Monica Cappiello

Monica Cappiello has been a Lecturer at UCLA in the Department of Film, Television, and Digital Media within the School of Theater, Film, and Television since 2021. With over a decade of educational experience, she has held prominent positions including Dean of Academic Affairs, Full-Time Faculty, and Department Director of Media, Animation, and Games. Her extensive industry background includes collaborations with esteemed organizations such as PBS, Red Giant Studios, the Mendez Foundation, and Pixellex Studio.

Monica’s creative expertise spans animation, visual effects, and digital media, with her works earning accolades at numerous film festivals worldwide.

Awards for Animation
Monica’s animation projects have garnered recognition for their artistic and technical achievements. Miles, an animated short created at Cogswell College, was a Semi-Finalist at the Grand Foundation Student Film Festival in 2020 and the Los Angeles CineFest in 2019. It was also an Official Selection at festivals such as LA Under the Stars, Miami Independent Film Festival, NY YoungFilmmakers, and the Los Angeles International Underground Filmmakers Festival. Another celebrated work, Chiaroscuro, earned 3rd Place in the College Division of the Grand Foundation Student Film Festival in 2019, was a Runner-Up at the London International Motion Pictures Award, and was officially selected by the Irvine International Film Festival and the Denver Underground Film Festival.

Her short film Brink won 1st Place at the Animation Career Review Christmas Holiday Animation Contest in 2018 and was an Official Selection at the Grand Foundation Student Film Festival.

One of Monica’s most distinguished works, The Way to Heaven, created with Red Giant Studios, received a nomination for the Jury Prize Award at the Austin Film Festival and a Second Place Jury Prize Award at Expotoons in 2009. It was an Official Selection at numerous prestigious festivals, including Cinequest, the Ottawa Animation Film Festival, Comic-Con, and many more. Flight Lessons, a collaboration with Neil Helm, a Pixar animator, was featured at SIGGRAPH Asia’s 2009 Computer Animation Festival and the Atlanta Film Festival. Additionally, Monica contributed to the visual effects for Eyeborgs, which won the AOF/WAB Award and the Action on Film Award for Best Visual Effects in 2009.

Education and Contributions
Monica earned her B.A. in Studio Arts and Digital Media, with a minor in Astronomy, from the University of Virginia, and her M.F.A. in Animation from the Savannah College of Art and Design. She is the creator of Academic Phoenix, a digital platform with over 85,000 YouTube subscribers, offering tutorials on modeling, texturing, lighting, and augmented reality.

Monica has volunteered with SIGGRAPH since 2015, holding roles such as VR Theater Director, Immersive Pavilion subcommittee member, and Education Liaison. She also founded SIGGRAPH’s Educator’s Day, now a permanent part of the conference. In 2024, she received a leadership award from Autodesk for her contributions to creative technologies and education.

Awards

M&E Community Leader (Autodesk, 2024)

Education

“MFA, Animation, Savannah College of Art and Design
BA, Studio Arts, University of Virginia”