In first grade, when people asked Autumn Rose ’25 what she wanted to be when she grew up, she had one response: singing and performing (except for a few months when she wanted to be an astronaut).
“I enjoyed performing so much,” says Rose. “I distinctly remember making a project about it to present to my class. I even loved going to the movies and seeing people perform.” (more…)
Growing up in the 1980s and 1990s as a child of immigrants, Professor Aymar Jean (AJ) Christian learned about American culture by watching television. He was a preteen when cable became a dominant force in the industry, and he saw how the transformation of broadcast television reshaped entertainment. (more…)
When Gina Muzi ’24 discovered a letter she had written to herself years ago, it talked about one thing: playing Division I soccer. Today, she’s living her dream as a member of the varsity women’s soccer team at Northwestern. But sports aren’t her only interest: She’s just as passionate about the creative arts. (more…)
While talent has always been plentiful in Asia, the celebrities, brands, and partners in that part of the world haven’t historically had access to Hollywood-style talent agencies to help them maximize their potential. Instead, these companies oversaw their own talent, productions, and casting (and much more). This left little time for them to focus on ways to push their content globally so the world could enjoy it. (more…)
As the child of a special education teacher in China, Hongjin Chen ’24 says her mother helped her understand at an early age the value of loving and respecting those with physical and mental differences. (more…)
When Andrés Palacios Constanza ’25 reflects on his childhood in Guatemala, one of his favorite memories involves drawing. He and his brother attended arts classes as a chance to find their creative voices, and this gave Constanza the opportunity to draw freely for the first time.
He loved it so much that he envisioned his future as an illustrator—until robotics caught his attention. “I even considered changing high schools at one point so I could join a better math program,” he explains. (more…)
When AJ Schwartz ’26 moved to Chicago to study theater at Loyola University, they found more than the right degree program in The Windy City—they also found their creative community.
After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in 2017, Schwartz served as a freelance director and arts administrator for some of the city’s most notable storefront theater companies: About Face Theatre, Steep Theatre, First Floor Theater, etc. (more…)
While Zahra Freedman ’24 was always surrounded by music as a child, she often felt like it was being placed in front of her through structured experiences like classical piano and band lessons—not like she was intentionally moving toward it. Instead, she enjoyed creative writing, participating in national writing competitions and developing short stories on the spot. (more…)
When Minh Hà Millie Lê ’24 was young, she imagined a career as a difference-maker.
A Vietnamese third-culture kid, Lê has always been curious about people. She participated in student government and served as student body president, volunteered, and was part of Model United Nations, hoping to one day serve on the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Council.
By the time high school ended, however, she learned that UN resolutions take a long time to pass. “There are people better suited for that environment. They’re patient enough to work through resolution after resolution,” says Lê. “But it wasn’t for me. I felt more of an urgency in reaching people.” (more…)
With a fascination for film and an undergraduate degree in economics, Yuhan Liu ’24 felt like she was always looking for common ground between her studies and her love for creative industries.
Although she was studying finance in college, pursuing a bachelor’s from Beijing’s University of International Business and Economics, she didn’t forget how much she enjoyed working on films in high school.
As a member of a student film association in Beijing, she had the opportunity to create and produce several short films for festivals across Asia. “Our group also represented China in the Asian International Children’s Film Festival in Japan,” Liu explains. “We got the chance to learn how different cultures in Asia approach creative thinking and production work.”
