Annette Barcelona is a San Diego-based dancer, choreographer and teacher and is the Department Chair of Dance at The San Diego School of Creative and Performing Arts. She earned an MFA degree from The Florida State University’s School of Dance where she received the 2015-2016 Outstanding Teaching Assistant Award. She received her BFA in Dance Education from Brenau University, in Gainesville, GA, where she was awarded the Carol Smiarowski Memorial Dance Scholarship recognizing both artistic and academic excellence.   

Originally from Michigan, Annette received early ballet training from Therese Bullard (Royal Winnipeg Ballet) at The Bullard School of Ballet and later with Carol Radovic (Vaganova Academy) at CAS Ballet Theatre.   

She has danced professionally as a principal dancer with Ann Arbor Ballet Theatre and The Gainesville Ballet Company performing leading roles in numerous full-length ballets including The Nutcracker, The Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland and A Midsummer Nights Dream.  

She has been privileged to perform works by George Balanchine, Marius Petipa, Anna Sokolow, Marina Leonova, August Tye, Luba Gulyaeva, Anjali Austin (Dance Theatre of Harlem), Anthony Morgan (Martha Graham Company), and Rick McCullough (Nederlands Dance Theatre).

Intro.: 0:00 

How we met.: 0:20 

How you started with dance.: 1:52 

Influence of parents divorce.: 7:03 

Taking a break from dance.: 11:31 

Planning a return to dance.: 14:56 

Impact of your Russian training regimen in Ballet.: 21:28 

What was the environment like in the dance studio?: 24:01 

Getting her Dance Ed degree.: 28:26 

Dispelling stigmas attached to dancers and artists.: 41:46 

Transition from Dancer/Performer to Teacher/Educator.: 49:21 

Reflecting back on her first few years of teaching and its significance.: 1:02:18 

Favorite thing about being a Dance Educator.: 1:08:31 

What would you say to your thirteen-year-old self?: 1:12:31

Ryan Piniones, a Los Angeles native, UCLA graduate, and currently working as a talent coordinator in the video game industry. Navigating through life as the first generation of his family, who are Filipino immigrants, to be born in the U.S. Through the struggles of growing up in the inner city of LA and overcoming the loss of both his parents, Ryan has found light in many different aspects of life to better himself and find the right path that he knows his parents would be proud of. An avid dancer in the socal dance community dancing with the likes of Samahang Modern, Team Millennia, and now currently with Culture Shock LA. Currently sinking back into video games as that is now his career and quarantine hobbies.

Intro.: 0:00 

Growing up in LA.: 0:18 

Perspective of friends pursuing a similar path as you as well as a different one.: 7:19 

Transition from private to public school.: 17:03 

What academic resources were available to you in public high school?: 23:35 

First big influence to pursue higher education?: 30:07 

Getting accepted into college. Starting with Nursing major.: 31:51 

Transition from high school to UCLA.: 37:06 

Involvement with Samahang Pilipino & Samahang Modern.: 43:11 

Involvement with Pilipino Recruitment Enrichment Program (PREP).: 49:54 

TDB, being a part of a fraternity.: 52:57 

From Nursing to Anthropology.: 59:00 

What are you currently up to?: 1:05:39 

The influence of your parents and older sister.: 1:11:57 

Passing of parents.: 1:15:11 

What would you say to your thirteen-year-old self?: 1:24:11

Jayton Gray is just a boy from the island of Guam who’s passionate about dance and entertaining. Currently living in San Diego, California he hopes to turn dance into a career but more importantly wants to be a role model for the youth, especially his little sister Victoria. Jayton hopes to have an impact on the lives he touches and is a proud advocate for equality. Black Lives Matter.

Intro.: 0:00 

Thoughts on the dance community, how it has changed since you've been a part of it.: 0:41 

When did you start dancing seriously in Guam/in the States?: 2:18 

What was the training like in Guam? Similarities/differences in comparison to socal?: 4:29 

How did you hear about Gwownups? Gwownups Gen 1.: 7:31 

How do you think COVID-19 will affect the dance community moving forward?: 12:31 

Pivotal moment in your dance career?: 16:38 

Pros and cons of choreography being the basis of your dance foundation.: 20:14 

Foundational training in Guam.: 22:34 

Any particular dance style or exercise you really vibed with?: 24:19 

Greatest lessons you've learned from dance.: 30:36 

Biggest influence in the lessons you've learned.: 32:51 

What it's like to work within a team and towards a common goal?: 34:51 

Where you are at with your teaching philosophy? Dance styles you've been studying.: 41:20 

What did it mean to you receiving Performer of the Year Award? What did that do for you moving forward?: 45:02

Jayton Gray is just a boy from the island of Guam who’s passionate about dance and entertaining. Currently living in San Diego, California he hopes to turn dance into a career but more importantly wants to be a role model for the youth, especially his little sister Victoria. Jayton hopes to have an impact on the lives he touches and is a proud advocate for equality. Black Lives Matter.

