Jonathan Seligson is a Lecturer in the School of Film and Animation at RIT's College of Art and Design. He holds a BFA from Rhode Island School of Design and an MFA from California Institute of the Arts. Teaching and Creative Focus Foundational and advanced 2D animation techniques Character design and narrative development Historical and aesthetic analysis of animation Jonathan created the animated short Nueva Vida , a dark comedy based on true events. His curriculum covers the full animation pipeline from ideation to production.
Rich Koslowski is an adjunct instructor at the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design and a celebrated comic artist/writer. He has contributed to major franchises like Sonic the Hedgehog and Archie Comics, authored Eisner-nominated works, and produced award-winning graphic novels such as Three Fingers (Ignatz Award) and F.A.R.M. System . His creative portfolio spans over three decades with innovations in horror, superhero, and genre-blending narratives. Education details are not publicly disclosed in available texts. His research interests focus on visual storytelling techniques, character-driven narratives, and the intersection of art with sequential media. Recent projects include an illustrated horror novel Mercy (2023) and the ambitious 208-page graphic novel F.A.R.M. System . Awards: Ignatz Award (2002), Eisner nomination (The 3 Geeks), multiple industry award nominations Teaching activities emphasize hands-on training in illustration and comic creation. No grants or formal lab affiliations are mentioned, though his independent projects demonstrate sustained creative output. His professional network includes collaborations with Top Shelf Productions and long-term work with Archie Comics.
Georgeen Theodore is a Professor at the Hillier College of Architecture and Design, New Jersey Institute of Technology. Her research focuses on urban frameworks, time-based architectural processes, and sustainable design. Notable projects include studies on Mumbai’s Eastern Waterfront and explorations of temporal considerations in architectural practice. She has contributed to peer-reviewed journals such as Architect and Journal of Architectural Education , emphasizing critical analysis and interdisciplinary approaches. Media engagements include recognition of her work through press coverage on architectural responsibilities and urban design initiatives. Education: Not explicitly detailed in provided texts. Her work highlights the intersection of urban planning and architectural theory, with a focus on process planning and the role of time in design. Collaborations with colleagues and students are evident in multi-authored publications like the Mumbai waterfront study. While no formal awards are listed, her contributions to architectural discourse are reflected in media features such as the AIA New York 2025 Honor Awards recognition involving her projects.
Qi Cao is an Associate Professor in the School of Computing Science at the University of Glasgow, specializing in computational intelligence for financial analytics and technology-enhanced learning. His research bridges computing science with practical applications in finance, education, and immersive technologies. Education includes: PhD from Nanyang Technological University (2007) Bachelor of Engineering from HuaZhong University of Science & Technology (2000) Research spans: Intelligent systems for financial trading and portfolio management Virtual/Augmented Reality for educational enhancement Software engineering education methodologies Recent publications focus on educational technology innovations, including VR learning environments, blockchain applications, and AI-enhanced assessment tools. His work on generative AI in education and automated financial systems demonstrates interdisciplinary impact. Awards include IEEE MultiMedia Best Paper Award and recognition for applied research in industrial informatics. Developed open-source frameworks for financial analytics and VR education applications.
Dr. Peter C Y Yau Dr. Peter C Y Yau is an Assistant Professor in the School of Computing Science at the University of Glasgow's Singapore campus. He holds a DBA from the University of Newcastle, Australia, focusing on Financial Technology adoption, alongside an MA in Law and an MMgt in Financial Management. His research spans Web Development, Cloud Computing, IoT, Fintech, and Ethical AI in Education. Roles: Assistant Professor, Amazon AWS Cloud Ambassador, ABET Programs Evaluator Education: DBA (University of Newcastle), BSc (CUHK), MA Law (uLaw), MMgt (MGSM) Research & Teaching His work emphasizes applied learning, including an unmanned smart-tech lab in Hong Kong and Fintech projects using machine learning. He teaches courses like CSC3010 (Information Retrieval) and MEC3361 (Industrial IoT & Data Analytics). Publications & Awards Over 35 publications in journals/conferences since 2020. Notable awards include Microsoft MVP (2024). Active in editorial roles for the Journal of Artificial Intelligence and Big Data . Key Projects First unmanned smart-tech lab in Hong Kong for education Fintech automation project using social sentiment analysis GenDatr: probabilistic medical data visualization
John Perez is an Assistant Professor at the Dodge College of Film and Media Arts at Chapman University, specializing in Animation & Visual Effects. He holds a BFA in Animation from Laguna College of Art + Design and an MFA from the John Wells Division of Writing for Screen & Television at USC School of Cinematic Arts. Educated at Laguna College of Art + Design (BFA) and University of Southern California (MFA) Former storyboard artist/animator at Obsidian Entertainment, contributing to projects like South Park: The Stick of Truth Published comic book author and Writers Guild of America West associate-caucus member His research and creative work focuses on narrative design in animation, Latinx cultural representation in visual media, and the intersection of comics with speculative fiction. He has contributed to publications such as MAÑANA: Latinx Comics From The 25th Century and created a comic series at Action Lab Comics. Key themes in his work include visual storytelling techniques, gaming cinematics, and future-oriented narrative frameworks. Awards include the Fogelman-Rodriguez Fellowship during his MFA studies.
