This weekend was Vancouver's very first Fan Expo convention, which attracted over 15,000 guests into a sold-out attraction at Vancouver Convention Centre. Fan Expo, based out of Toronto, is Canada's largest fan convention for comics, movies, TV and games, and VanArts was excited to be on the floor as an exhibitor to share information about our programs.

Even more exciting was seeing the variety of successful graduates from our full-time programs who were there to greet fans and show their work.

Aaron Douglas, known to many as Chief Galen Tyrol on Battlestar Galactica and Frank Leo on The Bridge, is a graduate of our Acting for Film & TV program at the William Davis Centre for Actors' Study at VanArts.  Aaron is among the cast of the upcoming thriller Death Do Us Part, which was being promoted at the Expo.

Georgie Daburas, another graduate of our Acting Department, is currently receiving accolades for his lead role on Hitman 101, a locally-produced web series.

Danielle Anathema, a graduate of our Digital Photography program, has launched her own business for her horror-themed photography, and had her own booth at Fan Expo to showcase her art.

Dan Schoening and Nina Matsumoto are graduates of our 2D Character Animation program, who have both made a big name for themselves in the comics industry. Dan has produced art for a number of clients and created a series of Ghostbusters comics, and Nina has won an Eisner award for her work on The Simpsons comics.

It's great to see the Force is with our star grads who are pursuing their dreams and getting to meet their fans.  Be sure to look for us at the Calgary Comic Expo this weekend and Toronto's Fan Expo in August! 

Read more about our grads in these previous blog stories:
Aaron Douglas
Georgie Daburas
Dan Schoening
Nina Matsumoto

VanArts announces some new opportunities now available in 2012 for those who wish to begin exploring their career potential as a professional actor. 

ACTING FOUNDATIONS CERTIFICATE PROGRAM

Running from March 12th to June 1st, this is a full-time 3-month program, running 5 days per week with a minimum of 317 hours of class time. 

You will explore the foundations of acting including: voice & voice-over, movement, acting technique with scene study, and film & television with our staff of professional actors.  This is an amazing opportunity to dive into full-time study within a 3-month window, discover your potential and find out if you have the determination and self-discipline to become a successful actor.

Audition required.

Contact us today for more details or START YOUR APPLICATION NOW >>

2-WEEK ACTORS' INTENSIVE

Our ever popular 2-Week Actor's Intensive, offered only from June 11th to 22nd, is designed to give students a taste of full-time acting training.

For students with no acting experience, this is an excellent and fun way to get started.  It is also an excellent choice for those who are seriously considering committing to our full-time Acting for Film and Television program. All classes are taught by dedicated and experienced professional actors.

Classes are Monday to Friday, 10am - 4:30pm for two full weeks.

No pre-requisites.  APPLY NOW >>

...and for BC high school students only, there are only a few days left to register for our 1-week Acting Boot Camp in March!  (Deadline: February 17)

Read more about Acting @ VanArts here >>

This just in!!!  VanArts is calling out for aspiring actors to take advantage of our $1000 scholarship offer for our 9-month full-time Acting for Film & Television diploma program starting March 12, 2012. 

Begin your application process here >>

Here is an overview of the program and our students & staff in action:

More information:  Overview  Curriculum  Faculty  News

Contact us today to find out more!

Georgie Daburas, a graduate from the William Davis Centre for Actors' Study at VanArts, is featured in the lead role (with additional credit as a co-producer) of a new local web series called Hitman 101, which consists of 12 episodes currently continuing their release online. VanArts acting graduate Jacob Wolpert is also featured with a role in the series.

Since graduation, Georgie Daburas has been actively involved in several local productions for film, television and theater.  He also continues to lend support to current students at VanArts, in the areas of acting, voices & reference for animation, and visual effects. One of our visual effects graduates, Pranjal Verma, was recruited to contribute some effects work to Hitman 101, through his connection of previously working with Georgie.

(Visit Georgie Daburas online at www.gdaburas.com.)

Hitman 101 is created & directed by Scott Staven, who had this to say about our graduates working on the show: "Georgie was not known to us before auditioning, and was cast based on his acting talents and look. It was only after casting him did the production realize how awesome a human being he was and how above and beyond nailing the role on screen he aided in the production of the film. He earned the co-producer credit and was very integral to the project's completion. I think it's a testament to the work ethic VanArts teaches and the Hitman 101 team is grateful VanArts is producing professional actors who are driven.  Also Pranjal Verma, who is doing all our visual fx on his own, is another great VanArts product who time and again is saving our butts in post production fixing all our mistakes and adding in elements that raise the production value. Not only driven and talented, Pranjal is also a pleasure to work with. Thank you!"

To view episodes and learn more about Hitman101, visit www.badguyfilms.com/hitman101.

Here is the teaser trailer: 

VanArts is very proud to have recently contributed our skills and resources to help promote Project Limelight Society, a new organization that has developed an artistic community program for youth living in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside.  Their vision is to support kids as they pursue their passion and education in the performing arts.

Project Limelight was founded by sisters Donalda Weaver and Maureen Webb  (pictured above, left to right, with Board Member Carmen Amos), who each have substantial experience as Casting Directors for our local film & theatre industries.  Maureen has been connected with our Acting Department through the William Davis Centre for many years, and through this connection she was introduced to key members of our Digital Photography department: Program Director Christa LeCraw, Studio Manager Jeff Bell, and DSLR Video Instructor Scott Hastings.  These three joined forces to direct and produce promotional videos for Project Limelight in our professional top-floor studio space overlooking the Vancouver skyline.

A top-notch line-up of actors, musicians, politicians, and various professionals across many industries were brought into the studio to be filmed for this project, including Vancouver Park Board Chair Constance Barnes, legendary folk-singer Valdy and his daughter, actress Chelah Horsdal (Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Supernatural) Sweatshop Union hip-hop artist Kyprios, D.O.A's Joe Keithley, and actors Cory Monteith (Glee, Final Destination 3), Kacey Rohl (V, Red Riding Hood), and William Davis Centre at VanArts alumnus Aaron Douglas (Battlestar Galactica, The Bridge), along with many others.

Here is one of the videos that was produced by our VanArts team:

We also produced a behind-the-scenes video of the shoot, with cinematography by Andy Matheson, a part-time student from our DSLR Video Production course.

Huge thanks to everyone who made this production possible!

Read more about Project Limelight, see more videos, and offer your support to them by visiting http://www.projectlimelightsociety.org/

VanArts is proud to share our most recent survey of graduate and placement statistics, with very promising results for our grads finding work relevant to their field of study.  Surveys were conducted six months after our last two graduating classes, and the average job placement rate was 88%! 

According to school president Alan Phillips, "This high placement data speaks volumes about what a great job VanArts is doing at offering first class, industry-relevant education."