Intro.: 0:00 Being a role model/mentor to your baby sister.: 0:25 What's it like living with your sister now in comparison to living apart.: 2:16 How does she like her experience so far taking dance classes?: 5:17 Do you think you'd be as happy and excited if it was something outside of dance?: 6:48 Lifestyle change, minimal time with your sister before to a lot of time now.: 9:28 Best thing being an older brother and also biggest challenge.: 11:25  Growing up in a completely different world.: 15:01 What would you say to your thirteen-year-old self?: 17:14

Kara is a proud Filipina-American, born and raised in the Bay Area. She moved to San Diego for college in 2013 and decided to stay in the area ever since. While she attributes a lot of her identity and values to how she was raised and growing up in the Bay, she’s discovered so much more about herself moving to San Diego and continuously pursuing new paths. She knows the struggle of pivoting career paths all too well (having first-hand experience), but has found a home exploring the world of digital marketing. She’s not one to have a “5 year plan” but knows surrounding herself with good friends and family is all she needs to keep her on the right path!

Intro.: 0:00 

Growing up in the Bay Area.: 0:25 

Getting permission to commute and dance from Mom.: 2:56 

What was it like first finding dance and with friends who enjoyed it as well.: 5:55 

How did you get the role of dance captain for your team and what did that mean to you? 8:52 

Was there ever a time of great adversity during your time as a dance captain?: 10:42 

Being the youngest of your siblings and how that benefited you moving forward.: 12:23 

Competitive with siblings.: 15:58 

Being Filipino and initially going to school undeclared, then finally declaring a major.: 18:55 

What was it like transitioning into postgrad?: 27:01 

Why you chose to stay in San Diego?: 29:58 

How did you continue your passion for dance and in what spaces?: 32:51 

The need to come back to dance.: 38:54 

Raised in private Catholic school and transitioning to Public University.: 44:02 

Still receiving support from your family postgrad and how that affected you?: 49:37 

Main motivations, what were you seeking?: 53:15 

What you are currently up to?: 56:56 

Future forecast for your career?: 1:01:02 

Are you learning more independently in your current role without a mentor?: 1:03:43 

What would you say to those who may be at a pivot point in their career?: 1:05:10 

What would you say to your thirteen-year-old self?: 1:09:42

Charlie is a proud transgender man, aspiring writer and self-proclaimed collector, with hopes of one day connecting with the world through the art of storytelling.   

Having been mostly raised in Mexico and having spent most of his life moving from place to place, Charlie takes this opportunity to tell us about his journey and his different life experiences, giving us some insight into what it’s like to navigate the world as different genders. From the passing of his father to his transition Charlie takes this opportunity to open up to us, and share with us his views on the world, hoping to inspire us, even just a little, to look at the world through a different lens.   

Charlie can currently be found on his YouTube channel, Charlie’s Collectibles, where he connects with others through collecting.SUBSCRIBE for the latest content: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJIXERrzRHgk2tdx0WHWwLg

Intro.: 0:00 

What was your upbringing like?: 0:16 

How often did you move?: 1:11 

What affect did your father's passing have on you?: 1:51 

Characteristics from your father that still resonate with you today?: 3:25 

Getting closer to your mom after you dad's passing.: 5:42 

Relationship with your sister.: 6:59 

Dynamic of growing up after your father's passing and moving around constantly.: 9:35 

What was it like creating friendships and schooling.: 11:06 

What was your high school experience like?: 13:56 

Loud and proud. I'm trans!: 15:04 

Your experience in therapy and doing your own research.: 19:39 

Coming out to your family.: 25:53 

Finally going through the transition.: 34:16 

Getting your name tag with your name on it.: 38:30 

Adjustments with friends during transition.: 42:10 

Did you feel any microaggressions or prejudices from friends or others?: 49:31 

How Charlie and I met, how we know each other and how our relationship grew!: 53:12 

How was your transition like postgrad?: 57:19 

Occupying male space and experiencing male privilege.: 1:02:02 

Being light skin and a person of color.: 1:06:01 

What would you say to your thirteen-year-old self? 1:13:04

Sean Nang was born and raised in LA and continues to call LA home. He grew up in the San Gabriel Valley and attended UCLA for undergrad, majoring in Biology and minoring in Accounting. He began his career in public accounting with KPMG and has since moved on to work at Netflix as a Content Accountant. He enjoys both playing and watching sports (mainly basketball and football), loves camping and the outdoors, and enjoys spending his time with friends and family. Sean likes to take life one step at a time while continuing to learn new things, gain new skills, and challenge himself to step outside his comfort zone.

