School of Art, Art History & Design
Emma Nishimura, MFA 2013
Nishimura is an assistant professor and the chair of photography, printmaking and publications at the Ontario College of Art and Design University in Toronto, Canada. Working with a range of media, including printmaking, photography, sculpture and installation, her research and art practice has focused on the multigenerational legacy of the Japanese Canadian Internment and forced dispersal during the Second World War. Her work has been widely exhibited internationally and is featured in a number of public and private collections. In 2018, she was the recipient of the Queen Sonja Print Award. In 2024, she was named one of the university’s Alumni Masters.
Karen Blessen, BFA 1973
Blessen is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and artist. Her work has appeared in the Dallas Morning News, Times Square, books for GP Putnam & Sons, Simon and Schuster, and many other places. Blessen's “One Bullet,” a piece that she wrote and illustrated for the Dallas Morning News, explores a fatal act of violence that took place in front of her home and traces the path of its impact on the victim's family, the killer's family, the law enforcement community and the community at large. Since its inception in 2005, Blesson’s 29 Pieces: Artists Making a Kinder World workshops and classroom curricula have helped more than 50,000 students develop their creativity and their love of peace. More than 400 teachers have been trained in 29 Pieces: Artists Making a Kinder World Lessons.
Trent Claus, BFA 2006
Claus is a visual effects supervisor and senior compositor at Lola VFX and has been with them since 2007. The company has developed many unique and proprietary effects that have been used in more than 120 feature films and television productions, including “Captain America: The First Avenger,” “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” “The Mandalorian” and “Obi-Wan Kenobi.” His work on feature films has contributed to 19 Academy Award nominations for Best Visual Effects and 10 nominations for Best Picture. He has worked on 22 Marvel movies, including “Captain America: The First Avenger,” where he developed special effects to transform a skinny weakling into a muscular super hero.
In 2021, he found and manages a branch of Lola VFX in Lincoln, where he has employed several Johnny Carson Center for Emerging Media Arts students.
Glenn Korff School of Music
Sam Loeck, BM 2014
Loeck has been principal bass of the Calgary Philharmonic since 2016. A native of Lincoln, Nebraska, he earned his bachelor’s degree in music performance from UNL. He then earned a Master’s degree from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, where he was named the winner of the IU Bass Concerto Competition. He has participated in numerous music festivals, including the Aspen Music Festival, Moritzburg Festival, Pacific Music Festival and the Banff Centre International String Quartet Festival. He has performed extensively as guest-principal bass with the London Symphony Orchestra and served as a substitute bass with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the Oregon Symphony.
Lt. Col. Cristina M. Moore Urrutia, BM 1995 & MM 1998
Lieutenant Colonel Cristina M. Moore Urrutia serves as Commander and Conductor of the United States Air Force Band of the Golden West at Travis Air Force Base in California. The 60-member unit, composed of 10 musical ensembles, performs more than 350 missions annually throughout a five-state area of responsibility as an ambassador of the Air Force and Air Mobility Command.
Richard Svoboda, BME 1998
Richard Svoboda is the principal bassoonist of the Boston Symphony Orchestra and a member of the Boston Symphony Chamber Players, both positions he has held since 1989. He is currently on the faculties of the New England Conservatory, the Tanglewood Music Center and the Sarasota Music Festival, and has given master classes throughout the world. Prior to his appointment to the BSO he performed for 10 seasons as principal bassoonist of the Jacksonville (Fla.) Symphony. Svoboda has been credited on more than 30 recordings with the Boston Symphony Orchestra and Boston Symphony Chamber Players, including on the soundtracks to “Schindler’s List” and “Saving Private Ryan.” In 2022, he was named one of the university’s Alumni Masters.
Johnny Carson School of Theatre and Film
Elizabeth Baquet, BFA 2012
Baquet is a podcast executive for Mosaic Media where she oversees development and client pitches for podcast projects in a variety of genres. Mosaic Media’s A-list roster includes Will Ferrell, Judd Apatow, Jessica Chastain and Tessa Thompson. Additionally, Baquet oversees Ninth Planet Audio, Mosaic Media's in-house audio production company, which holds a first-look deal with iHeartRadio’s Big Money Players Network. Before joining Mosaic Media, Baquet served as Head of Production for PodcastOne where she developed and launched dozens of successful podcasts while supervising an in-house team of producers, editors, and engineers. She has also previously been director of production for Funny or Die. Her work on “Billy on the Street,” starring comedian Billy Eichner, earned her three Emmy Award nominations, as well as a PGA Award nomination, all before she turned 30.
Abby Miller, BA 2003
Miller starred on the Apple TV+ original series “Home Before Dark.” Prior to this, she appeared as a series regular on “The Sinner,” where she played Officer Caitlin Sullivan opposite Bill Pullman. Her turn as Charles Manson follower Mary Brunner on “Aquarius” came on the heels of her dynamic turn as Ellen May on the FX original series “Justified.” She also recurred as Emily Greenstreet on “The Magicians.” Her other TV credits include “Imposters,” “Station 19,” “Snowfall,” “The Real O’Neal’s,” “The Catch,” “Grey’s Anatomy,” Law and Order SVU” and “Mad Men.”
Katie Williams, BFA 2012
Katie Williams works in the visual effects industry as a digital paint supervisor at Industrial Light & Magic’s Vancouver studio. ILM has been a mainstay in VFX for the last 49 years, receiving numerous Academy Awards, Emmys, BAFTAs, VES Awards, and Academy Sci-Tech Awards. Since joining ILM in 2019, Williams has contributed to over 35 film and television productions including “Star Wars: Episode IX,” “Black Widow,” “The Irishman,” and “The Mandalorian.” Williams advanced to a lead artist role in 2021 and later became a department supervisor in 2022. As a digital paint supervisor, she manages a team of artists across film, television, and commercial projects.
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