Join us as we speak with three recent graduates from the Computer Animation Program! Discover how they are navigating their next steps through OPT and exploring other paths that lead to their success. Our guests include Hannah Welchez from Honduras, Jocelyn Fayola from Indonesia, and Maria Nespola from Argentina.
Welcome to our Global Grads Presents series starring Full Sail international grads from all around the world as they reconnect to give back to YOU!
Today's panelists:
Jose Villarroel
Jose Villarroel is Lead Animation Programmer at Epic Games, working remotely from Idaho. Born and raised in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia, Jose pursued a Game Development degree at Full Sail University. His graduation project, Inanis, was invited to the DreamHack Anaheim Student Showcase.
After graduating, Jose fulfilled his dream of joining Epic Games, the studio behind his favorite game, Gears of War 2. He landed an internship that evolved into a full-time role.
Since 2019, he has played a key role developing animation systems in Fortnite and Unreal Engine.
Benji Pliego is a Game Design Generalist at Spaceboy. He joined Full Sail University in 2023 to pursue a Master's Degree in Game Design.
He joined CelleC Games as a part of his Degree and collaborated in the development of 4 released games. He also worked on an indie title called "Abstemius" on his own.
These efforts helped him land his role at Spaceboy where he is currently developing VR, PC, Console and Mobile games.
He also landed a freelance role as a game writer for GameCoder Studios for an upcoming AAA game called "Selene".
Since his graduation in 2024, Benji has been developing economies, stories, levels and environments for a wide variety of clients in the indie games industry.
We hope you will enjoy two gaming graduates as they share their experiences post graduation and their career trajectory.
Come along as we get to know Ivana Peña-Loyola, a Music Production graduate from the Dominican Republic. Explore her inspiring journey of pursuing her passion for music and how she carved out opportunities along the way!
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_ivanaloyolamusic/
Join us as we learn more about Nivedita Rajasekaran, also known as Gamer Queen. She is a 2019 Game Design graduate from India. Discover her journey of navigating the challenges of finding a career during the peak of the pandemic and eventually landing her dream job working with games at Microsoft!
Join us as we talk with 4 recent graduates who share their highs and lows of finding work after graduation, navigating OPT, and even some interview nightmare stories. EEK! Yes, it happens. Our guests include:
Manav Patel, India, Game Design MFA
Instagram - Manavpatel_05
Mario Rangel, Peru, Film Production MFA
https://www.mariorangelhur.com/
Renan Souza, Brazil, Digital Arts and Design BS
Lisa Fremder, Australia, Media Communications BS
Kaiel Eytle is a 2013 Film Graduate from Guyana, and Aryana Roberts is a 2014 Film Graduate from the Bahamas. Relax, grab your preferred beverage, and listen to how they manage their film production business. Learn about their journey after Full Sail University and the projects they worked on. This episode also celebrates Caribbean Heritage Month, which is honored in June.
Join us as we discuss an amazing career from Colombian Recording Arts graduate, Sebastian Zuleta, as he explains his career as both a music composer and film music editor. Hear his story about how his move to LA eventually led to working with the great Hans Zimmer.
You can find his body of work on IMDB and contact at szm@me.com.
2016 Recording Arts graduate, from Germany, shares her secret to success in the over 160 projects since graduation. You can connect with Thera here: Thera Harisch
Mobile: +49 171 1105000
E-mail: productions@thera-x.com
Today's recent graduates include:
Rebecca Keenan from England, Ray Taretiya from India, Patricio Garay from Mexico, Kanmi Afolabi from Nigeria, and Fernando Augustino from Brazil.
You'll hear how they found their first jobs, and why one grad turned down his dream job to work for WWE.
2013 Entertainment Business Grad from Brazil, Cesar Munhoz shares his journey at Full Sail and his career which spans performance, composition, advertising, and optimization. Listen as he talk about making the decision on what career to pursue with an Entertainment Business Master's degree with so many options. He can be reached:
In this episode, we talk with 2016 Game Art Bachelor of Science graduate, Esther Didini-James. Listen as we discuss her career with Firaxis Games, how she feels about her interview with "Asked and Answered With Women of Marvel" and what's new and exciting in her life. You can find her digital footprints here:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/estherdidini/
https://www.instagram.com/esther.didini/
https://www.artstation.com/estherdidini
Listen to these three recent graduates; some are in OPT while others found an alternative route, and tell their stories of how they prepared for not only graduation but also OPT. They will give advice on ways to make the transition smooth. Presenting today is Alvaro Valenzuela, Film U.C from Chile., Bowen Liu, M.S. Game Design from China, Dushyant Garg, B.S. Game Design from India.
