SCAD continues to shape the film industry. This year, 212 SCAD alumni and current students as well as two professors contributed to films nominated for the 98th Academy Awards®, emphasizing SCAD's role as a premier pipeline to the world's leading studios and creative teams.

SCAD talent worked on 21 films recognized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, including seven Best Picture nominees, three Best Animated Feature nominees, and all five films nominated for Best Visual Effects. These acclaimed films include Sinners and One Battle After Another as well as global blockbusters Avatar: Fire and Ash, KPop Demon Hunters, and Zootopia 2.

"This extraordinary showing reflects what makes SCAD unique," said Andra Reeve-Rabb, dean of SCAD's School of Film and Acting. "Our students and alumni are prepared across every aspect of filmmaking, learning from Oscar-winning professors and working with resources that rival professional studios, from an 11-acre Hollywood-style backlot to LED volume stages and industry-run casting offices. That hands-on, real-world training is how we prepare the next generation of artists and storytellers who will shape the films audiences around the world celebrate each awards season."

SCAD's School of Film and Acting and School of Animation and Motion have launched thousands of alumni into the entertainment industry, with graduates contributing across every stage of filmmaking to Academy Award®–recognized films this year. These include alumni from the following degree programs: film and television (21 alumni), production design and costume-focused majors (six alumni), sound design (12 alumni), visual effects (79 alumni), and animation (69 alumni).

"This year's nominations once again demonstrate the impact SCAD visual effects alumni are having across both animated and narrative filmmaking," said Gray Marshall, chair of SCAD's visual effects program. "Our graduates are not only contributing to these films, they're leading teams, solving complex creative challenges, and pushing the boundaries of what's possible on screen."

"What we're seeing this year reflects years of dedication to craft, collaboration, and creative leadership," said Dan Bartlett, dean of SCAD's School of Animation and Motion. "We're incredibly proud of our alumni, who are trusted with shaping the visual language of major films — from cinematography and lighting to animation and storytelling — because they graduate with the ability to think holistically, collaborate across disciplines, and lead creative teams at the highest level."

Top creative contributors include:

●      Nathan Engelhardt (B.F.A., animation, 2007) directed and co-wrote Forevergreen, a Best Animated Short Film nominee that tells the handcrafted, visually inventive story of an orphaned bear cub who finds an unlikely home with a fatherly evergreen tree, while also serving as animation supervisor on Zootopia 2, a Best Animated Feature nominee. A supervising animator at Walt Disney Animation Studios, Engelhardt has helped shape beloved films including Moana, Frozen 2, Encanto, and Zootopia, blending heartfelt storytelling with innovative animation techniques.
●      Stephen Null (B.F.A., visual effects, 2005) worked as the lighting supervisor on Zootopia 2 and Forevergreen, guiding lighting teams in establishing mood, atmosphere, and visual continuity across complex animated sequences. Zootopia 2 is a Walt Disney Animation Studios production nominated for Best Animated Feature and Forevergreen is nominated for Best Animated Short Film. 
●      Jordan Rempel (B.F.A., visual effects, 2009) served as director of photography on Pixar Animation Studios' Elio, a Best Animated Feature nominee, crafting the film's cinematic lighting and visual language. He also contributed to Toy Story 5 and is known for sci-fi–inspired lighting cues that add richness, depth, and a distinctly cinematic feel to animated storytelling.
●      Johnathan Nixon (B.F.A., visual effects, 2007) is a senior visual effects head of department and senior visual effects production manager at Weta FX and worked on Avatar: Fire and Ash, a film nominated for Best Visual Effects, where he helped lead the creation of cutting-edge water simulations that bring the world of Pandora to life with unprecedented realism.
●      Virginia Berg (B.F.A., production design, 2015) worked as assistant art director on Avatar: Fire and Ash, a Best Visual Effects nominee, contributing to the film's expansive visual worldbuilding. She was named Variety magazine's Top 10 Artisans to Watch in 2025.
●      Tyler Kupferer (M.F.A., animation, 2011) served as director of cinematography – layout on Zootopia 2, a Best Animated Feature nominee, overseeing shot composition, camera movement, and staging to define how audiences experience the film visually long before final lighting and rendering. His previous credits include Frozen 2, Ralph Breaks the Internet, and Moana.
●      Filipe Messeder (B.F.A., sound design, 2016) served as the  supervising sound editor and re-recording mixer on The Perfect Neighbor, a Best Documentary Feature Film nominee. The Emmy-winning sound editor shaped the immersive sonic landscape of  the film, balancing emotional nuance with technical precision.
●      D.W. Moffett, chair of SCAD's Film and Television program, was a featured character actor in One Battle After Another, a drama that received 13 Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture. Moffett brings current on-set industry experience into the classroom, providing students with firsthand insight into professional performance, collaboration, and the realities of today's film and television industry.
●      Robert Nagy, a production design professor, served as set designer on Weapons, a horror-thriller filmed in Atlanta. A total of 22 SCAD students and alumni contributed to the film's immersive, tension-filled environments.

