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.

Yaxing Lin

One of the most impactful projects I’ve embarked upon was my thesis film during my tenure at the USC School of Cinematic Arts. This narrative unfolds around a poignant reunion: after a year of separation, six-year-old Jiajia is reunited with her mother, Lin, who earns her livelihood as a performer in an adult nightclub. Read more>>

Maria Arteaga

I’ve embarked on numerous creative endeavors in my life, but none have reached the depth and significance of my latest project—crafting and refining my personal brand. Read more>>

Shuyao Chen

During my time at NYU graduate film program, I wrote and directed two short films. The most recent film, “Manting”, recently premiere at Hamburg International Queer Film Festival, which is the largest and oldest film festival in Germany. The story of “Manting” follows a married Chinese woman in her 60s, Manting, who reconnects with her past lesbian lover, Jianhua, at a high school reunion event. With so much in their past that they aren’t able to speak of, they spend a night roaming in the city. Read more>>

Marie Antoinette

Recently, I had the opportunity to facilitate a window installation at the gallery where I am in residency. The project was impactful on many levels. As an emerging self taught artist this would be a defining moment. I realized that this was about much more than a belief that I could successfully deliver and would require not only confidence ,creativity and tenacity, I would need a team a community. Read more>>

Wang Newton

TL; DR: for an entire year during the pandemic, we gathered 200+ on Zoom during our digital show, @Sacred.Wounds. The audience of 18-84 years in range, from all time zones showed up — laughing, crying and gagging (a compliment in queer slang for shock and awe). Read more>>

Paul Juberg

Meaningful projects Greetings!! I am a Musicianary…that is a Combination of Musician and a Missionary! Before I touch on some meaningful projects I’m working on. I want to explain something about the word “meaning.” Read more>>

The Second Inversions

Our first album, Sonder, is the most meaningful project to us thus far because of the process that went into creating the project. It took us probably 6 months to complete this project and during this time, we were still learning and getting to know each other more deeply not only as players but friends. It might not have been the most impactful project to others, but the impact was felt within. We held weekly jam sessions to find our groove and establish the culture of what we wanted The Second Inversions to be. Because of this foundation that we were able to build, Sonder is the most meaningful project in our journey so far. However, our story is still being written and there are many more projects to come. Read more>>

CaspaCz Official

I try and make music that’s not just saying what people want to hear. When I write it comes from my experiences my anger frustration dealing with betrayal a world that lacks love and compassion and a understanding that the relationships and life I lived are not healthy. Read more>>

Jillian Kogan

As an artist and artistic director, I feel truly fortunate to have worked on a number of meaningful and impactful civic installations and exhibitions. One of my favorite experiences was creating the 2008 – 2009 California Imagination Project, a statewide promotional campaign commissioned by the California Arts Council (CAC) to reaffirm the agency’s commitment to arts in education and raise public awareness of the importance of arts and arts education in California. Read more>>

Reem Abousaif

Fearless During the online master’s degree program at Harvard University, I had the privilege of working on a profoundly meaningful project. This intimate photojournalistic documentary followed the journey of a remarkable female doctor who was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer. Over six emotionally charged months, I had the opportunity to shadow her, witnessing firsthand the struggles, triumphs, and poignant moments that unfolded as she navigated the harrowing path of treatment and faced an uncertain future alongside her loving husband and two daughters. Read more>>

Marley Blauch

The most meaningful project that I have worked on has absolutely been my installation, “My World,” composed of televisions, wooden tables, cardboard, screen printed wallpaper, oil paint, and acrylic paint, and was installed in the Kamil Gallery at UC San Diego in May of 2023. It was an incredible experience for me to observe the subject matter, processes, and ideas that I have dealt with in my painting and drawing practices enter a 3 dimensional space, as these elements that I had felt so personally immersed in became physical and could be experienced by others. Read more>>

Lisa Klug

I’ve had an issue staying at a healthy weight since the age of five. I’m five feet, two inches tall and have weighed everything from 115 pounds up to 350 pounds as an adult. I’m sixty-two years old now, and I feel encouraged as a creative to share my experience through the years with this misunderstood condition. Read more>>

Gal Bar El

One of my most meaningful projects involved supporting the ‘This Is Jane Project’, a nonprofit aiding women healing from trauma using cannabis for medication and community support. As a ‘Jane’ myself, I’ve received invaluable medication assistance since meeting the organization’s founder, Shannon. ‘This Is Jane Project’ hosts ‘pick-up’ events in various states, providing a safe space for survivors to obtain cannabis at local dispensaries. In LA we have been lucky to be meeting at the dispensary Fountain Of Wellbeing. Read more>>

Julie Easton

The most meaningful project in my life is this beautiful fusion of teaching ESL and running an art studio. Let me give you the backstory. For over more than 40 years, I found myself teaching English to thousands of amazing adults from literally every nook and cranny of the world. Through conversation, without leaving the classroom, we traveled to one another’s countries– Brazil, Japan, Spain, Indonesia, Burma, China, and the list went on and on. Read more>>

