rí Acu’ Rivera Ríos

Antigonx is a queer, Boricua story inspired by the Greek tragedy of Antigone. We are travelers welcomed in the Motherboard of Ancestral Technologies, an altar space between dimensions. Here we are greeted by the lightworker Tiresias, who activates the Motherboard and awakens the spirits of Antigone and Ismene. We follow along a retelling of their story in the context of the island of Abundancia (inspired by the context of Borikén/Puerto Rico). Read more>>

Mackenzie Morrow

When you’re a songwriter, every song is important to you because it’s like your baby. You created it. My first EP I released back in 2019 was pretty important to me because it was my first collective body of work. That being said, my upcoming project that I’ve been working on for about two years is the most meaningful project for me so far. The past few years of life have been full of challenges and growth, and I’ve written about these experiences on the album. Read more>>

Saint Yvon

The Coffee & Clarity series hands down! Honestly, that series was one big therapy session for me. But instead of sitting on a couch in some fancy office, spilling my thoughts to a professional stranger who gets paid by the hour, I found myself spilling my compartmentalized thoughts behind a keyboard, and breaking them down into three self-help books. Read more>>

 Justin Reyes

As a Twitch streamer and variety content creator I am extremely blessed to be able to have fun every single day in my creative venture. Whenever I sit at my desk and turn on my PC, I try and take a moment, before going live, to reflect on the fact that I am extremely fortunate to have a community that supports me doing what I enjoy while being the catalyst for that enjoyment and success. Read more>>

Celeste Rose Benzschawel

My most meaningful project to date is my debut EP titled “Part-Time.” It means a lot to me not only to have this collection of songs out in the world, but to have had the support I did in getting it completed. I launched a Kickstarter campaign in January 2021 and was able to raise $5,500 for the recording, mixing, and mastering of the project at Evergroove Studio in Evergreen, Colorado. Read more>>

Amber Skiles

The most meaningful project I have worked on recently is “Faceless Portraits”. I hand-draw them all and I think they are a beautiful, unique way of capturing a moment that will last a lifetime. As an artist and digital creator, I believe that art is the expression of ideas and emotions through a physical medium, like painting, sculpture, music, dance, and more. It requires creativity, an eye for detail, and a passion for self-expression. If you love the creative process, maybe you’ll devote your life to art. Read more>>

Susan Feldman

About a year before we ever even knew about the pandemic to come, I embarked on a large project. I had decided that after building just a few small wooden buildings, what i really wanted to do was make my own city. I thought Hey, why not??? I can do this and why shouldn’t I? I’m a 60 something woman artist and I have the capability and what the hell…. My Own City featuring only buildings that i would want to have in it if i were to in fact have My Own City. Read more>>

Kazuki Takizawa

My most meaningful project still to this day is the “Breaking the Silence” performance/installation I created in 2015 during at a glassblowing facility called STARworks Glass, in Star, North Carolina. This piece was directly influenced by my experience of being with a family member who was going through a tough time and struggling with overwhelmingly strong suicidal ideation. Read more>>

Yuexi Li

Ciao was my first experience as the lead editor on a feature project. It provided me with an opportunity to grow professionally and gain valuable experience by being involved in the project from pre-production to post-production. I joined this project before shooting and went on set during their shooting. This film, Ciao, particularly focuses on bridges in China, and our shooting locations were all in various beautiful places. Read more>>

Kendra Lee

Even before I transitioned to a digital artist, I started a project called the “The Strangest Fruits,” inspired by Abel Meerpool’s poem “Strangest Fruit.” I wanted to create a series of images where I would reclaim the meaning behind black female lynches in the United States and revision their experiences as evidence of the “fruits,” spirit, or generational characteristics black women can possess, and pass through our bloodlines. Read more>>

Najya Williams

At the start of the COVID pandemic in 2020, I was in quarantine at home with my family and felt deeply called to dig into our history. After talking through my ideas with my mom, I decided to start with a U.S. Census search to see how far back I could trace our roots. Imagine my surprise when I was able to trace our lineage all the way to the 1890s in Kingstree, SC, where the Nelsons planted the seeds that have bloomed into the family of their wildest imaginations. Read more>>

Iri Chen

<Pearl> is my senior thesis project that explores how the pearl is symbolized in different cultures. Pearls are infinite, mysterious, and symbolic. And this project represents my love and passion for mysterious cultures and images with fancy delicate details. Read more>>

Shudi Nelson

I’ve created a handful of albums in the form of beats & utilize the essence of “delivering messages” into the tapes. I wanted to be able to tell a story or give meaningful insight by using my beats like how artists use their lyrics to portray a story or message. One of my main projects that are out now that deserves that type of recognition is my album “Gratitude” which is up under the moniker “Lil’ Nate NB”. Read more>>

