alumni:
Game Development
Chair of Game Art
Jason Oualline
Jason is a designer and educator with a background in architecture and mechanization. He began his journey with LCAD in 2016 when he enrolled in the MFA in Game Design program. Since graduation, he has taught in both the graduate and undergraduate game programs and ultimately took on the role of Chair for the BFA…
Associate Professor
Amanda Fisher
Amanda Fisher is a graduate from Laguna College of Art & Design with an emphasis in 3D art for games. Amanda has worked as a 2D and 3D freelance artist for over 10 years, working with both teams and individual clients creating character concepts and illustrations, as well as assets and characters for games. Amanda…
Dean of Academic Affairs
Thomas Olson
Game Development, Game Design MFA '18 Thomas Olson grew up in the mountains of Southern California, spending many summer days in Newport Beach whenever possible. Laguna's Sawdust Festival and Festival of the Arts were an inspiration, and he is thrilled to now be part of the art tradition of Orange County as the Dean of…
Adjunct Faculty
Noah Alonzo
Adjunct Faculty
Daniel Alpert
Adjunct Faculty
Sandy Appleoff Lyons
Adjunct Faculty
Lauren Benavides
Lauren graduated from the Animation Major at Laguna College of Art + Design with a Bachelor's Degree of Fine Art in Animation. She specializes in 2D character and environment design, 2D and 3D animation, and visual development and storytelling. She has experience as a freelance artist for over 10 years, and as an art lead…
Adjunct Faculty
Ehren Bienert
Adjunct Faculty
Ehsan Bigloo
Ehsan Bigloo has been a Sr.Character and Creature Designer/Developer in the entertainment industry for 10 years. He resides in Los Angeles, California. He is an active member of Local 800 (ADG) IATSE. He comes from a figurative traditional art background with a bit practical effect, and also digital artworks. He is focused on creature/character/costume/armor/environment/shot designing…
Adjunct Faculty
Christopher Cantwell
Chris studied quantum computing, and high performance computing, at the University of Southern California, where he graduated with a B.S. in Electrical Engineering, B.S. in Physics, and a M.S. in Physics. During his studies, he came to believe that the reason quantum phenomena seem confusing is that we don't interact with it, at least on…
Adjunct Faculty
Dan Carreker
Dan Carreker has over 10 years of teaching experience in game arts and sciences. He has industry experience as both a Database Manager for Activisions Production/QA department and as a freelance Game Designer and Programmer. He has worked on over 80 different commercial products; his credits include Medieval: Total War, Star Trek: Armada, and Pizza…
Adjunct Faculty
Travis Castillo
Adjunct Faculty
Adriana Catarino
Adjunct Faculty
Hugh Trombley
Adjunct Faculty
Daniel Cuatt
Dan Cuatt is an environment artist working in games, currently at Unbroken Studios. He’s been making things since he was old enough to wield scissors and tape and paper -- which are still his preferred medium to work in when the computers are down! He draws a straight line from his upbringing surrounded by a…
Adjunct Faculty
Anh Dang
Adjunct Faculty
Aurelian Danglejan
Adjunct Faculty
Casey Dockendorf
Casey Dockendorf is a creative professional with nearly 20 years of experience, whose love of reading comics, playing video games, and collecting action figures fostered a love of the creative development process. Over the course of Casey's career he has had the opportunity to release titles on major publishing platforms (Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo), and…
Adjunct Faculty
Giselle Dougan Santos
Giselle is a game developer who focuses on UI design and programming. Currently working in the XR industry and wireless industry, she strives to create content that inspires the next generation of engineers and designers. She is committed to promoting mental health awareness and support, as well as uplifting marginalized voices.
