Academy
Notable Alumni
Idyllwild Arts Alumni represent more than 100 countries and are among the most talented global changemakers in the world. Our alumni span every industry, represent every artistic discipline and succeed in virtually every career. Many chose to advance their arts foundation to become accomplished, professional artists while others chose to become inventors, doctors, engineers, entrepreneurs, politicians, teachers, and professionals of all kinds. No matter the path, Idyllwild Arts alumni pioneer new ideas, set new standards, and make a difference in the world.
Notable Alumni
Shepard Fairey
Visual Arts – ’88
Created “Obey” sticker campaign and Obama “Hope” poster
Richelle Ellis
Visual Arts – ’09
Expeditionary Artist. Exhibited at the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo, Museum of Design Atlanta, and the National Air and Space Museum of the Smithsonian Institution
Casey Abrams
Music – ’09
American Idol Finalist
Rita Andrade
Music – ’08
Played viola on “Avatar: Way of Water”
Trevor Hall
Music – ’05
Singer/songwriter. Toured with Ziggy Marley, Jimmy Cliff, Michael Franti, John Butler Trio, Matisyahu and Brett Dennen
Clayton Alexander
Dramatic Arts – ’94
Holds 200+ patents, including the Ember temperature-controlled mug.
Cemiyon Barber
Dance – ’14
Co-founded Beyond the Black Box to uplift and support Black dancers.
Michael Barnet
Music – ’05
TV music writer (American Horror Story, Glee, The Blacklist and more)
Larkin Bogan
Dramatic Arts – ’05
Broadway Actor (American Idiot, Hair, Wicked)
Nora Germain
Music – ’09
Professional Violinist (The Ellen Degeneres show, Glee, MTV Video Music Awards, Jon Batiste, Sam Smith, Manhattan Transfer, Barry Manilow)
Elora Hardy
InterArts – ’99
Created design brand Ibuku
Celeste Headlee
Theatre – ’87
President and CEO of Headway DEI
Marisa Hamamoto
Dance – ’00
Created Infinite Flow Dance company
Tara Kintz
InterArts – ’94
Led teacher preparation initiatives in Afghanistan’s education sector.
Kai Krause
Film & Digital Media – ’11
Cinematographer (Celine Dion, Ozuna, J. Balvin, Gatorade, Land Rover, Delta and more)
Meredith Mantik
Creative Writing – ’06
TV Editor (Our Journey to Europse, Young Rock, Something From Tiffany’s, Faces of Death, and The Burial)
Maya Osterman
Dramatic Arts – ’05
Executive Director of Programs at Mirror Image Arts fighting the school-to-prison pipeline
Amber Pairis
Visual Arts – ’92
Founder and Lead Advisor of the Climate Science Alliance
Teale Sperling
Dramatic Arts – ’05
Senior Manager of Preschool Television for Mattel. (Barney (MAX), Barbie Vlogs (YouTube), Fireman Sam, The Toy Box (ABC), Tiny Shoulders: Rethinking Barbie (Hulu))
Jacob Scesney
Music – ’11
Multi-Grammy winning woodwind specialist (Maroon 5, The Jonas Brothers, Shawn Mendes, John Legend, Glee, The Voice, American Idol, The Ellen Show, The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon)
Sean Zaccheo
Film & Digital Media – ’06
Professional Director & Photographer (General Motors, DraftKings, Sprint, Amazon, United Airlines, T-Mobile, Nationwide)
Hannah Shaver
Dramatic Arts – ’14
3x Emmy Award-Winner
Malcolm Duncan
Film & Digital Media – ’11
Music Video and Commercial Producer (Doja Cat, A$AP Rocky, Katy Perry, Bad Bunny, Beyonce, Lil Nas X, Lil Wayne and more)
Mauricio Hernandez
Dance – ’12
Tap Gold medalist at Confederacion Inter-Americana de Profesionales de la Danza
Nana Lee
Visual Arts – ’98
Art director of LIE SANGBONG and BLANK SPACE
About Our Community
The alumni of Idyllwild Arts are some of the most talented individuals to be entering the workforce. Whether working in their art major, pioneering new ideas or setting new standards, our talented alumni are successful in every sense of the word.
