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Alumni: Profiles and Master of Arts Thesis Projects
Profiles
Meet Justin Bell, Master of Divinity in Worship, Theology and the Arts '06.
Justin completed his Master of Divinity in Worship, Theology and the Arts at Fuller Seminary in 2006. During his time at Fuller, Justin was heavily involved with the Brehm Center and the student art scene. Amongst other endeavors, he served as a producer of The City of the Angels Film Festival, assistant director of the Reel Spirituality Institute, and the chair of the Student Arts Concerns Committee.
While at Fuller, Justin not only explored and study the theological and cultural implications of film, but he also had the opportunity to delve into the artistic and business side of the film industry. These cinematic opportunities at Fuller helped him gain acceptance into the prestigious Peter Stark Producing Program at the University of Southern California where he recently completed his Master of Fine Arts. While at USC, he received the Peter Stark Filmmaker Award for writing/producing "A Love of Mime Own" - a romantic comedy about a mime and a clown who fall in love. He also was awarded a USC Special Project Grant for producing "Second Best" - a dramedy that finds a family unraveling during their annual visit to Hindi Culture Camp.
Currently, Justin is Director of Development for Academy Award-winning producer Edward Saxon (Silence of the Lambs, Philadelphia, Adaptation) whom he interned for while at USC. Now working full-time for the company (Edward Saxon Productions), his primary job is to oversee the development of Saxon's current projects - working with writers on their drafts, researching, helping Ed attach talent and attracting financing and studios. "Working with Ed has been a huge learning curve. He's one of the most creative and inquisitive people I've ever met. I think he hired me, in part, because he saw storytelling potential in my seminary experience. So I try to bring my theology and art training/perspective to everything we do. I'm grateful that Ed allows me the space to explore that."
Most recently, Justin helped Edward Saxon produce Away We Go, a Focus Features comedy directed by Sam Mendes (American Beauty) and starring John Krasinski (The Office) and Maya Rudolph (Saturday Night Live). The screenplay was written by popular hipster novelists, Vendela Vida (Let the Northern Lights Erase Your Name) and Dave Eggers (A Heartbreaking Work of a Staggering Genius). Singer-songwriter, Alexi Murdoch's (Orange Sky) beautiful soundtrack provides added weight and poignancy to many memorable scenes. Away We Go is set to release in New York and LA on June 5 and will have a national release in the weeks that follow.
Speaking of his time at Fuller Justin says, "From the moment I stepped on campus, the seminary wholeheartedly supported me in my dream to produce films. I thought maybe that would stop after I graduated almost 3 years ago. But Fuller and the Brehm Center continue to be a source of encouragement to me. When times get lonely in Hollywood, I often look to my Fuller friends and mentors for strength and guidance."
GB Balint
After 22 lovely years in Atlanta, Georgia, and earning a Bachelor's degree in Voice Performance with minors in piano and theatre, GB made the cross-country move to California and has loved every minute. She has served multiple churches in various capacities, including assistant drama director, stage manager, choir director, pianist, and worship leader, both in Georgia and California. She absolutely adores California, and now that she is done with her degree at Fuller, she plans to pursue acting and modeling while keeping a hand in church ministry. She is grateful for the fabulous professors she had the privilege to study under while at Fuller, and is excited about putting ideas and theories that she has learned into practice. She is currently a member at Lake Avenue Church in Pasadena, where she is involved with the children's music ministries. Soli Deo Gloria!
Scott Blasco
Scott Blasco composes music for a variety of settings and purposes. Primarily concerned with concert music, his compositions have been met with enthusiasm by performers and listeners alike. Scott's music is often characterized by complex rhythms, dense counterpoint and colorful harmonies, as well as a growing interest in incorporating a minimalist aesthetic and a desire to remain both technically excellent and popularly accessible. His training as a percussionist has led him to focus a good part of his energies on producing new works that showcase the marimba and other percussion instruments, and he has also remained intermittently active as a performer. Scott's background as a rock guitarist adds another diverse influence to his music, and he devotes considerable time to playing electric guitar in both concert and popular genres.Scott Blasco holds a Master of Music in Composition from Western Michigan University
Listen to a recording of his composition"Elegy" and other compositions here.
