Apprentices Create PSA for Illumination Ent & International Bird Rescue

Just released! A 30-second PSA voiced by the Today Show’s Al Roker for International Bird Rescue and Illumination Entertainment’s latest film, Migration!

This summer Venice Arts’ placed three of our successful pre-apprentice graduates as Apprentices in high-level roles—producer, DP, and editor—on a PSA designed to promote International Bird Rescue and Illumination Entertainment’s new animated feature, Migration. With voiceover by Al Roker the PSA, and our partnership with NBCU, was featured on the Today Show and NBC4 Los Angeles and with the support of NBCU’s Creative Impact Lab, our apprentices were mentored by creative executives at NBCU and had the opportunity to participate on every project phase

The IBR/Illumination PSA is the first in a series of content that our Apprentices will be making for nonprofits across the region. What’s up next? A PSA for Oakland- based Gameheads to be released in early 2024.

Congratulations Maya Vidal/Producer Apprentice, Cori Kim/DP Apprentice, and Mekhi Burton, Editing Apprentice. We’re so proud of your work! And a special shout-out to Venice Arts’ creative team mentors: Frederick Thornton, Producer; Charlie Schmidlin, Director; Asuka Lin, DP; and. Ko Massiah, Editor.

> Want to learn more about this or our other creative career development programs? Contact Ajani Amiri, Director of our Creative Workforce Programs.

30th Anniversay Gala

Venice Arts would like to extend our heartfelt gratitude to all of you who graced us with your presence at the Gala. Your attendance made the event a success and created an atmosphere of joy and celebration. We appreciate your support and enthusiasm in making the night a memorable one. It was wonderful to see the extended Venice Arts community — former staff, students, board members, and Venice locals — come together to celebrate our 30 years of providing high-impact, free mentoring and education programs to low-income young people.

Once again, thank you for coming to celebrate our 30th Anniversary and we look forward to seeing you again at our future events!

Making the Dream Real

Our latest Digital Storytelling Fellowship launched this week with 15 talented young creatives. With 160 hours of immersive learning and creating they'll be ready for work in December! Week 1 is all about foundation-building: Setting their personal missions and aspirations, building their soft skills, deepening their storytelling knowledge and technical skills. Shout-out to all of our creative sector partners for helping to make dreams real, but especially to the Department of Educational Opportunity, Perenchio, Sony, UTA, PBS, IPC, This Machine, and Snap.

Venice Arts is proud to be part of UBCUniversal's Creative Impact Lab

Venice Arts is proud to continue its work with NBCUniversal’s Creative Impact Lab as a Nonprofit Creative Agency! Over the next few months, we will be working on marketing videos that tell the story of Gameheads Oakland, a nonprofit that uses video game design and development to prepare and train under-served youth for careers in the tech and video game industries. Our apprentices, Eveanna del Cid, Maria Velasco and Angelica Quiñonez will be working our professional Producer, Director, DP, and Editor, and will also benefit from the mentorship of NBCUniversal creative executives along the way. Stay tuned to see the work!

Venice Arts Timeline 1993 - 2023

To celebrate our 30th Anniversary we’ve created a 30 year timeline of notable events in Venice Arts’ History!

Entertainment Industy Foundation Profiles Alum Josh Calderon

This month's Entertainment Industry Foundation Career Program newsletter featured great story on our former student-turned-teaching assistant, Joshua Calderon!

Joshua speaks on being neurodivergent and working towards long-term career goals. Joshua offers these words of encouragement for those in the neurodiverse community with dreams of working in the entertainment industry: "Don't give up, don't let what you are stop you, and in your own unique way, put your best foot forward. As long as you present yourself for who you are more than anything else, then you'll have people that will come to you because you put your best foot forward."

Read the full article at on their site here.

Pictures from Summer Media Arts Camp

This July, Venice Arts students have been busy honing their new creative skills while exploring the world around them. From taking photos around Venice, to experimenting with different image development processes, to creating comics about personal stories, workshops have been packed with fun and learning!C

Check out the gallery below to see all that they’ve been up to!

Session 1

Session 2

Venice Arts is working with NBCUniversal’s Creative Impact Lab

Venice Arts is proud to join NBCUniversal’s Creative Impact Lab as a Nonprofit Creative Agency producing promotional videos for other non-profits! Our first story will be about the important work of International Bird Rescue, a global conservation organization that aims to give a voice to waterbirds through conservation, advocacy, and wildlife literacy. In addition to our professional crew, we are placing three apprentices on the project: Maya Vidal, Producing Apprentice; Cori Kim, DP Apprentice; and Mekhi Burton, Editing Apprentice, each of whom will also benefit from the mentorship of a team of 3 creative executives from NBCUniversal. Stay tuned to see their work! 

Graduation for the First Class of our State Registered Editing Pre-Apprenticeship Program

On Saturday May 6, 2023 our first class of students graduated from our State Registered Editing Pre-Apprenticeship program. These students completed 450 hours of editing classes, sat for Adobe Certification and are now prepared to enter the workforce in entry-level assistant editor positions.

Our 450-hour Prep Editing Pre-Apprenticeship program is a part of our Center for Creative Workforce Equity, which builds programs and partnerships that contribute to a more equitable and inclusive creative sector. Read more about the Center for Creative Workforce Equity and its various programs here. 

Venice Arts is a 2023 Non-Profit of the Year

Senator Ben Allen speaking at the 2021 Film & Digital Media Career Pathways Graduation

Venice Arts is excited to share that Senator Ben Allen has named Venice Arts a 2023 California Nonprofit of The Year. Venice Arts is one of more than one hundred nonprofits that will be honored by their state senators and assembly members for their outstanding contributions to the communities they serve. 

“When anyone talks about delivering meals to seniors, inspiring with music, protecting fresh water, educating children, championing the disadvantaged, speaking out for human rights, caring for animals . . . they are talking about work that nonprofits do," noted Jan Masaoka, CEO of the California Association of Nonprofits (CalNonprofits), which serves as a partner for this awards program. "California Nonprofit of the Year gives elected leaders the opportunity to shine a light on what nonprofits are accomplishing for the people in their districts and for everyone to appreciate the collective impact of nonprofits across our state."

Now in its eighth year, the Nonprofit of the Year initiative provides the opportunity for each California state legislator to choose a nonprofit organization doing outstanding work in their district. The program culminates with a celebratory luncheon at the Capitol on California Nonprofits Day, which this year is June 7.

We are incredibly honored to receive this recognition for our 30 years of delivering high-impact arts education and creative career development programs to LA County's young people, and we look forward to celebrating in Sacramento in June!