CalArts
16
Donnie and Joe Smith: Fostering Jazz Talent Music industry veteran and longtime Trustee Joe Smith and his wife Donnie endowed The Joe and Donnie Smith Scholarship, an annual award given to students in the Jazz Program. Joe has been the driving force behind the CalArts Jazz cd, a recording of original works by CalArts students made each year since 1990. The recording sessions take place at the legendary Capitol Studios, located in the historic “stack of wax” tower in Hollywood. Taking part in this annual recording represents a special distinction for the Institute’s jazz players.
The Annenberg Foundation: Investing in Youth Arts Leadership
Pixar veteran Joe Ranft was respected as one of the top storyboard artists in the animation industry. He also voiced many of Pixar’s most memorable characters.
Joe Ranft Alumni Scholarship Fund: Sustaining Theater and Animation Established in 2005 by CalArts Trustee and Alumni Association President David Bossert (Film/Video bfa 83) and his wife, Nancy (Art bfa 83), the Joe Ranft Alumni Scholarship Fund honors the memory of the late CalArts alumnus Joe Ranft (Film/Video bfa 80), a storyboard artist and story supervisor for 25 years, who later served as the first head of story at Pixar. This endowment provides scholarship resources for CalArts students studying theater or animation.
above: Capitol Studios hosts the recording sessions for the annual CalArts Jazz cd. below: Glenna Avila, the Wallis Annenberg Director of cap
The Annenberg Foundation endowed the position of Wallis Annenberg Director of the Community Arts Partnership (cap). Glenna Avila, who had led CalArts’ innovative youth arts education program since its founding in 1990, is appointed to this post. The foundation made additional contributions to cap in operating support. cap, which has provided arts training to more than 200,000 youth over the past two decades, has been recognized nationally with accolades such as the Coming Up Taller Award, the highest honor in the United States for youth arts and humanities programs. The private family foundation also supports redcat and issued a three-year grant to the CalArts School of Critical Studies to fund an annual experimental writing conference and a series of mfa Writing Program workshops.
“I’m happy to support all of these endeavors,” said Su Ranft, Joe’s widow. “I believe, as Joe did, that the arts, for many people, are their future. Joe firmly believed that art was essential for the soul.”
Peter Norton Family Foundation General operating support for CalArts Donnie and Joe Smith Scholarships for The Herb Alpert School of Music at CalArts Mrs. and Mrs. Jon B. Lovelace Support for redcat programming
Hollywood Foreign Press Association Scholarship support for the School of Film/Video and support for Film/Video
Naomi Koch Estess
The Fletcher Jones Foundation Support for CalArts technology
Mrs. and Mrs. Jon B. Lovelace Endowed gift in support of presidential special initiatives
California Community Foundation Support for redcat programming Mrs. and Mrs. Jon B. Lovelace Support for three faculty chairs
Roy E. Disney Family and Foundation General operating support for CalArts Resnick Family Foundation, Inc. cap scholarship support