The 98th Academy Awards® will be televised live on Sunday, March 15, 2026, at 7 p.m. ET on ABC.

Banner image from Academy Award-nominated Best Animated Short Film Forevergreen.

Ask a gamer what makes a game unforgettable, and they often describe a feeling: the way footsteps echo in an abandoned hall, the relief of a healing chime, the swell of ambient music as a mountain view unfolds. The invisible force behind those experiences is sound. It is the craft of Haoran Li (M.F.A. sound design, 2019), who builds what he calls “living, breathing, worlds" through audio at HYPERGRYPH, one of China's leading game studios.

Prior to earning his master's degree at SCAD, Li studied musicology in Xi'an, China, a city where history and noise blend into an urban rhythm, marked by the shuffle of chess players by the old city wall, the whipcrack of spinning tops, and the overlapping calls of vendors in the Muslim Quarter. Those sounds, he says, taught him to listen differently.

"Living in that environment made me realize every city has its own soundscape," Li says. “It reminded me that sound can record and preserve collective memory." When he first held a recording mic, he discovered the creative potential of sound itself. “It wasn't just about notes or melody anymore. It was about shaping an experience."

At SCAD, theory became creative practice. His first graduate course was Sound Effects and Dialogue Editing (SNDS 741) with Academy Award-winning sound design professor David Stone. "That was the moment when everything locked together," Li says. "I finally understood: sound isn't decoration, it's architecture."

Vision in sound: Li has worked on feature films including the award-winning To Kill A Mongolian Horse.

That realization shaped Li's approach to every project that followed, including Bricks, a Civil War short film and one of Li's defining student projects. Tasked with capturing and designing historically authentic sound, he learned the power of restraint.

“During the first half, I carefully removed the birdsong we'd recorded. It was beautiful but emotionally wrong," he explains. “Only at the end, when hope returned, did I bring the birds back. Silence became the most powerful element." The lesson: the best sound design sometimes comes from what you don't play.

Li joined a SCADpro collaborative project with Ford Motor Company to prototype voice-assistant concepts, an experience that revealed sound's role beyond storytelling. In user interfaces, sound is feedback, logic, and system language.

At HYPERGRYPH, those lessons converge. Game audio is not linear. It responds to player behavior in real-time. Every footstep, echo, or ambient hum reacts fluidly to action and environment. “Sound in games isn't passive. It's a dynamic character that responds to players," says Li.

As the industry evolves from mobile to VR and spatial audio, Li sees two forces shaping the next generation of sound design: technical depth and cultural expression.

"We need sound designers who understand both the engineering and the artistry, and who can code middleware and compose emotional landscapes."

For students exploring the field, his advice is grounded and generous: "Try different forms of sound work before specializing. Stay curious about technology, recording, synthesis, middleware, and game engines. They're the same language, spoken in different contexts."

From the bustling streets of Xi'an to HYPERGRYPH's digital worlds, Haoran Li has built a career on one belief: The best sound design isn't what you notice, it's what you feel. In an industry obsessed with immersion, that invisible craft has never been more valuable.

Explore Haoran Li's portfolio and recent works on LinkedIn and IMDb. 

This story features additional editorial input by Lindsay Graham.

Walking across a frozen lake can be risky. The sound of creaking footsteps conveys tension and drama. That's where Foley artist Hyoenzi "Alex" Wang comes in.

Nominated this year for an Emmy for her work on Apple TV's award-winning Severance, Wang (B.F.A., sound design, 2022) created the ominous Foley footfalls of Lumon Industries employee Irving (John Turturro) at the beginning of the pivotal episode "Woe's Hollow."

Originally from Gwacheon-si, South Korea, Wang began working at acclaimed NYC sound design studio c5, inc., in 2023, a connection facilitated by SCAD sound design professor Jamie Baker.

