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.

Malik Pollard

The most meaningful project I worked on has been MadFlavor TV.

I created MadFlavor TV as a means for actors, actresses, and models to get important exposure and build reels to further pursue their dreams in the arts.

The enterainment show was initially produced through public access and through building relationships in the industry, afforded opportunities for interviewing celebrities across the country. The show gave many people access and a way to get their foot in the door. Read more>>

Sirun Chen

For me, there is no single most meaningful project. I simply focus my attention on life, on the details of everyday living, discovering along the way. I suppose I could call myself a reader of symbols or a storyteller.

Right now, the project that suddenly comes to mind is one I’ve been working on continuously from last year, 2024, until this year. It is actually related to craft, feminine energy, and creativity. Read more>>

Casey Zabala

In 2014 I endeavored to create my own tarot deck, without the expectations that it would change my life and become my full-time profession. Having been gifted a tarot deck for my 13th birthday, the cards and their magic and mythology were already a deeply ingrained part of my life. When I had the opportunity to focus on tarot as my thesis in college, I jumped at the opportunity. Creating my own deck opened up the archetypes and the mystery of the tarot in ways that surprised me, and have changed me forever. I created the deck in a ritualistic framework, and the imagery flew out of my pen in a short two month period. Read more>>

Petty Murphy

What I have been working on is a documentary about my life and my comedy career and telling the truth about the entertainment industry from my perspective and showing the world on how to change the culture in not just entertainment but in our country as well. Read more>>

Ellen Gustafson

I love what I do because I get to experience the highs, lows and in-betweens of my client’s lives while creating something tangible for them to reflect on in the future. Weddings & celebrations, newborn sessions, & birthday milestones and just simply documenting a certain time and place in a client’s life to preserve moments and feelings are what I spend the majority of my workload on. There aren’t many things you can guarantee in life, but being born and dying are certainties. Bringing new life into the world is a common celebration filled with love and joy. Photographing new life can be chaotic but the optimistic undertone is always there, no matter how sleep-deprived parents are. Read more>>

Jason Currin

As the Director of Community Engagement for Thrive Upstate, the largest disability service provider in Upstate South Carolina, I lead an initiative called, “Drumming Up Awareness”. Originally a single day event, DUA has grown to encompass a variety of classes, workshops, performances, and other rhythmic offerings year-round. Not only are events fun and engaging, but they serve a larger purpose: to educate, strengthen community connections, and foster awareness and empathy for those living with a disability. Read more>>

Carissa Sky

The most meanigful project I have worked on is a short documentary I worked on called “Dominique”.This film was completed a little under a year ago during my time in the Paris exchange program. I was in Paris for 10 months and participated in a French language program and a film intensive program that was also entirely in French. It was through the film program that I was given the opportunity to make Dominqiue. Dominuqe is a french sculptor who has lost 80% of her vision over the last 20 years and this film tackles her relationship with creativity, perspective and how we connect with one another and the world around us. I am the director, writer and editor of this film so I spent a lot of time carving out this 10 minuet story out of the almost 6 hours of footage. Read more>>

Warren Sulatycky

Over the many decades that I’ve been creating work for theatre and film, I always ask deep questions of myself about life, love, family, mortality, society and one’s place in the universe. These questions invariably take me to stories from my own experience, or family experience, and the people involved. There are two projects that I’ve created, both for the theatre, separated by 30 odd years, that have had the most meaningful impact in my life. And it’s terribly difficult to choose between either. The first, ”Babas“, was early in my playwriting career in the early nineties when I was playwright-in-residence at Toronto’s Factory Theatre. “Babas” was based on my Ukrainian grandmother who lived in a small town in Saskatchewan. Read more>>

Selena Vyle

I have participated in many Fringe Festivals over the last decade and a half. But no production was as personal as the one I submitted to the Digital Fringe Festival in Toronto in 2021. We were still in lockdowns so the whole festival was moved online, which allowed us to bring video into the mix. Read more>>