Intro.: 0:00 

Growing up in Alhambra/South Pasadena.: 0:25 

Transition from private to public school.: 2:42 

Balancing basketball, track & field and football in high school.: 4:00 

Biggest lessons learned from high school sports.: 6:06 

Characteristics learned from sports that you learned in hindsight.: 8:41 

Aspirations for higher education in high school.: 10:47 

How Sean and I met. D8 friend group.: 12:55 

Extra curricular activities involved in at UCLA.: 16:07 

Roommate situation freshman year.: 17:20 

Trying out for the UCLA Track team.: 20:05 

Getting into contact with the Track Coach.: 23:24 

Hearing now. What did that answer do to your confidence?: 25:16

Using a negative outcome as fuel to catapult forward.: 26:49 

Major at UCLA and everything that comes with the territory.: 29:33 

The power of getting a Minor and how that has shaped you postgrad.: 30:51 

Securing a job for postgrad during undergrad and how that affected you.: 33:05

Playing in basketball leagues during undergrad and postgrad.: 35:55 

Taking on student loans with grants, scholarships and family support.: 38:20 

Traveling internationally right before quarantine.: 41:07 

Working at Netflix!: 44:27 

What are you doing to help ease the transition working from home?: 46:17 

Navigating through post grad up until Netflix.: 48:51 

Adjustment of living independently in college to moving back home.: 52:20 

What would you tell your thirteen-year-old self?: 55:18

Michael Carreon is a songwriter/singer from San Diego, California. Known for his unique voice and relatable lyrics, Michael's music has reached global success.

Intro.: 0:00 

How you got into music in the first place?: 0:19 

First posting videos on YouTube.: 3:38 

First video on YouTube.: 5:33 

Meeting your closest friends in the industry.: 6:10 

Transition from doing music covers to writing originals.: 11:10 

First original single released.: 12:56 

Getting love and feedback from your following.: 14:18 

Talking about his first album "Love Adolescent".: 16:45 

Commitment to creating and producing music.: 19:38 

Traveling opportunities doing what you love.: 23:05 

First getting contacted to travel internationally.: 27:40 

Contrast between San Diego and Korea.: 29:57 

Being a songwriter.: 34:39 

Writing for yourself and not releasing to the public.: 36:56 

What does writing physically do for your creative process?: 39:40 

Releasing new music after 7 years.: 43:12 

Difference of creating for yourself vs writing for someone else?: 47:46 

Where is your current relationship with music at?: 52:35 

Making music with stable pay versus doing music to make money.: 56:33 

Married. Soon to be father. Thoughts and feelings.: 1:00:22 

What would you tell your thirteen-year-old self?: 1:03:16

Kate Park is a young professional and UCLA alumni based in Los Angeles. She grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and remains a loyal SF Giants fan despite living in rival territory. Though she currently works in the corporate sphere, Kate has a passion for creativity, specifically with writing. She cites Curious George for sparking her love for reading and writing from a young age and hopes to one day have an extensive personal library.

Intro.: 0:00 

What was it like having a job during your undergrad?: 0:30 

What was your typical workload like? 1:46 

Navigating through the postgrad life.: 2:57 

Narrowing down what you wanted to pursue.: 5:02 

Same company for two years, complete opposite of your peers.: 6:02 

Extra curricular activities that helped shape you during undergrad.: 8:17 

Meeting her roommates.: 10:11 

Just looking for a job. Reflecting on that decision.: 12:02 

Dynamic of being the youngest/newest in the workplace?: 14:35 

People skills/mentorship fostered in undergrad or through your job?: 16:54 

Being average at UCLA.: 21:10 

Dealing with doubt from others on your major choice.: 25:59 

The side hustle.: 28:28 

Summing up the courage to share personal writing to the world.: 30:29 

Typing out thoughts and feelings. Emotional response to things. What she sees in the world.: 32:00 

Being more available to write.: 35:44 

Have you ever shared your love for writing to your family?: 37:27 

Reading a letter to Kate.: 40:06 

Can you see yourself turning your passion of writing into a career?: 42:50 

I am a success because I did this and learned this along my journey.: 47:37 

What are your daily challenges working from home during Covid like?: 49:53 

Differentiating workspace within your home.: 52:57 

Most transferable skill/perspective you have learned so far?: 55:17 

Seeking people that are honorable and have much to offer.: 57:30 

What would you say to your thirteen-year-old self?: 59:48

Deniza Sabio, a Carson native currently working as a Graphic Designer. Attended UCLA as an undergrad initially to pursue a career in medicine, however changed course and found herself reaching back to her design roots. Through the trials and errors of figuring out her career as a designer, she has slowly learned her self-worth and continues to make the “art of learning” her constant goal to grow. Her current interests/likes are reading, (finally) watching Avatar: The Last Air Bender and Bon Appetit, and trying her best to create more personal art.

Intro: 0:00 

Where you grew up and what it was like navigating through that?: 0:27 

What was it like growing up with gang culture in your neighborhood?: 5:23 

What was the support system like growing up at home?: 9:02 

What was the dynamic like growing up with young parents?: 12:33 

Learning from your older sister.: 16:20 

Navigating through high school and the pressure of pursuing higher education.: 18:38 

Getting into the same school as your cousin. What effect did that have on you?: 24:59 

Initially going to UCLA as a bio major.: 28:27 

When did you first ask yourself that question?: 31:22 

What were the requirements for academic probation?: 37:30 

How were you affected when you scaled back from spaces that fueled you?: 39:08 

Officially becoming a DESMA major.: 42:38 

Takeaways from DESMA major that are still applicable today.: 48:14 

Marketing your art and having a business mentality.: 52:10 

Postgrad work.: 54:30 

Where you currently work and what you do?: 1:01:48 

Take us through your creative process.: 1:05:30 

What would you say to your thirteen-year-old self?: 1:11:50