"I am beyond proud of Alex and her Emmy-nominated Foley artistry on Severance," says Baker. "In only a couple years' time, Alex has gone from my Foley Production Techniques class to the Foley stages at c5, inc. Alex represents what we aim for when it comes to preparing students for creative careers in sound design."

Fresh from her trip to the Los Angeles for the Emmy Awards, Wang caught up with SCAD to discuss her red carpet moment and those frozen footsteps.

Gold standard: Hyoenzi "Alex" Wang at the Emmy Awards 2025.  

Alex Wang:

"I've been Severance fan since season one. To go from being an audience member to working on the show was a huge deal for me.

When I watched the first season of Severance, I noticed how prominent and important the sound of footsteps is on the show. When I looked in the credits, I found the names [c5 founders] George Lara and Marko Costanzo—of course, the Foley on the show sounds great! Then to go work at c5 and work on Severance myself, it all progressed so fast and I was like, oh my god, you know?

The scene where Irving is in the middle of a frozen lake and starts running towards the mountain, they wanted to have the sound of the ice creaking. I got to do it. Marko had shown me the technique of that frozen lake sound. You prepare a sheet of glass, duct tape it really hard, and then using a hammer you break it a little, and then you crunch it. It requires a lot of control of how much power you're putting into that glass sheet. You have to be careful so it creaks but not breaks.

Sometimes, a really good Foley stands out, but most of the time, when people don't notice the Foley, that's great, that's the art. According to our supervisors, [director and executive producer] Ben Stiller is someone who really appreciates Foley. He wants to use Foley as much as possible, especially with the footsteps, which are like a signature on Severance.

We were hoping to get nominated for an Emmy for sound, but you never know until the list comes out. I was at home doing chores and George texted me a screenshot of my name and the nomination for sound editing, and a message saying how proud he is of me. He and Marko have been so supportive and important in my career.

I flew to LA for the Emmy Awards. Apple TV booked me into the JW Marriott downtown right beside the Peacock Theater. The experience didn't feel real until the moment I was preparing for the show. I walked into the theater, took the escalator to the lobby where they were taking official red carpet pictures. I couldn't believe that I'd come to this moment professionally in such a short period of time. 

Looking back at my SCAD experience, the sound design program taught me how to be a professional sound designer from on-set sound to post-production. For Foley, SCAD is the best—Professor Baker knows everything. One of the key things I learned at SCAD is how to communicate with people from different departments and backgrounds. By collaborating in SCADpro with students from animation, film, visual effects, and motion media, I learned how to suggest ideas that improve the work.

This has been my tenth year in the United States. I want to be a resource for international students who come to SCAD wanting to succeed in a career in art and design. I hope to come back to SCAD one day to talk about my journey."

Connect with Hyoenzi "Alex" Wang on LinkedIn.

Banner image/Severance still: Apple TV+.

As told to Peter Relic.

"Lots of submissions for this category, guys!"

It's a Monday night in Hamilton Hall Room 113, and the Spring 2025 SCAD Student Recording Competition is in full swing. Empty pizza boxes are stacked outside the door. A dozen students sprawl on Persian rugs beneath the studio's playback speakers.

SCAD Audio Engineering Society chair Hayden Blocker beckons for a drum roll: "And the winner of best ‘Modern Studio/Electronics' recording is…Andreas Asimakopoulos!"

From the control room, sound design professor Jamie Baker plays back the winning tune: a harmony drenched, pop hit-in-waiting called ‘One Last Time'. The AES clubbers move to the groove. One student pumps his fists. "It's got that Bleachers/Jack Antonoff vibe!" raves Dylan Ramras (B.F.A., sound design). "Great job man, great song!"

"I wasn't expecting that response, or to win, but it was really great," Asimakopoulos (M.F.A. sound design, 2025) says the next day, sipping a Vitaminwater inside the TAD Café. "That's one of the five songs I've written and recorded as my master's thesis, a half-album I'll be posting online."

A native of Soldotna, Alaska, Andreas grew up playing Beatles songs on acoustic guitar, studied film at Whitman in Walla Walla, then followed his older brothers to Atlanta, where he began working as an audio engineer at a studio called Loud House, "mostly on rap projects." He soon heard about SCAD, and came to Savannah to pursue his master's degree.

"Andreas is easygoing and confident, with a strong background in creating original music and working in studios," says Baker, who taught him in ADR and Foley Mixing (SNDS 734). "He makes an excellent role model for our music production and music composition students."