Zixin Yang

“Lingering Summer Day” is my master’s thesis project. It tells the story of my final meeting with Professor Gary Schumer, my first 2D animation teacher. He was the one who helped me build confidence, little by little, and ultimately gave me the courage to pursue a career in animation—and even dream of becoming a director. He showed me the kind of genuine compassion and encouragement that an international student rarely receives. This film is dedicated to him—an ordinary man who was also an extraordinary animator and teacher. Read more>>

Beth Dooley

It’s hard to choose which of the many projects I’ve worked on has the “most” meaning for me. I’ve learned from them all. My first was SAVORING THE SEASONS of the Northern Heartland, co-authored with chef, and restaurant owner, Lucia Watson. Lucia, a James Beard award winning chef, was the first in our region to focus on local food. Her seasonal menu changed weekly and she ran her restaurant with the utmost integrity. The food was awesome. Edited by the legendary Judith Jones (featured in the movie Julia and Julie), SAVORING THE SEASONS, taught me how to write cookbooks that tell stories. THE SIOUX CHEF’S INDIGENOUS KITCHEN, co-authored with chef Sean Sherman, provided insights into the Native American culinary culture and history. Sean is a transformative genius and three time James Beard Award winner (one of those awards was for our book). Read more>>

Elena Funderburk

The truth is, my portfolio is not very big yet. Sure, I’ve worked on several illustrations, animatics, some small comics here and there, I even have a few paintings! The most meaningful thing I have made up to date however, is a series of small illustrations that I have made on garbage at my day job. Some context is that I work a third shift at a mailing warehouse in Georgia. The work is hard as I am constantly moving, picking up and placing down things that could easily be heavier than myself, sorting mail trucks, running up and down the length of a conveyor belt for the next parcel. I am not allowed to listen to music, or have my phone with me, and due to the machinery noise in the warehouse it can be difficult to carry a coherent conversation with coworkers. Read more>>

Isabella O’Brien

For the majority of my time as a working creative thus far, I’ve had a consistent 9-5 job to help support my goal of eventually being able to be a full-time freelancer. Because of that, I’ve been selective with projects I take on. My collaborations until this point have been with other up and coming artists of different mediums. These artists have often become some of my closest friends, bonding over the hustle of making a living and forging forward with our respective projects. Ultimately, working with other emerging artists reminds me to release the attachment of the outcome, instead focusing on mastering the process. Read more>>

Yas Modares Ghasiri

I would say I’m in the middle of working on my most meaningful project. I’m in pre-production for a short film I wrote and will be acting in about a Persian trans man who can’t afford top surgery. Through a book his grandmother left him, he ends up accidently turning to the occult. It’s a comedy called The Breastorcism we’ll be raising money for soon. Read more>>

Eileen Ferara

The natural world has been important to me for as long as I can remember. As a kid I played in overgrown empty lots in my suburban NJ neighborhood, and collected pine cones from the trees in our front yard as subjects for drawings. Today my artwork is a reflection on the time I spend in urban wild spaces. I make paintings, sculptures, prints and paper installations which are all connected to my observations, research and speculation about my surroundings. Through this work I have learned a lot about the overlooked ecosystems in densely populated areas, and the importance of preserving green spaces. Read more>>

Brin Steeves

Creating custom urns and memorials is by far the most meaningful projects I create. As someone who has been shaped by loss and grief, I don’t take these requests for granted. It’s an extremely vulnerable process to tell a stranger about your late loved one and trust that they’ll make a vessel that feels right. Over the years, I’ve made around 50 urns for friends, parents, partners, and pets—and I’ve had a little cry during every single one. It’s an honor to hold space for my customers’ grief and build a final resting place that represents lives well lived. Read more>>