Suguru Hiraide

When I first came to the U.S. as an international student from Japan, one of my main goals was to build a “bridge” between national and international artists. Therefore, after starting my career as a professional artist and educator, I have actively participated in international art exchange shows and events involving China, Costa Rica, Japan, and Thailand. I have also served as a co-curator and organizer, since 2014, for similar shows and events between the U.S. and Japan. Read more>>

Takeshi Kanemura

73836: SEVEN—Installation Exhibition Since 2012—a year after the tsunami hit Japan—Takeshi has created multiple pieces of art reacting to the disaster. He has been visiting Japan (Miyagi and Iwate prefectures, specifically, both of which sustained major damages in the tsunami), producing inspired work, and showcasing his art in the United States, Taiwan, and Japan. While doing this, he founds that people’s need for cultural interaction makes for better communities. This is now Takeshi’s motivation for being an artist. Read more>>

Kurt Steger

It has always been my dream to build an art studio from the ground up, and in 2020 I was finally able to fulfill this dream. Located in the Hudson Valley of New York, it is a 700-sf structure of my own design, with a sculpture garden that extends my studio outdoors. There is a gazebo that I designed and built where guests naturally congregate. I host a monthly salon and invite people to share their talents and ideas. Read more>>

Caroline Qureshi

I’ve been figure drawing myself for just over two years now. I, just like many woman, have grown up with a very complicated relationship to my body. I found myself judging her more than loving her, and constantly comparing her to others. I really did not even realize I had an irrational negative perception of my body until I approached middle age. As I began to explore my emotions through art in my mid-thirties, I was able to access layers that I previously was not aware of. Read more>>

Phil Musen

I think to date the project that comes to mind is a series of paintings I made called “Mermaid Fantasy”. I reimagined a romance in my life in the setting of some sailors who get shipwrecked in an archipelago inhabited by mermaids. It meant everything to me because it helped me process the experience I had gone through in my life, being with someone from a very different culture. Read more>>

Suraj Savkoor

I have always believed in the power of cinema to tell meaningful stories that resonate with people’s hearts and minds. My journey as a filmmaker took a profound turn when I directed the movie ‘For Paloma,’ a deeply personal and poignant tale about a mother’s journey of acceptance and love for her daughter born with Down’s syndrome. This extraordinary story, crafted by my dear friend April Aguilera, served as a heartfelt tribute to her daughter Paloma, and it touched the lives of numerous families who have experienced similar challenges. Read more>>

Aeryn Goldstein

Professor Goldstein’s upcoming album, Songs About Dinosaurs, is a project that means a lot to the band. The album started out as a collection of songs that Aeryn started writing in 2020, when the band was still a solo project/collective. We’ve had a consistent enough lineup through most of the process of creating this album, and therefore we feel comfortable calling “Songs About Dinosaurs” the first album we made as a band together. Read more>>

Jazzlyn Rainey

A meaningful project I am currently working on as of now is with the North San Diego County’s NAACP ACT-SO, as well as a more personal project in trying to be a voice of positive representation for young black girls, women and people from my community and beyond. However a meaningful project I have always stuck with and have tried to build upon is how I portray myself as an artist and creative, who can be a vessel for the challenges as well as great achievements of Black people and the culture we live, breathe and continue to create and thrive in. Read more>>

Mike Sulick

Like many of my creative peers and other artists and designers around the world, I have a constant urge to keep creating. Whether it’s good or bad, something I’ve done a hundred times or something I’ve never done before, I always find myself making something. A good portion of my free time outside of work is dedicated to creating projects for myself, nothing to necessarily show people or make money off of, I just have this innate drive to keep designing and exploring new avenues in design by making things for myself. This often manifests itself in type design. Read more>>

Christy Lee Hughes

During pandemic, it was important to me to stay creative as much as possible. After reading plays in my living room, I decided to adapt both Guardian and Asking For It into short films, as a first time director. They are meaningful to me for different reasons. With Guardian, I flipped the gender of the lead character, a guardian angel from Gabriel to Gabby. Especially during such a challenging time in our world, I believe comedy heals and restores. Read more>>

Deanna Lewry

Self-publishing my novel, The Eos Key: Wynter Blood Book 1, is probably the most meaningful thing I’ve done, next to the brith of my son. It was something I’ve wanted to do for decades, and with the encouragement of my friends and family, I could finally publish in March 2022. Read more>>

Laura Daniel

Working as an actor, I’ve always looked to be part of meaningful projects. When I was encouraged to create my own work, I developed skills like editing and directing, which helped me expand my abilities as an artist and story-teller. Read more>>

Natalie Moore

I have been very fortunate to be able to work on many meaningful projects in the past few years. There are many meaningful projects I would like to talk about, but among them, some of the projects I would say are the most meaningful to me are Pathways (a coming of age series written and directed by Abraham Lopez), as well as Life Like This, and Hidden Lives (two films also written and directed by Abraham Lopez and created by his production company A Greek God Entertainment.) Read more>>