Asimakopoulos mentions additional courses pivotal to his development, including Electronic Music Production (SNDS 764) with Ian Vargo, "a professor with really deep knowledge of music production and mixing who has helped me conceptualize what I'm going for."

"Andreas is such a gifted songwriter and musician, and he truly puts in the work," says Vargo. "After listening to early drafts of his productions and offering a few suggestions, Andreas returned with the notes perfectly implemented. He felt like a collaborator as much as he did a student."

"I tried to make ‘One Last Time' have the most Eighties-sounding drums I could," Andreas says, referencing Def Leppard's 1987 album Hysteria and its lavish kicks and snares. He also mentions Tame Impala, whose jams helped him realize "it's possible to fully produce [my music] myself in Ableton Live, and have it sound authentic."

Final mixes complete, Andreas plans to release his tunes via streaming platforms, most likely under the name Orpheus's Brother (a nod to his big brother Bos's band, Orpheus & the Animal). With Avid certifications including Pro Tools Post and Pro Tools Dolby Atmos, he sees a galaxy of possibility after graduation. "I'd like to work in post-production for film and TV. I'll be making my own music, too."

Asked for a final word on his thesis, the AES award-winner waits a beat, then hits the high note:

"I mean, whatever benefits the song is the best thing, right?"

Andreas Asimakopoulos (right) with SCAD AES chapter chair Hayden Blocker.

Banner photo by Jonathan Sage. Portrait of student within artist Jónsi's exhibition Vox at SCAD MOA.

On the auspicious morning of July 1, the John Lennon Educational Tour Bus rolled into Reno. Six musically inclined youth from Big Brothers Big Sisters of Northern Nevada would soon climb aboard "the coolest mobile recording studio on wheels" to compose and record an original song and accompanying music video, set to debut at the downtown culture festival Artown. There were intimations, too, that Avengers actor Jeremy Renner would drop by to elevate "Imagine: A Musical Collaboration" with his sonic superpowers.
 
Mixing engineer and music producer Caleb Green (B.F.A., sound design, 2023) was ready. The 23-year-old Green was spending the summer working on the Lennon Bus, including a visit to Centennial High School in Compton, California, engaging students with free, hands-on learning opportunities in audio, video, and digital media. The work had been intense — and intensely rewarding. "Shout-out to SCAD for preparing me for such an incredible experience," says the genuinely upbeat Green.

Caleb's journey began as student at Cypress Creek High School in Houston, Texas, where he learned about SCAD through a visiting regional rep. He entered the pre-college Rising Star program, taking classes with foundation studies professor LaRaine Papa Montgomery. As an undergrad studying graphic design, he enrolled in Fundamentals of Audio (SNDS 110) with sound design professor Rob Miller; the elective was a revelation. As Green says: "I learned that my passion for sound is otherworldly compared to anything else on this planet."
 
He has leaned into that passion this summer. The John Lennon Educational Tour Bus, founded in 1998 by Yoko Ono and artist and educator Brian Rothschild, helps young people from underserved communities develop skills in music and career awareness in allied fields. The state-of-the-art bus currently counts Apple, Gibson, Genelec, and Adobe among its partners. "As technology has evolved, we're constantly updating the facilities on the bus to have the best studio possible," executive director Rothschild says. "Recently we brought on Dolby as a strong partner for a major upgrade, and we were looking for engineers who already had Dolby Atmos experience."
 
Green got the gig by being prepared for opportunity. Sound design professor Jamie Baker explains: "In October 2023, I went to the AES [Audio Engineering Society] convention in New York, where I met Brian Rothschild. He told me, ‘We're coming to Savannah on the bus.' So, we put out a blast on our SCAD sound design Discord server, for students who might want to see the bus. Brian had mentioned to me that they were hiring, with specific requirements, and in Savannah, as they showed their new Atmos set-up, Caleb was there."
 
At SCAD, under the tutelage of sound design professor Robin Beauchamp, Green had earned his Dolby Atmos 7.1.2 certification — only the 20th person in the world to do so. "Once we got Caleb on board, I could tell he could be the creative lead on projects right away," says Rothschild. "He has a great personality, he's fun and serious, and he can work very, very quickly. I would say Caleb is in the top percentage of crew members the bus has ever had." In Professor Baker's words: "I'm thrilled SCAD prepared Caleb to sit in any seat that opens up along his journey."

