Schedule At-a-Glance

• 9:00-10 :10 am- Welcome and Working Artists/CFA Faculty Panel
• 10:10-10:20 am- Break
• 10:20-11:30 am- Recently Graduated CFA Alumni
• 11:30-1:00 pm- Lunch and Networking Activity
• 1:00-2:00 pm- ArtsForce Women in the Arts panel

Faculty Bios

Cynthia Fleming (Theatre) 
Cynthia Fleming has been in the world of dance and theatre professionally since she was 18 years old, during which time she performed in the Broadway, National and International companies with A CHORUS LINE. Currently, Cynthia serves as the Executive Artistic Director of Salt Lake Acting Company, but she has also been the Choreographer, Director, Box Office Manager, and Director of Audience Services within the organization. Cynthia recently directed at the MFA Playwrights' Workshop at the Kennedy Center and is currently a visiting professor in the Musical Theatre Department here at the U.

Stefanie Doktor (Music)
Stephanie Doktor graduated from the University of Virginia in 2016 with a Ph.D. in Critical and Comparative Studies in Musicology. She holds an M.A. in Musicology and Master's Certificate in Women's Studies from the University of Georgia and she currently teaches a range of classes through the Department of Music here at the U. Her research focuses on U.S. twentieth century music and covers repertoire from jazz and concert traditions to popular and folk music. Stephanie presents regularly at national conferences for the Society for American Music and the American Musicological Society.

Xi Zhang (Art & Art History)
Xi Zhang completed his studies in painting at China's Beijing Institute of Art and Design and moved to the United States where he received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in painting from the Rocky Mountain College of Art and Design and his MFA in painting from CU Boulder. In 2008, he was recognized as the "Emerging Artist of the Year" and in 2012, Zhang received his US Permanent Residence as an "Artist of extraordinary ability." He teaches painting and drawing courses through the Department of Art and Art History.
Visit his website here: http://xizhang.org/home.html

Sonia Albert-Sobrino (Film) 
Sonia Albert-Sobrino didn't start making films until 2009 when she switched from the nursing career path to filmmaking. Since then, she and her sister Miriam have been able to produce film work that have been screened in first level film festivals, such as Raindance, Edinburgh, IFFLA, Cans and Cinespaña, among many others. On top of their work as programmers in several film festivals, Sonia and Miriam are currently pre-producing their second feature film, "Melita", while working on the distribution of their first feature film: "The Story of a Satellite". They teach a wide variety of film classes, from history of film to color grading here at the U.
Visit their website here: http://www.alsosisters.com

Michael Wall (Dance)
Michael Wall is an internationally recognized composer, performer and educator who collaborates with dancers, choreographers and filmmakers around the world. He composes original music, accompanies dance classes, and teaches sound design for dance and performance with Ableton Live. Michael has worked at Rutgers University, Princeton University, NYU, The Ohio State University, The Bates Dance Festival, The American Dance Festival and is currently on faculty at The University of Utah, School of Dance. He's supported independent artists in digital music distribution for the last ten years and offers a comprehensive online library of music for dance students, teachers and choreographers.
Listen to his music here: www.soundFORMovement.com

Women in the Arts Panelists

Whitney Tassie
Whitney Tassie holds a master's degree in modern art history, theory, and criticism from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and a bachelor's degree in art history and archaeology from Cornell. Whitney worked as the director of the Monique Meloche Gallery in Chicago and later as an exhibitions and curatorial assistant at the Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art in Ithaca, New York. In 2011, she co-founded Gallery Weekend Chicago, a groundbreaking annual weekend focused on promoting and enhancing Chicago's contemporary art scene to collectors and curators. Whitney is the current curator of modern and contemporary art at our very own Utah Museum of Fine Arts.

Brooke Horejsi
Brooke Horejsi, the Assistant Dean for Art & Creative Engagement in the College of Fine Arts and Executive Director of UtahPresents, has more than 20 years of experience in the field of creativity. In her role, Horejsi oversees a non-profit, campus based arts presenter, is a member of the leadership team at the University of Utah College of Fine Arts, and focuses on embedding the arts and creativity broadly across campus and the region. Her passion for the role creativity plays in building and sustaining community is apparent in her daily work and also in her participation in research cohorts and funding programs supported by organizations such the American Express Foundation, the Wallace Foundation, the Doris Duke Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Miriam Albert-Sobrino
Miriam Albert-Sobrino didn't start making films until 2009 when she switched from the nursing career path to filmmaking. Since then, she and her sister Sonia have been able to produce film works that have been screened in first level film festivals, such as Raindance, Edinburgh, IFFLA, Cans and Cinespaña, among many others. On top of their work as programmers in several film festivals, Miriam and Sonia are currently pre-producing their second feature film, "Melita", while working on the distribution of their first feature film: "The Story of a Satellite". They teach a wide variety of film classes, from history of film to color grading here at the U.