Wendy Wei

Right now, I am working on a series of embroidery paintings that feature confessional texts. I use the “x” and grid pattern to mimic cross-stitch embroidery, which was very popular among Chinese households in the early 2000s. It was a beloved pastime for Chinese women during the pre-smartphone era, as it is beginner-friendly compared to other types of stitching, requiring only the ability to follow the grid and repeat the “x.” When I was little, almost all the nannies and stay-at-home moms were addicted to it. I was so impressed by their patience because I could never do that! I was clumsy and impatient, and only cartoons could entertain me.  Read more>>

Ute Reckhorn

The most meaningful project I’ve worked on is Develop with Light—a photography workshop I created specifically for creative photographers seeking more depth, intention, and expression in their work. What started as a personal exploration into the emotional and artistic side of photography has evolved into a global community of like-minded creatives through a Facebook group that organically grew from the workshop. Read more>>

Yzaiah Jordan

My most meaningful project I worked on was A.L.O.N.E which is a acronym for Always Living Off New Emotions.
The sequel to my alternative album “Songs About Her” , last project was about both perspectives of a broken relationship.

the perspective of A.L.O.N.E is the after effect of Songs About Her but this time with more alternative jazz and pop elements in there too. I feel like this project displayed me in a different light, I felt like they were experiencing the side of me I call Jacky Lavish. Read more>>

Yinxue Wang

One of the most meaningful projects I’ve worked on is the Off-Broadway production Anti-Gone俺抬杠?!, which premiered in March at the Jeffrey and Paula Gural Theatre at A.R.T./New York. I was the costume, hair, and makeup designer for the show, and it was such a special opportunity for me to dive deep into both the emotional and visual world of the piece. The story reimagines the Greek tragedy Antigone, but sets it in a rural Northern Chinese village during the 1980s—a time and place filled with tension, tradition, and transformation. Read more>>

Connor Cassidy

In 2017, while working as a branded content producer for ESPN in New York City, I was tasked with producing a 60-second promotional video for Gatorade’s 2016 Player of the Year award, to be featured during the ESPY Awards. Peyton Manning, a former recipient of the award in 1993, agreed to participate as he was also presenting it live at the ESPYs. With only a month until the show, the timeline was tight, and I needed to quickly develop a script and concept for Gatorade. Despite a modest budget, I aimed to secure a production partner who could deliver dynamic visuals and create a comfortable environment for Peyton, who had only two hours to spare. Read more>>

Madeline Lam

Blue is an EP that charts the atlas of a human heart. An intimate roadmap of grief, it offers a hope that we can crumble into wholeness. For me, music is the complete expression of the soul. ‘Blue’ is my second studio recorded EP and next release. It will be my first fully-self recorded project. As a life-long musician, songwriter and performer, recording is a new extension of my craft. In a conceptual sense, this EP came from the depths of my being in a time where I had to confront abuse and grief this past winter. In the midst of feeling myself breaking, I felt the people that I have lost come to me and whisper in my ear that we “break back into wholeness.” Read more>>

Randy Corron

The most meaningful project I have worked on would be Black Enough, a web series I had the pleasure of assisting with both on and off screen. It tells the story of a college freshman named Amaya, who goes through a series of trials while creating her #BlackGirlMagic potion to survive at a predominantly white college. Read more>>

Minji Kim

One of the most meaningful projects I’ve undertaken is the creation of a shadowless light cover—an innovation driven by the principles of human-centered design and patented light-guide technology. Currently, I hold patents for this invention in the U.S., Korea, and China. Read more>>

Jamie McAfee

My comic book Alexis Wyle is the most meaningful project I have worked on. My lead character, Alexis, represents strength, hope, and rebellion. She is all things I think the world needs to be a hero. A young woman is chosen to take on the greatest evil, fighting for herself and others while also allowing herself to mourn what was taken from her. This is a story that I first wrote now over 14 years ago. It was a project I placed to the side because I was unsure how I could bring it to life, as there were elements to the comic process that I had to sit with and learn throughout the years. In 2023, I decided to take the risk of reaching out to the world to crowd-fund so I could get book one created. Read more>>