In Reno, Caleb and the kids laid down a new, original country-soul tune. When special guest Renner arrived, Green says, "He was just a real sweet guy, and a great singer and guitar player. We started going through the melody, and Jeremy laid down a couple ideas and was encouraging the kids to really belt it out."

With the song and video complete, Renner invited the kids and the crew back to his Camp RennerVation among the towering pines in Stateline, Nevada. In between sessions demoing the bus for campers, Caleb took a leap in ice cold Lake Tahoe.
 
"One great thing about the bus is that it's where young people realize that there's more to music than writing the song," Green says. "They learn about recording and mixing, and how to prepare for creative decision-making."
 
Caleb will return this fall to his job aboard the Lennon Bus, where he will be joined by fellow alum Panashe Mugadza (B.F.A., sound design, 2023) working the Dolby Atmos system.
 
"With music, you build so much mystique around it because it's such a magical thing, so when you see and hear everything that goes into it, it demystifies the process," concludes Caleb. "That, to me, makes working on the bus even more fantastic."

Connect with Caleb Green!

On an upper tier of the SCAD Student Center, six members of the eSports Overwatch team sit at their computer battle stations. An undefeated season is on the line, Keiser University is the opponent, and "Rayner" is ready to roll.
 
Watching Rayne Beckman (B.F.A. sound design) play Overwatch — his hands fluttering across keyboard and mouse in a blaze of virtuosity — is like witnessing Eddie Van Halen perform "Eruption." For the casual observer, the frenetic multiplayer video game is overwhelming, as on-screen avatars dash through an outdoor bazaar amidst copious explosions. "Well played Terry — sick link!" Beckman shouts to a teammate via his headset.
 
"I've got to give it up for Rayner, he's hitting a lot of shots," remarks the Twitch commentator on the live stream.

Rayne is in the zone.
 
After wrapping up a commanding win — and en route to securing the Sun Conference Championship — the bantering SCAD team heads towards the door. Beckman hangs back to talk.
 
"In Overwatch, we're working together to achieve a goal," he says. "One of the strengths of the game is the diversity of the characters. Each character has their own complexities. You have to know how to play each composition and how to play your hero in the composition optimally."
 

Beckman as a sophomore with the Eastern College Athletic Conference trophy.

When Beckman arrived at SCAD in 2020, he played his way onto the Overwatch team. Now a senior known as "Rayner," he has been intrinsic to the growth of competitive eSports at SCAD.
 
"Rayne is always ready to do what he can to benefit the program proactively," says SCAD eSports Director Ross Adams. "He helps find scrim partners, gives feedback on sessions, take notes for himself on how to improve and puts in the work within the game. I've asked him to play different roles within Overwatch, from support to DPS, and he remains flexible and enthusiastic."
 
The crux of Beckman's SCAD experience may be the crossover between eSports and his studies as a sound design major. In a quest to learn more programming for sound design for video games, Beckman enrolled last quarter in Core Principles: Game Tech (ITGM 266), taught by interactive design and game development professor Walter Woods.
 
"As a student, Rayne exemplifies the most important skill a creative professional can cultivate, which is resourcefulness," says Woods. "He takes on the challenge of bridging disciplines with a strong commitment to problem solving and critical thinking. It can sometimes seem overwhelming facing the complexity of balancing design, technical, and artistic concerns. Rayne just gets excited and gets to work."
 
Sound design professor Jamie Baker, who taught Beckman in Foley Production Technique (SNDS 322), uses one word for her student: "Dedicated."
 

Rayne Beckman, big hitter: SCADpro x PGA Tour.

In spring 2023, he was part of a group hand-selected for a SCADpro project for the PGA Tour, developing concepts to elevate brand awareness and presenting at PGA Tour headquarters in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. That led to Rayne, a golf enthusiast, working in summer 2023 to deliver post-production sound design to drive user engagement with the PGA.
 
A native of Houston, Texas, Beckman attended the prestigious Kinder High School for the Performing and Visual Arts ("Yes, it's the Beyonce school!") where his passion for sound design began. He came to SCAD in part because "I liked that SCAD has a multi-channel room and offers a modular synth class." As he nears graduation, Rayne is weighing professional options including working in game audio and mixing for film. He praises a recent guest lecture delivered by industry pro Myron Nettinga (Kill Bill; Blue Eyed Samurai) at the invitation of sound design chair Mitchell Gettleman. "It inspired me to think more about pursuing rerecording mixing, the final stage in the moviemaking/sound design process, where the mixer takes all the audio and processes it."