Elizabeth Craft
Elizabeth Titrington Craft is a musicologist whose scholarship crosses disciplinary boundaries to examine the music and culture of the United States. She received her Ph.D. from Harvard University and also holds degrees from the College of William and Mary and the University of Maryland. An experienced and dedicated teacher, Craft has taught courses on music pedagogy, classical music history, and American popular music at Harvard, Northeastern University, and Wellesley College. In her research, Craft explores how music conveys sociopolitical values and constructs national identity, focusing especially on musical theater from its inception through the present. Her article, "Headfirst into an Abyss: The Politics and Political Reception of Hamilton" is forthcoming in the journal American Music.

Jaimee Christensen
Jaimee Christensen is an art director at WildWorks, a local Salt Lake videogame company who produces works such as “Animal Jam”, and an adjunct instructor of motion graphics here at the University of Utah. During her career as an artist, Jaimee also worked as an illustrator, designer, concept artist, and environment art lead. Before entering the workforce, Jaimee was a student at the University of Utah where she graduated with a BFA in Graphic Art and Illustration.

Alumni Bios

Alyssa Bertelsen graduated from the University of Utah in 2017 with a degree in Ballet and an emphasis in Teaching. During her time at the U, Alyssa performed in 9 productions, choreographed her own work, and in 2015 started Kids' Community Ballet (KCB). Upon graduating, Alyssa started her own nonprofit ballet school, Rise Up which offers classes to children of all levels of incomes through sliding-scale tuition.

Cindy Chen is a Development Associate at Spy Hop, a youth media arts education non-profit in downtown Salt Lake City. In 2016, she graduated from the University of Utah with an Honors Bachelor of Music in flute performance and a minor in political science. While at the U, Cindy was an ArtsForce intern, received the award for Undergraduate Researcher of the Year, and performed with the Utah Philharmonia.

David "HABBENINK" Habben is an artist, illustrator, and educator, based in Salt Lake City, Utah. He received his BFA in Illustration from Brigham Young Universityin 2006 and became a Children's Book Design Fellow at Chronicle Books in 2008. In 2017, he earned his MFA in Studio Art, with a Graphic Design emphasis, from The University of Utah. His work can be found in a wide variety of media, including children's books, magazines, advertising campaigns, theatre posters, and even snowboards.

Patrick W. Newman is currently a Director of Photography, Producer, and Filmmaker living in Salt Lake City, UT. While concentrating on documentary series filmmaking, he is an accomplished commercial producer and director of photography. He graduated from the University of Utah in Film & Media Arts in 2016.

Samantha Matsukawa graduated in 2014 from the University of Utah with a B.F.A. in Modern Dance and a B.A. in Art History. As a dancer, choreographer, and movement artist her work has been shown at the Great Salt Lake Fringe Festival, Rose Wagner Center for Performing Arts, Sugar Space, and at the University of Utah. Samantha has a depth of experience in Arts Administration and served as the Communications and Audience Development Manager at Salt Lake Acting Company for several years and currently works as the Marketing and Communications Coordinator in the College of Fine Arts.

Daniel Mont-Eton graduated from the College of Fine Arts with a BFA in Modern Dance in 2012. Since graduating, Dan has performed professionally for five years across Colorado, New York, and now Utah. He is currently dancing in his second season with Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company, and loves being back in Salt Lake City.

Karem Orrego is an independent filmmaker and the Festival Coordinator for the Theatre Box Offices at Sundance Institute. She graduated in 2016 from the University of Utah with a B.F.A. in Film and Media Arts and Technology. While at the U, Karem was a Student Advisory Committee Rep for Film and served on the Emerging Leaders Council.

Amber Mott graduated in 2016 from the University of Utah with a degree in Graphic Design. She has worked as a Graphic Designer and Marketing Intern at the Mundi Project and a Freelance Designer at Struck. Currently Amber is a Graphic Designer at Westminster College.

Paul Leland Hill graduated in 2016 with a bachelor's in music with an emphasis in piano performance. Paul currently works at Utah Opera in the education department and sings in the opera chorus. He also freelances as a pianist, piano teacher, singer, and occasionally as a composer.

Alex Coltrin graduated in 2017 from the University of Utah with a B.A. in Theatre Studies. During his time at the U, he performed with Good Kids and served on Fine Arts Fee Grants Committee to distribute $100,000 of funding for student led projects in the College of Fine Arts. Upon graduating, Coltrin directed Trash! a play by Mark Macey at the Great Salt Lake Fringe Festival.