Katrina Heisterman
"I live and breathe art," says Katrina Hiesterman, who completed her Master of Arts in Theology, with an emphasis on pop culture and the visual arts in the Spring of 2007. "God has given artists creative hands to form beautiful pieces of artwork." It is this belief and conviction that spurred her desire to attend Fuller.
Katrina is passionate about the arts and interested in exploring the connection between spirituality and art. While at Fuller, her professors encouraged her to express this love of art and God, and embrace the crossover. Katrina worked hard at putting these concepts into practice within the Fuller community in various ways: For two consecutive years, she served, as the gallery curator/director for the spring student art exhibition on the Pasadena campus, and participated in the Fuller Arts Festival in Pasadena for all three years she attended Fuller, working with students, faculty, and staff artists to exhibit their artwork. "It (Arts Festival) brings the community together, and the arts are made known in this mainly academic environment," she says. "The arts are beautiful, influenced by the knowledge and creativity that God spurs in us."
As a long-term goal, Katrina hopes to pursue work that helps both Christians and non-Christians explore how art can enhance their spirituality and understand that "the God of the Bible is a creative, artistic God." She is currently serving as adjunct professor of Art History at the University of Montana.
Matt Webb
Over the past ten years Matt Webb has been a student, teacher, writer, director, producer, actor, missionary, husband, and father. Matt came to Fuller to learn more about how to integrate his faith and his art of filmmaking. Throughout the process, Matt has worked with other Los Angeles-based filmmakers to initiate a movement in filmmaking that places priority on people rather than profits.
Matt has written, directed, produced, and toured theatrical shows throughout the U.S. and Haiti. Since coming to Fuller he has written film reviews and study guides, performed and directed improvisational storytelling, and has produced alongside other up-and-coming filmmakers in Los Angeles. Matt just completed his masters degree in theology and film at Fuller Theological Seminary, co-wrote and co-directed the short film Weathered, starring Nicole Parker of Mad TV and Tony Hale of Arrested Development. Matt is completing his first feature screenplay Waking up Dead. Watch the trailer for Weathered here.
Master of Arts Thesis Projects
Colleen Yvonne Thomas - Eros in Motion
Artist's Statement: Music moves us. And it is my desire that it will move you tonight to meet the Divine. My thesis explores God's presence in expressions of romantic love as revealed through contemporary love songs by female pop/rock/soul artists. While engaging a theology of romantic love, I was led on a journey towards uncovering the meaning of Eros - one of the four primary loves in the Judeo-Christian tradition. A theological survey suggests that Eros includes a longing and a passionate desire that drives us human beings towards fulfillment in God and God's relational designs. And while Eros is not limited to expression in the form of romantic love, it is my position this evening that Eros is best expressed and understood in our human experience of romantic love relationships. Tonight's musical selections, from some of my favorite contemporary artists, explore Eros in this sense, and suggest that while the human experience of romantic love can be flawed, this love moves us towards a deeper understanding of the Divine and ultimately of our own selves.
Jason M. Ippolito - THREEOLDBRITS
With a natural bend toward entertaining others and storytelling, Ippolito discovered a creative outlet through short films while in high school. After graduation, he studied mass communication at Rock Valley College with an emphasis in documentary film. He worked on several projects, including a feature length documentary on Coronado Theatre. Ippolito earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Film and Media Arts from Temple University, with a concentration in cinematography. Integrating faith and film inspired Ippolito to pursue a Masters of Arts in Theology from Fuller Seminary. In addition to his formal education Ippolito has worked in television, sports, commercials, music videos, documentary and short films.
New opportunities tend to be introduced when we are not looking...
Scott is ready to plunge into marriage with his "perfect" girlfriend when a simple encounter at the bar becomes a chance at unknown potential. Will he stay on his predictable path to proposal? Who will he meet while he waits?
The pub is always full of interesting people... keep a seat open for THREEOLDBRITS masters thesis film by Jason M Ippolito.
View THREEOLDBRITS