For now, Beckman basks in the moment, messaging his Overwatch teammates via Discord ("Really proud of the work tonight!") and inviting them to play kickball in Forsyth Park.
 
"For me, it's the combination of sound design and eSports that has made SCAD so special," he says. "I love it."

Connect with Rayne Beckman on LinkedIn.

Beckman portrait photo: Max Fallenius (B.F.A. advertising)

Golf course photo: Samuel Murray (B.F.A. photography)

Eunseo "Bella" So (M.F.A., sound design, 2023) is making a racket intentionally. The Foley artist, mixer and editor has been named a finalist for the Student Recognition Award by the Cinema Audio Society (CAS). On March 2, she will attend the 60th CAS Awards in Los Angeles at the Beverly Hilton, where the winner will receive a check for $5000. Her nuanced noises are getting noticed.

"Foley is a very cool and creative job, and it means being part of a sound design team that collaborates with other artists in the filmmaking process," So says. Currently based in Fort Lee, New Jersey, she works at C5 Sound, one of the top Foley studios in the industry.

Bella first found her way to sound design while a film major at Yong-In University in Yongin, South Korea. She began learning the unique discipline of Foley, creating original sounds to sync with moving images as a hands-on process, often utilizing odd props.

After graduating from Yong-In, she began working as a Foley mixer in Korea and "felt I was hitting a wall. I desired more knowledge. I wanted to become a master's student at the best university in America, to advance my career. Yet I could only speak English a little bit, so I was hesitant."

Her colleague Hyoenzi "Alex" Wang (B.F.A., sound design, 2022) suggested SCAD, for both its superior sound design program and the support services SCAD offers international students.

"Before I came to SCAD, I'd never gone to another country," So says. Taking ESL classes at SCAD, focusing on speaking, essay-writing, and presentation, Bella found her English improving quickly. "I met a lot of international students with different backgrounds from different countries. It really relieved my concern."

An emboldened So continued to demonstrate her Foley skills in Hamilton Hall. Soon sound design professor Jamie Baker invited her to become her teaching assistant for the course Foley Production Techniques (SNDS 322).

"Bella was a natural mentor to the students, sharing her tips and techniques on both sides of the glass in the studio," Baker says. "She is a versatile, enthusiastic, and creative sound mixer who collaborates well with the entire post sound crew as she exhibits her impressive technical chops. I am extremely proud of her nomination for the esteemed Cinema Audio Society Student Recognition Award. She is an amazing candidate."

For the Cinema Audio Society award, Bella submitted a reel of her noteworthy Foley work including live action, animation, and video game projects. This includes Pirate Lesson, an animated short film directed by Sofia Azpe (B.F.A., animation, 2021). Mixed in stereo/5.1 surround sound, the rollicking high seas adventure follows a father showing his son how to drive the ship...right into battle. "I really enjoyed working on Pirate Lesson, and I tried to deliver the characters' actions and emotions to feel as fun as possible, rather than obsessing about realism," So says. "I've learned a lot about how Foley is different in animation than for live action."

As she prepares to travel to California for the Cinema Audio Society Awards, Bella reflects on what her journey represents for herself and others. "I want other people to see what is possible. You can do this as a woman, as an Asian, and as someone with a master's degree from SCAD."

Connect with Eunseo "Bella" So.

A billionaire pelts a famous actress with oranges. The sounds give the scene its absurd impact. Squish! Splat!

"Killing Romance was a blast to work on," says Hyoenzi "Alex" Wang (B.F.A., sound design, 2022) of the hit Korean film starring Lee Hanee and Lee Sun-kyun. "There were many creative challenges I faced as a Foley artist. I did the wooshes of the clothes. The main character sometimes wears uniforms with thicker material, and I studied tae kwon do for ten years, so I tried to mimic that rustle."

This is Wang's job: create sounds that sync with moving images to bring film and television to life. (Her Instagram page demonstrates exactly how she creates many memorable sounds.)

"Becoming a Foley artist involves an idiosyncratic career path that requires commitment, and I am so proud to watch Alex's journey unfold," says sound design professor Jamie Baker, who taught Wang in Foley Production Techniques (SNDS 322).