Adjunct Faculty
Kari Dunham
Kari Dunham is originally from the Pacific Northwest. She now calls Orange County home, and serves as an adjunct in the Game Art Department at Laguna College of Art + Design. Additionally, she teaches at Biola University, Concordia University Irvine, and Irvine Valley College and earned her master’s degree from Laguna College of Art +…
Adjunct Faculty
Ariel Fain
With over 10 years of experience at Blizzard Entertainment, Ariel served as a core artist in creating memorable in game character assets for World of Warcraft, taking the role as a forefront for new, innovative content and thriving within cross-disciplinary team-oriented environment in a variety of leadership roles. She's been employing her skills in both…
Adjunct Faculty
Omar Field-Rahman
Adjunct Faculty
Justin Fields
Justin “Goby” Fields is a creative director, concept artist, and illustrator for Feature Films, Video Games, and the Broadcast Industry. As a freelance concept artist, Justin has created design content and illustrations for Jupiter Ascending, Maleficent, Noah, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, Marvel’s Spider-man PS4, Bright, Falling Skies, The New Mutants, League of…
Adjunct Faculty
James Finley
James comes from an unlikely background; born unto a family of medical professionals deep in the heart of the Inland Empire of California, he doesn't strike a picture that the industry is too familiar with. Developing an early passion for video games and their immersive capacity for story-telling, his every move has been towards becoming…
Adjunct Faculty
Kelly Gilley
Kelly recently graduated from Laguna College of Art + Design (LCAD) with a BFA in Game Art, and has worked in the games industry as a 3D artist since, on projects both photorealistic and stylized. She finds joy not only in teaching others industry-relevant skills and techniques, but also in guiding them to find their…
Adjunct Faculty
Alexander Gonzalez
Alexander Gonzalez is passionate about creating interactive settings and worlds as a Game Artist. He is currently an Environment Artist at High Moon Studios and an adjunct professor for LCAD Game Art. At High Moon Studios, Alexander is responsible for creating maps for the Call of Duty franchise. Along with his experience on Call of…
Adjunct Faculty
Charles Hailstones
Adjunct Faculty
Nicholas Harvey
Adjunct Faculty
Bobby Hernandez
Adjunct Faculty
Ishmael Hoover
Adjunct Faculty
Jacqueline Jocson
Jax is an Art Director and Concept Artist with 15+ years of experience in the Entertainment Industry, specializing in design and storytelling for film, games, TV, and IP creation. She has worked with clients such as Apple, Fortnite, Capcom, MachineZone, Stan Lee's POW! Entertainment, SyFy Channel, Digital Domain, Wizards of the Coast, Super Evil Megacorp,…
Adjunct Faculty
Eli Joteva
Eli Joteva (b.1990) is a Bulgarian intermedia artist, researcher and educator. Joteva has exhibited internationally across Europe, the US, Asia, the Middle East and Australasia including at Ars Electronica, Linz; Noor Riyadh, Riyadh; Rijksmuseum Twenthe, Enschede; Fosun Foundation, Shanghai, and the Queensland Centre for Photography, Newstead. She has been a resident artist at STEAM Imaging…
Adjunct Faculty
Kyle Kane
Adjunct Faculty
Mark Khalil
I've been part of the game industry for the last 15 years. My journey began at Carbine Studios, where I contributed as an environment artist for the WildStar MMO. I later moved on to Riot Games, shifting into a VFX role while working on League of Legends. During my time there, I worked on a…
Adjunct Faculty
Sebastian Kings
Sebastian Kings is a concept artist who specializes in environment, transportation, and prop design. An Orange County native, he was the first graduate from the Digital Media conservatory at the Orange County High School of the Arts and received his BFA in Game Art from LCAD in 2018. He strives to create designs that are…
Adjunct Faculty
Briana Lawlor
Adjunct Faculty
Alexander Lee
Alexander Lee is a sculptor, animator, and technical artist with over a decade of experience in the game and visual effects industries. He has contributed to projects for leading companies like Apple, Survios, and Pure Imagination, including video games like Alien: Rogue Incursion, Alien: Descent, The Walking Dead, and Creed. Alexander has demonstrated his ZBrush…