Gerardo Meza

One of the most meaningful projects I have worked is the realization of a community mural with migrants from South Africa in Cairo Egypt. It was amazing to experience how art, and color can bring communities together no matter what language you speak. In 2021 I was invited by the Mexican Embassy, to Cairo Egypt, to coordinate a community mural with migrants from different places of South America that what were in Cairo waiting to cross the border to Turkey (Europe). Not only did I had the chance to visit that country and do some art there, but the satisfaction was to inspire and learn from different people about the importance of Art and its relationship to mental health. Read more>>

John Benam

Early on in my career, I produced and filmed nature shows for National Geographic. It wasn’t until I left my staff position there, to start my own company, that I started making films about people and diving into topics like social justice. It was in this new space that I found my purpose in filmmaking. I found the act of holding a camera and following subjects into difficult territory to be both exhilarating and terrifying. Over time, the anxiety of that subsided and I realized that the real job was about building trust and holding compassion for the people brave enough to let me point the camera at them all day. Read more>>

Shaylin McEwen

The collection I’ve named, Awakening, is a testament to my personal journey of self-discovery and transformation. In its creation, I discovered the inner child within me, embracing pure bliss and joy as I followed my heart’s desires. My artistic process has become a form of meditation through the act of painting. I aspire to extend this healing to others, hoping to change the world by helping people recognize the beauty within their own souls and awaken to the profound truth of happiness that resides within them. Read more>>

Hamid Saeidi

The Opium Moon band is profoundly meaningful to me. Comprised of four individuals from diverse backgrounds—Iran, Israel, the United States, and Canada—our collective experiences represent Muslim, Jewish, and Christian upbringings. Working together, crafting music, we offer a powerful testament to tolerance and understanding in today’s world. Our collaboration exemplifies the beauty of unity despite our differences, showcasing the transformative power of music in fostering harmony among varied cultures and beliefs. Read more>>

John Jointer

My most meaningful project is my most current one. Indie Soul Journeys is a television music docuseries that chronicles the personal and professional lives of independent soul music artists from around the country. I began this project in 2014 when I was fan of all of these artists within the indie soul community and believed they were worthy of a much bigger platform to showcase their talents and their artistry. ISJ is meaningful to me because it was born out of my love for the music and the art these perfromers created. It was, and has been, a pure labor of love to bring these artists to the attention of music fans who might nothave otherwise known about them, if not for Indie Soul Journeys. Read more>>

Daniele Rossi

I’m a prolific creator so I’d say building my Franky Banky brand. Franky Banky is a cartoon fox who stutters. He has a companion tiger named, Ti-Ger (spelled like a type of stutter called “blocking” where a lot of tension is produced without sound), who always gets into unpredictable mischief. Just like stuttering! Read more>>

Matthew Hardesty

There have been quite a few meaningful projects in my career so far, which I’m eternally grateful for. The biggest one to me is the completion and distribution of the feature film ‘Sleight’, which is about the physiological and psychological difficulties associated with living with Multiple Sclerosis. A major undertaking, which we started filming when I was 21 years old, and took over 10 years to complete! Read more>>

Kat & Bianca Bark & Dam

For our premier showcase, we choreographed a piece entitled, “co(n)razon”. In Ancient Greek Philosophy there are 7 major forms of love. Some of these describe physical love, platonic and familial love which includes friendships, committed love and selfless love. This piece dives into the importance of all forms of love while stepping away from the pressures of self-love. Our sense of identity is shaped by the love we allow from others as well as what we pour into the many communities we create around us. We connect with this because it describes the journey we went through to create our own community within the dance industry. Read more>>

Margaret Schnebly Hodge

Two projects come to mind. (1) “Art In the Sunshine”; a 20-mile road project – During my 30-mile drive to and from work, I kept noticing hundreds of real estate and election signs. I really found the roadway signs irritating (many were illegal) and wondered “what would they think if I just put artwork all over the roads”? I knew I needed some partners, as I did not want to cause any negativity. The idea turned into reality with the help of 100 artists, 3 cities, the Museum of Arts and Sciences in Daytona Beach, and several rural property owners. I reached out over the internet and artists signed up from around the State of Florida. Read more>>

Gabe Rosenn

One of the most meaningful film projects I’ve worked on was Justice Bound- a feature documentary about my grandfather, Max Rosenn, who was a judge on the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, and helped lead a major flood recovery effort in Northeast Pennsylvania in 1972….I was lucky enough to get commissioned by Wilkes University in 2021 to film interviews with his former law clerks and edit the footage into a really nice piece to commemorate his contribution to that area. I also recorded the soundtrack with acoustic guitar, so it’s always nice when film and music projects coincide; and especially ones that have personal value. Read more>>

Amanda Lewis

This year I worked on a project called Tails of the World, which is a collaborative project from pet photographers all around the globe united to help raise funds for pet rescue and spread joy with beautiful photography and heartwarming stories. All funds raised for the photoshoots and book sales go to animal charities all around the world. I was able to raise $1,500 for Cherryland Humane Society here in Traverse City this year with this project. It’s incredibly meaningful for me to be able to contribute to helping support the animals in need in our community and also the people at CHS who take care of them. Shelters this year have been at capacity in many areas and often are low on resources like food needed to care for the animals. It means a lot to me that I can contribute to their care using my work to raise money and awareness. Read more>>