While a student at SCAD, Wang was part of the student team that created "Let Loose," winner of the 2020 Coca-Cola Refreshing Films competition. In 2021, she spent time in Seoul, working on many Korean film and TV projects. After graduating from SCAD Savannah, she went to work for Parabolic New York as an assistant Foley editor, before Baker recommended her to colleagues at leading firm C5 Sound, Wang's current employer.

"C5 has always been in the industry for 34 years, and Marko Costanzo and George Lara have been a dynamic presence in the Foley world, working with legends like Martin Scorsese. They've told me some stories," Alex says, chuckling.

Originally from Gwacheon-si, South Korea, Wang first came to the U.S. as an exchange student in 2014. She soon began exploring Stateside opportunities in higher education. "I wanted to major in film, and SCAD has a great film program. I first wanted to be either a cinematographer or a film editor, then I learned about sound design as it relates to film, and it really suited me."


At SCAD, Wang built a professional skill set through a series of connected classroom experiences.


"I first used ProTools in Professor [Robert] Miller's class Sound for Film and Television (SNDS 101). Then in Professor [Robin] Beauchamp's class Music for Media (SNDA 212), I learned [keyboard] shortcuts and professional terms, and felt really strong knowledge-wise. Professor Baker's Foley class also helped me a lot because I learned how to edit in Foley way. It's different from the regular editing. You don't want to hear any sudden stops or room tones. It's a precise and meticulous job."

As Alex sees it, "Being a Foley artist requires different skill sets or components. You have to have strength and agility, good reflexes, and musical ability. You might have to lift a heavy door, throw and bang props. Good syncs require musical ability and creativity. And you need good reflexes. I think all of my abilities and background combined make me a Foley artist."

Connect with Hyoenzi "Alex" Wang on LinkedIn.

(Banner image film still from Killing Romance, ⓒ 2023 WEBI)

"So, what are you going to do next, superstar?" asks gaunt, troubled Darius of his singing, dancing brother Elijah in the ultimate moment of "Key of See," written and directed by Manni "Festo" Simon (M.F.A., sound design, 2022). The nimble, 15-minute film resonates like an epic, its depiction of a fraught family complemented by Simon's sound design and musical compositions—including Elijah's blistering raps.

On February 26, Manni will walk into the Wilshire Ebell Theatre in Los Angeles as a nominee at the 70th Motion Picture Sound Editors (MPSE) Golden Reel Awards. The Montclair, New Jersey native is vying for the Verna Fields Outstanding Achievement in Sound Editing (Student Film) for "Key of See," his SCAD master's thesis. As supervising sound editor, Simon shares the nod with Foley artists Conor Van Slyke (M.F.A., sound design) and George Allan (M.F.A., sound design).

"The film is based on experiences with my brother and my family as a whole," Simon says. "A big thank you to SCAD for offering Bee Well mental health counseling to all students. I began seeing a counselor right around the time I started writing the script for 'Key of See,' and that really helped with the memories I was exploring."

The film tells the story of an aspiring rapper processing trauma through music while sparring with his miscreant sibling.  Tense, funny, and sad—with stunning musical sequences and narrative twists—the work is worthy of a vastly more experienced screenwriter, never mind a sound designer who decided to direct. "The idea was in my head and I had to get it out," Manni says, simply.

"With 'Key of See,' Manni has made a terrific audio-visual storytelling experience," says sound design professor Matthew Akers. "He put his soul into every moment. I tell my students to make opportunities for themselves and not wait for chances to be offered. As a sound designer, Manni took that advice to heart. He inspired a great group of filmmaking collaborators and created the perfect opportunity for them all to shine."

The process began with Manni coming to SCAD. In 2017, he graduated from college in New England and moved to Brooklyn, where he worked in technical production on off-Broadway shows. He connected with Carson Lewis (M.F.A., sound design, 2020), "who told me about SCAD, in this great mythical place called Savannah, which to me in New York might as well have been Mars."

During the pandemic, with live sound jobs shut down, Manni applied to SCAD and was offered a scholarship. He hopped in his car and drove straight to the Georgia coast, arriving in time for spring quarter, 2021.

"I started out taking [electives in] art history and cinema studies, which was cool—like, before we get into sound design, let's talk about what art is and what cinema is," Manni says. "That helped when that summer I took Theory and Practice in Sound Design (SNDS 729) with the great professor Rob Bridges and began to conceive of 'Key of See.'"