Paula Fiuza is a 2015 M.S. Entertainment Business from Brazil. Relax, grab your preferred beverage, and listen to how she balances her freelance business in Brazil and he classes at Full Sail University. Now she travels around the world managing her own business and projects with multiple clients, spending seven months of the year traveling.
More about Paula: She has more than 15 years of marketing and communications experience, with seven working in the U.S. with events in the hospitality industry, with Disney World Parks and Resorts, Universal Orlando, SeaWorld, Hyatt, Hilton, and Marriott, among others. Since 2019, Paula has had her own business. She serves clients such as VANS in the U.S. and Brazil, Invygo in the UAE, and Grupo Marista, Brazil's most prominent educational conglomerate with marketing and business consulting. She has also had the pleasure of mentoring 50+ mentees who are finding success and happiness in their lives and careers.
Pedro Zimmer is a 2017 Music Production Grad from Brazil. Listen in and get inspired by Pedro's story and how his perspective on learning changed after attending Full Sail University. He has worked with multiple well-known companies like Spotify, Amazon, Warner Bros. Discovery, Badoo, Bumble, Wix.com, Globo, Leo Burnett, and many others. He also manages his own company keeping himself very busy!
Felipe Tichauer is a 1999 Recording Arts Graduate from Brazil. Join us as we discuss how he strategizes his future, from his early life to now. Felipe is a multi-Latin Grammy award winner and nominations. Learn more about how his degree will lead to a successful United States recording company.
Join us to hear from our International Alumni Ambassador about their life after graduating, navigating the job market, and getting closer to a successful career. In this Podcast, we have Catalina Cuartas, a 2015 Entertainment Business MS graduate from Colombia, content marketing manager in Latin Region for Warner Brothers, Inc Discovery; Daniel Sabogal, a 2018 Game Design MS graduate from Colombia, Works for Lenovo as a Technical Team Lead, Juan Lentino, 2022 Music Production BS graduate from Argentina, founder/co-owner of Panacea Estudio, Aryana Roberts, 2014 Film BS graduate from the Bahamas, founder, and head producer of Artistic Soul Productions Studio, Teffi Hernandez, 2016 Film Production MFA Graduate from Venezuela, founder and audiovisual producer at EM Hernandez Village, Ximena Morazan, 2022 Digitial Arts & Design BS graduate from Guatemala, Media Manager for the Daily Flash Show in Orlando, and Carlos Danna, 2015 Game Design MS Graduate from Argentina, Consultant contractor for Spotify and Senior Frontend Developer at Qvik.
Chavez is from The Bahamas and a graduate of the Music Production BS degree. Hear his story of his musical family, their history with Full Sail, and how he has chosen the unconventional path of an international student. You can find him on LinkedIn and his professional website.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/bigvezy/
Listen to these four recent graduates, all now on OPT, tell their stories of how they prepared for not only graduation, but also OPT. They will give advice on ways to make the transition smooth. Presenting today is Reginald Gibson-Film MFA, Apuroop Telukutla-Game Design, Keith Higgins-Recording Arts, and Barbara Norambuena-Film.
Juanito is from Colombia and a 2010 graduate of the Recording Arts Program. Hear his story about going through a challenging start at Full Sail University to becoming a successful artist, music producer, and songwriter.
Connect with Juanito Cardona:
Instagram: @JuanitoCardona
Email: JuanitoCardona@gmail.com
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bx-fuY7LpSU&list=PLSeiHihdLkF_9ibA-U4ZFb7ht4r6kmWYl
Website: http://www.elcolombiano.com/historico/juanito_un_creador_de_musica_digital-BCEC_251088
Upa is from India and a 2018 graduate of the Game Development BS degree. Hear his story about going from not being good at math or computers to becoming a developer of AR and VR games.
Website: www.upawhat.com
Email: uyavalkarus@gmail.com
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/upamanyu-yavalkar-08735143/
Twitter/ Instagram: @upawhat