Joseph Kennedy is a Lecturer at Otis College of Art and Design, where he has taught since 2012. His expertise spans story development, character design, and game design, informed by over 20 years of industry experience in animation, film, and game development. He also works as a Senior Concept Artist at Sony PlayStation, Santa Monica Studio, and Art Director at Kennedy Creative. 2007: BFA in Digital Media (Concept Art) from Otis College of Art and Design As an artist and educator, Kennedy focuses on bridging creative storytelling with technical execution in digital media. His research interests include character design, game development workflows, and visual narrative techniques for entertainment. His 2019 publication Panel to PlayStation at San Diego Comic Con highlights his work translating comic book aesthetics into interactive game design. Industry trends he contributes to include concept art for AAA titles and cinematic game storytelling. 2007: The Group Scholarship, Otis College of Art and Design 2007: Service Award, Otis College of Art and Design 2011: Game of the Year, Skylanders: Spyro’s Adventure 2018: Game of the Year, God of War 2022: Game of the Year, God of War Ragnarök Joseph actively mentors students, emphasizing creative potential development. He collaborates with leading studios like Sony, Disney, and ShadowMachine Films, and maintains a professional art portfolio at ArtStation .
Matthew Morgan is a Senior Lecturer in Illustration at the University of South Wales, Faculty of Business and Creative Industries, and a member of the Creative Industries Research and Innovation Group. He brings extensive industry experience from leading animation studios including Aardman Animations, Disney Channel, and Sesame Street, contributing to acclaimed children’s programming. Education: MA in Animation (2011–2013) FHEA in Education (2013) BA (Hons) in Animation (2002–2004) BA (Hons) in Illustration, Bath Spa University (1997–1999) His creative expertise spans illustration, animation, character design, production design, and storyboarding . His work emphasizes visual storytelling for children's media, blending artistic technique with narrative clarity. Projects such as Frankenstein’s Cat and Driver Dan’s Story Train reflect his strong focus on animated storytelling and design innovation. Matthew Morgan has earned recognition through multiple awards, including: BAFTA Cymru (2005) BAFTA Winner (2010) RTS Animation Award West (2017) RTS Winner (2010) Chicago International Children's Film Festival (2017) He has served as an external examiner and consultant (2014–2018), demonstrating engagement beyond his institution. Though no formal advisees are listed, his mentorship is evident through teaching and industry leadership. He has not received grants explicitly mentioned, but his project involvement suggests collaborative and funded creative production. His work has been featured in major festivals including BAFTA, Animex, Fantoche, and BBC2 Homegrown Hollywood. Matthew leads and contributes to creative teams in both academic and professional settings, with a focus on innovation in animation and illustration. His lab or research group affiliation is the Creative Industries Research and Innovation Group, where he integrates practice-based research with pedagogy.