Manni mentions one of his favorite classes, Surround Sound for Media (SNDS 776) with sound design professor Robin Beauchamp, where he learned how to mix in 7.1 surround sound and Atmos, and "make it sound good." "Professor Beauchamp showed us how to use the audio board, which was intense and technical. He told us our artistry would appear once we knew how to use the board. He said, 'Come with a pencil and pad. Take notes. No exceptions.'"

An adherence to precision is manifest in Manni's movie. Simon cites shot design influences from the first season of Breaking Bad (2008), Spike Lee's Malcolm X (1992), and Cab Calloway's performance in Stormy Weather (1943). "Key of See" achieves excellence through synthesis.

Posed the question from his own film ("So, what are you going to do next, superstar?"), Manni grins. He is currently employed full-time at Standard as lead audio engineer for streaming service Nebula, working on popular travel vlog "Jet Lag: The Game." "That being said, I'm starting to write a script, and cook up a production for my own next project." In the meantime, an award ceremony in Los Angeles awaits.

"Key of See" is screening at film festivals and coming to a streaming service soon. Witness the work of Manni Simon.

Palmer Hefferan keeps sounding off. In 2017, the composer and sound designer made Broadway history as part the all-female design team for "The Lifespan of a Fact." This year, she returned to Broadway at Lincoln Center's Vivian Beaumont Theater for the new production of "The Skin of Our Teeth," Thornton Wilder's Pulitzer Prize-winning play from 1942. Under the direction of Lileana Blain-Cruz, the lavish production offered what the New York Times called "the maximalist revival it deserves."

"A lot of times in theater I'm working on multiple shows at once, but for ‘The Skin of Our Teeth,' I blocked off two months to sit in on rehearsals," says Hefferan (B.F.A, sound design, 2007). "It was important for the actors to hear the sonic world that was going to be happening."

Across the play's three epic acts, Hefferan delivered the sounds of an Ice Age, a world war, and the Atlantic City Boardwalk in the Roaring Twenties. "I feel fortunate that SCAD gave me my solid foundation for the science of sound, and how sound conceptually engages with dialogue."

Hefferan has now received a Tony Award nomination for Best Sound Design of a Play, one of six nods for "The Skin of Our Teeth." With The Tony Awards set to broadcast this Sunday, she Zoom'd in to talk about her work. What follows is condensed from that discussion.

Photo by Julieta Cervantes — "The Skin of Our Teeth"

Palmer Hefferan: Sound designers are responsible for curating an experience for the audience, connecting them with the text and the performer as much as possible. I started my career at a moment when sound design was finally, rightly being acknowledged in a notable way. Sound design was first eligible for the Tony Awards in 2007, which happens to be the year I graduated from SCAD.

Our director Lileana Blain-Cruz chose this play as a feast of design, and because "The Skin of Our Teeth" is a story of human survival, encompassing cataclysmic events as one family moves through centuries. With climate change, war, and an ongoing pandemic, the play is a corollary to what we're experiencing today.

In my early conversations with Lileana, we knew we were going to have contemporary music in the show. Once we get to the Atlantic City Boardwalk, even though it's the 1920s, I knew I wanted electronic club music, so I found mashups of classic songs, like Cab Calloway's "The Hi Dee Ho Man." We embraced that anachronism.

One of the challenges, for me, was giving each audience member the ability to experience powerful sonic moments tethered to the play. The Vivian Beaumont Theater is one of the three largest theaters on Broadway. I created an umbrella of speakers, encompassing the space. At the end of Act Two there's a Noah's Ark moment where animals are collected and put on a ship. That means hearing a whale blowhole, seal chatter, or sea birds flying over the house. Every single person has a unique experience in their seat. When the dinosaur and mammoth appear, we'd placed a subwoofer under the stage, so the audience can feel those big, low-frequency sound waves.

This is my first time nominated for a Tony, and I have so many friends nominated too. We're all contemporaries. To me, it feels like this season represents an ushering in of new voices and ideas. I appreciate Broadway history and the generations of designers who made their mark, and it's exciting to be able to bring new ideas to the highest level. I tell students, you are the tastemakers of the future. As you become your own artist, your perspective is valuable, and you can make history.

Palmer Hefferan, Tony Awards "Meet the Nominees," May 11, 2022. Photo by Anthony Behar/Sipa USA/Alamy Live News

The 75th Annual Tony Awards air Sunday, June 12, 2022, with "Act One" design categories streaming from 7-8 p.m. ET on Paramount+, and the main event airing 8-11 p.m. ET on CBS.