Hi! My name is Alan Ding and I am currently a rising senior at Escondido Charter High School. I am involved in the Mock Trial club at my school and also with community service activities. My main interests are playing basketball, reading, and dabbling in filmmaking and photography. I think Reel Voices is a great opportunity to improve your creative skills and learn how to tell a cohesive and engaging story. I am looking forward to working with my peers and become a better storyteller myself!

Hi! My name is Andrea Baek and I'm going to be a junior at Del Norte High School. I've always had some sort of creative outlet in my life, whether that was music, writing, photography, or even sports. I’ve been fortunate enough to have opportunities to harness these outlets; currently, I'm the vice president of Del Norte's literary magazine, The Featheralist, and of the girls' rugby team. I'm thrilled to be a part of the Reel Voices program this year, and I'm so excited to be able to share the world's stories through an exploration of film.

Hello everyone, my name is Angela Rodriguez. As a rising senior at Olympian High School, I have tried to use my age as a way to gather as much experience as I could, especially in the art of filmmaking. Growing up, I have always enjoyed watching films, tv shows, and animations leisurely. However, I was never really introduced to the realm of filmmaking until I used video editing programs, as a hobby, to edit my favorite shows and films. The impact that this activity had on me was monumental and my curiosity led me to spend the past few years learning about how to professionally brainstorm, outline, and execute films professionally. I am grateful to be in this Reel Voices Program and hope to also use this as a way to improve my skills as much as possible.

My name is Brandon Mah and I am going to be starting my junior year at Serra High School. My hobbies include drawing, playing piano, and writing stories. Another of my hobbies is making videos. This is one of the reasons I am excited for Reel Voices as it will help me improve in my video making skills. My videos started off as school projects but over time they evolved to have more complex stories. I hope to have higher quality videos after spending the next few weeks learning in the Reel Voices program.

My name is Ciera Millard and I’m 16. I’m a senior at San Marcos High School, and I’m passionate about filmmaking, French, and mathematics! I’m also involved in musical performing arts and competitive Dance Dance Revolution. Personally, I have always found film to be the most touching and powerful medium of art. Documentary filmmaking is particularly special to me because of its grounding in reality. I love to document the process of growth - whether it be the growth of myself, others, or the world around me. With Reel Voices, I’m excited to craft a documentary to tell the stories I hold dear to my heart.

My name is Hailey Jose and I am a 16 year old junior attending Poway High School. At school I am involved in ASB, Peer Counseling, Fight Against Hunger Club and soccer. Ever since I was younger I always was fascinated with art film. From making youtube videos in my house, editing instagram travel videos and being nominated for my first film festival, filming gave me a platform to express myself. Sharing my stories through filming helped me be the person I am today. Through the Reel Voices program I hope to improve my storytelling skills as well as convey a powerful message that impacts people's hearts.

My name is Isabella Kwon and I am a rising senior at Canyon Crest Academy. I have always enjoyed watching documentaries and films on Netflix, and the ways in which this medium is able to take its audience on an emotional rollercoaster has always fascinated me. Though I have gotten my feet wet with more “still” arts (like painting and sculpting), I have never experimented with film-making outside of school projects and look forward to exploring this new field. I believe that everyone has a story to tell and am glad that I was given the platform to tell mine with the Reel Voices program.

Hello my name is Jaeden Laroza and I am from Morse High School in San Diego California. I like to play basketball, video games, act, make videos, and overall just have a fun time. I am excited to join this program because this can unlock a new door towards my future of being involved in film production/acting. I can unleash my creative ideas and show people what I am capable of!

My name is Reagan Pendarvis. Next year I will be a junior at Junipero Serra High School. I run for my school’s cross country and track and field teams, and I enjoy outside activities. I’ve always been so interested in filmmaking and this inspired me to take a video production pathway class for three years in high school. Through this program I want to build off of the skills I already know, and learn to create different kinds of films that actually mean something. I’m really excited to learn the different approaches and processes towards filmmaking, so I can have a broader understanding on this subject. I am very thankful to have this opportunity, and I’m thrilled to be a part of Reel Voices 2020.

Frank Howley is a video producer who graduated from Cal State Fullerton with a degree in Film Studies. He’s written, directed, edited and acted in hundreds of internet shorts including viral videos for Nintendo, sketch comedy for Mega64, and music videos for Math The Band. Frank has been working with Pacific Arts Movement since 2015, providing video coverage for San Diego Asian Film Festival and teaching the Reel Voices @ Monarch program with Rizzhel Javier. Frank is deeply passionate about video games and online communities, also working for the documentary YouTube channel Noclip and leading the Big Dogs Gaming network on Twitch.

Paolo Zuñiga is a filmmaker born in San Diego, CA. His work navigates between fictional storytelling and documentary form; concerning itself with the narrativizing of individual experience and the sociocultural conditions that inform home and identity. Paolo’s interest in visual arts education and mentorship derives from his own experience as a first generation Mexican American. He seeks to demystify traditional filmmaking norms and encourage students to examine their own lived experiences to create unique and compelling visual stories that recognize the value and power of their own voice. Paolo received a BA in anthropology from San Diego State University and an MFA in visual arts from UC San Diego.