Dr. Husna Razee is a Lecturer at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) with a teaching-intensive focus in the Faculty of Medicine, School of Public Health and Community Medicine. She has over a decade of experience convening and co-convening courses in health promotion and qualitative research methods, including PHCM2003 (Health Promotion) for the Bachelor of International Public Health Program and PHCM9012/PHCM9120 (Health Promotion and Qualitative Research Methods) for postgraduate programs. Her academic journey includes degrees from the American University of Beirut (BSc), University of California Berkeley (MPH), and UNSW (PhD). Qualifications: BSc (AUB), MPH (UC Berkeley), PhD (UNSW) Teaching Roles: PHCM2003, PHCM9012, PHCM9120 Dr. Razee specializes in qualitative research methodology, particularly ethnography and creative data collection techniques like vignettes and storyboarding for sensitive health topics. Her research spans across Australia, Saudi Arabia, Nepal, Papua New Guinea, Fiji, Sri Lanka, India, Pakistan, Indonesia, and the Maldives, focusing on cultural contexts that shape health outcomes. She addresses critical issues in adolescent sexual and reproductive health education, gender-based violence, social conceptualization of mental health, and health professional education. Her recent research projects include investigating the pandemic's impact on HDR students' experiences, exploring caregiver nutrition when caring for cancer patients, developing nurse-patient education tools for pressure injury prevention, and addressing child marriage through community-based education in Indonesia. Despite being primarily a teaching-focused academic, her research contributions have co-authored over 30 peer-reviewed publications. Scientific Awards: 2022 UNSW School of Public Health award for excellence in higher degree research supervision 2018 Postgraduate research supervisor award from ARC postgraduate council 2012 Dual UNSW School of Public Health and Community Medicine awards for postgraduate research supervision and undergraduate teaching 2012 UNSW Faculty of Medicine Learning and Teaching Award
Anyi Rao is an Assistant Professor at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) where he leads the Multimedia Creativity Lab (MMLab@HKUST) and serves as Associate Director of the HKUST Media Intelligence Research Center. He received his Ph.D. from the Chinese University of Hong Kong and completed postdoctoral research at Stanford University. His research explores human-AI collaboration for creativity, focusing on understanding, editing, and creating art, media, and film. Research Interests: Rao's work centers on developing AI tools that enhance human creativity in visual media production. Key areas include: Controllable generative models for image and video synthesis AI-assisted cinematography and virtual production tools Multimodal understanding of films and creative content Human-AI collaborative workflows for artistic creation His research has produced influential tools like ControlNet and AnimateDiff used by industry leaders including Netflix and Amazon. Publication Trends: Rao's recent publications demonstrate a strong focus on diffusion models, controllable generation, and video understanding systems. His work consistently bridges technical innovation with practical applications in media production, showing increasing emphasis on real-time creative tools and filmmaker-AI collaboration paradigms. Awards and Honors: Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia (2025) Rising Star Award, World AI Conference (2024) Marr Prize (Best Paper), ICCV (2023) Magic Grant, Brown Institute for Media Innovation (2023) Hong Kong PhD Fellowship (2021) Academic Activities: Rao actively recruits students for his research group and has secured multiple grants including Amazon Video Research Fund and Tencent Rhino-Bird Grant. He organized the SIGGRAPH/CVPR Creative Visual Content Workshops and curated the Hong Kong AI Film Festival. He serves on program committees for major conferences including CVPR, ICLR, and SIGGRAPH Asia.
Collin Byrd is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Fine Arts at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES), part of the School of Education, Science, and Arts (SESA). He is actively shaping the future of the arts program by developing the animation concentration, integrating digital innovation into visual storytelling. His educational background includes: Bachelor’s studies at the Art Institute of Washington (2006–2010) Master of Fine Arts in Animation from Savannah College of Art and Design (2010–2013) Mr. Byrd specializes in digital artistic creation, with core expertise in 2D animation, sequential art, and 3D sculpting and printing. He is passionate about pushing the boundaries of digital tools, exploring interactive moving comics and affordable access to artistic technology. His creative work includes the animated webcomic The Crimson Fly , an experimental coming-of-age superhero narrative that reflects both character and artistic growth. Throughout his career, he has taught animation at multiple institutions, including the Art Institute of Washington, Buena Vista University, and Savannah College of Art and Design, before joining UMES. His teaching philosophy centers on inclusivity, innovation, and empowering others to engage in artistic creation through creative use of tools and techniques. No scientific awards or honors were mentioned in the provided text. Mr. Byrd advises students in animation and graphic illustration, though specific advisees are not listed. He has been involved in curriculum development, particularly in establishing new animation pathways. His professional journey reflects a strong commitment to both pedagogy and experimental digital art practice. He maintains an active creative practice, constantly experimenting with emerging digital creation tools—from tablet-based 3D sculpting to interactive comics—demonstrating a lab-like exploratory approach to digital art, though no formal lab or research team is explicitly named.
Chris Bailey is a Lecturer at the Dodge College of Film and Media Arts at Chapman University. With a career spanning Walt Disney Feature Animation, Universal Studios, and other industry milestones, he specializes in traditional and CG character animation, visual effects, and live-action/animation hybrid production. Notable projects: The Little Mermaid , Hocus Pocus , X-Men II , Alvin & the Chipmunks Academy Award nominee for short film Runaway Brain Recipient of Annie Award and Visual Effects Society Best Visual Effects award for Minion Mayhem His expertise includes storyboarding, animation supervision, and character development. As an educator, he mentors students at both Dodge College and Exceptional Minds, an L.A.-based academy for neurodivergent animators and VFX artists.