Adjunct Faculty
Hong Lim
Hong is Senior Character Artist at Blizzard Entertainment working on Overwatch. Hong Earned BFA in 3D Graphics and Technology at The School of The Art Institute of Chicago. Hong started his career making Superman Returns for Electronic arts back in 2005. After Shipping three console games, he moved his career to NCsoft Corp. (Carbine Studios)…
Adjunct Faculty
Wesley Lin
Adjunct Faculty
Nadine Malan
Adjunct Faculty
Dean May
Dean May is a game developer and technical artist with a broad range of industry experience. He is the Lead Technical Artist at Aquifer Motion and an adjunct instructor for the LCAD Game Art program. At Aquifer Motion, Dean optimizes television CG assets for Unity, and uses the engine tools to create convincing environments for…
Adjunct Faculty
Brad McBrearty
Adjunct Faculty
Christina McBrearty
Creative Leader with a background in Technical Art, serving in leadership roles across the video game industry for over 15 years. Past experience leading diverse projects including cutting edge Mobile Development, Web3 Platform experts, and traditional AAA game development from ideation to live support. Renowned for collaborative projects with major players including Apple, Disney, Sony,…
Adjunct Faculty
Curtiss Murphy
Adjunct Faculty
Tayler Olivas
Adjunct Faculty
Enya Oreshkin
Adjunct Faculty
Don Ott
Don Ott is a seasoned industry veteran, currently working as the Modeling Art Lead on the hit MMO New World, published by Amazon Game Studios. He has at least a dozen shipped AAA games under his belt ranging from the Transformers series, Deadpool, Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare, Destiny 2, and more. Don is the…
Adjunct Faculty
Javier Perez
Adjunct Faculty
Daniel Platt
Adjunct Faculty
Lou Police
Graduated Art Center College of Design LA/Pasadena in 1978 with a BFA in Illustration. Most influential instructors: Harry Carmean, Gregory Weir-Quiton, Vern Wilson, Kathy Wirch, Ward Kimball, Herb Ryman and John Asaro. Freelance illustration assignments include movie poster designs, book illustration, magazine illustration, advertising storyboarding and comps, fashion illustration, matte painting, and live action production…
Adjunct Faculty
Patrick Raines
PJ Raines is a 16-year veteran of the entertainment industry. Disney Animation Studios, Warner Bros Animation, Obsidian Entertainment, and Jam City are among his credits. He is a 9-year adjunct professor at LCAD. He is currently a Principal Artist at Zynga. PJ is based in California.
Adjunct Faculty
Brandon Ray
Brandon works at Blizzard Entertainment as an associate 3D Environment Artist working on the game World of Warcraft. He is passionate about the hand-painted style of games and specializes in 3D hand-painted environments. He was featured on the Games Artist website for his piece "Adventure Inn." He is also a fellow alumni of LCAD and…
Adjunct Faculty
Gavin Rich
Adjunct Faculty
Michael Rocchio
Michael Rocchio is an architectural historian and an archaeologist. Michael has undergraduate degrees in Anthropology and Classical Civilizations from Indiana University, a graduate degree in Greek and Roman Archaeology and another graduate degree in Architecture and Urban Design from UCLA. Michaels main areas of research are Roman urban infrastructure and his particular area of expertise…
Adjunct Faculty
Zoe Smith
Adjunct Faculty
Robert Stacy
Adjunct Faculty
Nicole Tan
Adjunct Faculty
Poe Tan
Poe Tan is a Professor, Instructor and Concept Designer, helping students and professionals realize their creative potential. Poe balances two roles professionally, alternating between concept artist with over 23 years in the animation field as a background and prop designer. Poe works tirelessly as a professor and instructor educating and mentoring college-level students at some…
Adjunct Faculty
Ning Tang
Adjunct Faculty
Matthew Taylor
Matthew Taylor is an animation director and 3D artist. Currently, a technical animator and Houdini artist at international advertising studio FutureDeluxe, and adjunct professor for LCAD Game Art. Earlier in his career, in LA and London, he worked as head of character pipeline for video game commercials and animation director for design agencies. He holds…
