Cynematik • Cyndi Greening

(From the ALUMNI & FRIENDS NEWSLETTER at Mesa Community College)

* Mike Luciano said he first met Greening at MCC when she was a guest teacher and managed to teach the entire basics of Flash (an animated web-based application) in a short three-hour period. Mike, who went on to take more of Greening’s classes, said, “Greening was always at the top of her game, trying to get new computers and software for the students.” Mike graduated from ASU, but credits MCC with opening the door into creating his own films.

“Everything I learned in Cyndi’s classes at MCC has helped me in the industry and is applied in my field every day,” Mike said. Mike worked on the FX series 30 DAYS and is currently associate editor at Subvoyant in New York, where he is working on a number of commercials, plus a film that was selected for the 2006 Sundance Film Festival, “Flannel Pajamas.” Mike is also cutting a feature-length film shot in Los Angeles starring Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs, Mopreme Shakur (the brother of the late Tupac Shakur), and L.A. rapper Court Dog. His portfolio can be found at MikeLuciano.Com.

* Jake Parker took a Photoshop class with Greening at MCC in 1998, which he said helped him build a foundation of computer skills “back when there was still a big riff between computer generated art and traditional art.” Since then, he has worked for Fox Animation Studios, Phantagram, Reel FX, and now Blue Sky Studios, where he worked as a freelance artist on the film ROBOTS and will work as a full-time artist on their next project, the Dr. Seuss classic, HORTON HEARS A WHO. Jake said the most rewarding work he has done is FLIGHT I and FLIGHT II, a collection of stories by several writers and artists. Jake said, “After being in the entertainment industry, I have since learned that the MCC life drawing program was notorious for producing high-quality artists who went on to excel at various art schools and in the gaming, entertainment, and illustration industries.” Jake studied with Professor James Garrison. Jake’s freelance sketches and drawings can be seen on Agent44.

* Kohl Glass attended MCC during the same time as Jake Parker. Kohl went on to attend Brigham Young University where he met the producer of the film NAPOLEON DYNAMITE. (Kohl worked on the production of the “extra scene.”) Kohl’s independent film, THE PROMETHEAN was selected for a number of film festivals and has won several awards. Kohl came back to MCC as an adjunct teacher for one semester and is currently completing an animated short, DER OSTWIND, that began while Jake and Kohl were at MCC. Visit Eventide Creative to view Kohl’s work.

Mesa Community College’s (MCC) dynamic media arts program is attracting industry veterans and degree-seeking students alike as they seek to learn the latest tools in graphic design, digital imaging, and animation. Several students from MCC art programs have found employment editing and producing television programs and films, including the animated movie ROBOTS, the FX series 30 DAYS and an award winning independent film, THE PROMETHEAN.

Media Arts instructor Cyndi Greening keeps track of her students’ successes and plugs their projects on her blog, www.cyndigreening.com. The blog is packed full of information on the latest trends in filmmaking, animation, and media arts. Greening’s blog also covered the 2006 Sundance Film Festival with three MCC students. Greening and students posted podcasts and videocasts from the festival on the blog to update readers at home on the festival happenings.

“I always tell my students that I want them on the bleeding edge,” Greening said. “When they graduate in two years, they don’t want their stuff to already be old. You want to know where the market is going and take hold when you get there.” MCC students use software tools such as Final Cut Pro, Shake, Maya, and other programs used by professional filmmakers and designers, which make them immediately employable. Greening said MCC graphic design interns are in demand with local businesses because the students’ skill level is high and they don’t require training. But sophisticated tools and employable skills aren’t the only things emphasized in MCC’s media arts program. “Even though we have a really big focus on students getting employed, we also want them to have an independent vision and self expression and a personal point of view,” Greening said. “We want them to be successful and commercial, but at the same time, we want them to be unique individuals.”