Mecca Ramsey

The most meaningful project I’ve worked on is a series that aims to celebrate and honor queer love, highlighting the journeys and experiences of LGBTQ+ individuals in finding and experiencing love. This project is special to me because growing up, I didn’t have access to much representation or celebration of queer identities, and I wanted to create something that showcases the beauty and depth of love in the same way we see heterosexual couples. Read more>>

Jordan Royale

Meaningful projects in general are very important as they are a reflection of you and your brand. For example, it’s very important to me that myself and the brand align. A lot of people have a common misconception of me that I accept every collaboration that comes my way, and this couldn’t be farther from the truth. The product has to make sense, can’t be detrimental to my brand and what I’ve built. It needs to fit my style, my aesthetic, my every day life. And overall, be a good product. Read more>>

Jerry Czubinski

Meaningful Projects / Visits / Events. As Santa Claus you can only imagine the children, the families and stories one has come across during Santa’s Holiday adventures. The most meaningful are the ones for the parents and children who do not have the means or opportunity to visit with Santa and Mrs. Claus. Last Christmas Season as with others before we are asked by friends, family, fellow Military brothers and sisters as well as believers of the spirit of Christmas – ” Who can we donate too” ” What is the Charity you support” ” How can we help you spread your Christmas joy to others” ” Can we sponsor a family visit” ……………….. Read more>>

Audrey di Faye

Spike & Crown Studios is an indie animation studio. We make animated films that highlight stories untold. In the summer of 2010. John Lee, an Art Center Alumni approached Frans Kusuma with an idea to create story based on Spanish Mythology. Frans enlisted the help of Audrey di Faye to write the script for The House of La Mancha. In 2021, Audrey secured initial seed funding for the studio and Spike & Crown Studios was born. Read more>>

Jesse Del Queens

My most meaningful project to date would have to be “London Bridge”, a single I produced for Kelly Ross. I took some personal time off work spring of 2018 to refocus my goals and to creative music. To spark creativity, I was listening to a few fugues by my favorite composer Bach. Fugues are my favorite style of music. Its’ complex and layered with a theme that repeats throughout the composition, eventually coupled with another melody, and that complexity builds and builds. Read more>>

Cabe Lindsay

Outside of my videography career, my media making extends to books, movies, music, and fine art. At a glance, these creations include children’s books: Be Well Bee, Brave Spirit, and I Walk In Beauty, along with the youth fiction novel series called Wyld. I create all kinds of films, including two feature-length documentaries: Voices of the Grandmothers and Wild Family. My band is called Cosmic Butterflies, with one album released: Colors Flying, and another one on the way. My paintings hang on many walls. Read more>>

Betsy Ellor

While having my first children’s picture book traditionally published felt like a tremendous milestone, my most meaningful project was in 2021. We moved to a new town in 2020, just as the world closed down. Even without the pandemic, there was very little creative community in my new area and I felt isolated and alone. Instead of closing in with my sorrow, I decided to turn it around and reach out. I put out a call for submissions for art, comics, poetry, short stories, and micro memoir – any creative form as long as it was on the topic of care. Read more>>

Tisha Robinson-Daly

During my career, the most meaningful project I have worked on was the production of the episodic series titled “HIGH: Climber Stories.” This project was born out of a deeply impactful incident involving a tower climber named Joel Metz, whose tragic accident deeply affected me. I recognized the need to shed light on the lives of these brave individuals who often work in unsafe conditions and face significant challenges. Read more>>

Sarah Moore

Girls Run These Worlds started as a way to gain agency and voice in a male dominated field. A cis-het white male dominated field at that. At our core we knew that there were multiple barriers to having spaces for women and femme identifying voices in livestream and recorded media, particularly at the intersection of TTRPG (tabletop role playing games- such as Dungeons & Dragons). Read more>>

Charlotte Hendrickx

Each project I have worked on so far has been meaningful in its own way. I’ve learned infinite things on each set and met so many talented people. The fact that we often work together has led to us becoming a close group of friends. The next project I’m working on , a feature film called ‘Polly and Sue’, is going to be quit significant . It’s the first feature film we’ll be producing and it’s definitely a different kind of cookie. Read more>>

Danielle Scruggs

Black Women Directors is certainly a meaningful project for me. I started it as a Tumblr in 2015 to highlight and celebrate the work of Black women and nonbinary filmmakers from around the globe. It has now expanded into a digital library with about 130+ entries and counting. This digital library is designed to serve as a celebration of their artistry and excellence because too often, Black women and nonbinary filmmakers’ contributions to the film canon have been underplayed or outright ignored. Read more>>

Elizabeth Pickett

I’ve been very fortunate to have had a number of meaningful projects cross my path. Out of all of them however, is the creating and making of a mourning wreath. I’ve been honored to be chosen by the city of Black Hawk, Colorado to make a group of 5 wreaths for their city offices, to be chosen by San Francisco’s Fire Department Engine 29 to honor a fallen firefighter, as well as hundreds of grateful customers. Read more>>