Adjunct Faculty
Emmanuel Valdez
Adjunct Faculty
Kyle Valentin
Kyle graduated LCAD in 2016, since then he has worked on a short film rendered in Unity, Sonder. He helped create new Real Time VFX for SMITE, before moving to Riot Games to work on League of Legends. He currently works at Riot Games on VALORANT. His favorite games are Apex Legends, Final Fantasy XIV,…
Adjunct Faculty
Patrick Ward
An alumni of Otis College of Art and Design, Patrick is an Environment Artist in the videogame industry currently employed by Sony Interactive Entertainment and Sucker Punch Productions. Hes worked at Xbox Game Studios, The Initiative and most recently apart of Santa Monica Studios team on the upcoming God of War Ragnarok. Hes excited about…
Adjunct Faculty
Nicholas Williams
Adjunct Faculty
Damon Woods
Damon Woods has been a leading 3D Character Artist for the games, film, TV, and advertising industries. His work includes contributions to such titles as "Star Wars: Jedi Survivor" Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain" and "The Flash" TV series. Through the years, Damon has collaborated and art directed for many clients including Marvel…
Adjunct Faculty
Katlynn Woodward
After graduating from LCAD in 2022 from the Game Art program as a tutor and an intern at Visual Concepts 2K, I went on to work at 2K as a full-time environment artist. I then went on to work at Misfits Gaming Group as a 3D Artist and have been following a path of teaching.…
Adjunct Faculty
Eric Young
As a child, Eric could always be found playing with his action figures, drawing, or making movies. When asked at a young age, ""What do you want to do when you grow up,"" there was only one answer: ""I want to make cartoons!"" Over the years Eric has had the privilege of working at studios…
Adjunct Faculty
Zhang Zeyan
Adjunct Faculty
Kathy Zuniga
Adjunct Faculty
Allan Huang
Adjunct Faculty
Madeline Humphrey
Adjunct Faculty
Debra Isaac
Debra Isaac is a Visual Artist, Animator, and the Founder of https://www.houdini.school/. She loves community building, hosts Houdini Battle, and co-organizes The Los Angeles Houdini User Group (LAHUG). She has over 10 years of experience teaching Houdini. She is passionate about animation, scientific visualization, motion graphics, and emerging technologies. Her clients have included Intel, Mattel,…
Andrew Erickson
Andrew is a Concept Artist at Obsidian Entertainment and has worked in the video game industry for nearly a decade. He has contributed to shipped titles such as Overwatch, Pillars of Eternity, Avowed, and The Outer Worlds 2, among others. Throughout his career, he has collaborated with studios including Blizzard, Obsidian, Adult Swim, Mattel, Crayola,…
Brandy Hwang
Brandy Hwang is a graduate from the Laguna College of Art + Design with a BFA in Game Art. She has a specialty in concept and visual development with an emphasis in Environment Design. Residing in Los Angeles, Brandy has been honing in on her skills as a 2D and 3D concept artist with freelancing…
Dawnson Chen
Dawnson Chen has been working as an Environment Artist for over a decade in the video games industry. Currently he works at Blizzard on World of Warcraft as a Dungeon artist, his focus is on modeling and texturing Dungeons, Raid and any architecture found in the world. Before Blizzard, we were working on stylized mobile…
Russell Chong
Russell G. Chong has been a production artist for 38 years and has worked in animation, feature animation, and live-action. Some of his notable accomplishments include Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2006-2013) as a general concept artist, Emmy Award winning, Batman: The Animated Series (1990-1995) as a background designer and painter, HBO’s Spawn (1997-1999) (Emmy…
Stephen Carter
Stephen Carter is a digital artist and fine artist with over 20+ years of designing experience in the gaming industry. Working at companies like Bally’s, Gamesys and Konami. In the areas of character design, environment, props and more. He has a passion for Gouache and Oil painting, portraits and plein Air. His creative journey began…