Suzan Arslan serves as Assistant Professor in the Art and Craft Education Department at Trakya University's Faculty of Education since 2025, following prior research assistant positions at Trakya University (2012, 2022) and Anadolu University (2013). Her academic foundation spans multiple Turkish institutions with specialized focus on arts education methodologies. Educational background: Doctoral Degree, Arts and Crafts Education, Anadolu University Graduate School of Educational Sciences (2022) Master's Degree, Arts and Crafts Education, Anadolu University Graduate School of Educational Sciences (2016) Bachelor's Degree, Arts and Crafts Education, Uludağ University Faculty of Education (2010) Associate's Degree, Graphic Design, Istanbul University Open and Distance Education Faculty (2025) Dr. Arslan's research centers on innovative visual arts pedagogy, particularly concept-based learning frameworks and storyboard techniques for art instruction. Her doctoral work examined conceptual approaches in visual arts education while her master's thesis pioneered semiological analysis in graphical design teaching. She investigates how students perceive educational environments through visual narratives and develops practical applications for art classrooms that bridge theoretical constructs with creative expression. Her 2023 publications reveal a cohesive research trajectory examining student perspectives through storyboard practices and concept-based learning models. These works demonstrate consistent methodological focus on qualitative analysis of visual learning processes and narrative techniques within art education curricula, emphasizing student-centered approaches and conceptual development in visual literacy. As researcher for Anadolu University's Scientific Research Project 'Concept-based learning in visual arts education' (Project No:1807E309, 2022), she advanced empirical studies in art pedagogy. While no graduate students are documented in available records, her exhibition participation demonstrates active engagement with international art education communities through platforms like InSEA World Congress and biennial art events across Europe.
Anna Ursyn is a Professor and Computer Graphics/Digital Media Area Head at the School of Art & Design , University of Northern Colorado, within the College of Performing and Visual Arts . Her work bridges academic research, artistic practice, and technological innovation. PhD, MFA in Computer Graphics/Digital Media Active in international IEEE, ACM SIGGRAPH, and educational committees Recipient of numerous grants and awards for digital media contributions Her research focuses on knowledge visualization , visual storytelling , and interdisciplinary education . She explores how computer graphics can enhance communication across science, art, and education through projects like NASA's MoonArc and exhibitions at Louvre and NTT Tokyo. Recent publications address data visualization , visual literacy , and creative interface design . Her advising includes students in digital media and computer graphics programs. Awards include ACM SIGGRAPH grants , multiple Who’s Who listings, and international art competition recognitions. Editor's Choice Award , International Library of Poetry Artistic Merit Award , Eurographics 1996 Animal Image Award , Argentina Ursyn leads the Digital Art Gallery D-ART iV and SpaceTime competition , while maintaining an active studio practice that combines 3D programming , mixed-media sculpture , and scientific illustration .
Prof Catriona Cunningham serves as Head of Learning & Teaching Enhancement at Edinburgh Napier University, leading institutional strategies for pedagogical innovation and academic development through the Centre for Higher Education Research. Her work focuses on creating resilient learning communities and enhancing international student experiences across the university. Her research centers on higher education transformation, specializing in curriculum redesign for global classrooms, crisis-responsive teaching methodologies, and reflective academic development practices. She employs creative approaches like fairy-tale storyboards to examine pandemic impacts on educational ecosystems and advocates for evidence-based teaching enhancements. Recent publications (2022-2023) analyze MBA program adaptation for international growth, leadership frameworks during educational crises, and innovative academic development models. These works demonstrate her expertise in navigating complex challenges through pedagogical innovation and community-centered learning approaches. Cunningham supervises doctoral research including Agnese Di Domenico's project on music curricula and identity formation in school settings. She directs grant-funded initiatives such as the QAA Enhancement project (2023-24) on resilient learning communities (£4000 funding) and the British Council partnership (2022-2024) for circularity in architectural education with Istanbul Technical University. As Head of Learning & Teaching Enhancement, she oversees university-wide educational quality frameworks, collaborating with the Centre for Higher Education Research to implement transformative teaching practices and support academic staff development across all disciplines.
