Otis College Announces Animation Senior Lauren Cuenca as 2025 Valedictorian

“Lauren is a remarkable interdisciplinary storyteller whose creative voice is matched by her technical fluency and sense of purpose,” says Animation Chair Ron Bernard.

Otis College has announced that Lauren Cuenca, a senior majoring in Animation with a minor in Creative Writing, is the Valedictorian for the Class of 2025. Lauren will deliver the valedictory address at the College’s Commencement ceremony on Sunday, May 11, 2025 at the Marsee Auditorium at El Camino College. The commencement ceremony culminates the 2025 O-Launch Exhibition Weekend, during which graduating students across Otis College’s BFA and MFA programs in Animation, Environmental Design, Fashion Design, Fine Arts, Game and Entertainment Design, Graphic Design, Illustration, Product Design, and Toy Design are on hand to discuss their work, which is displayed in galleries, showrooms, interactive displays, and digital presentations across campus. 

In addition to Lauren’s valedictory speech, commencement guests will hear remarks from this year’s honorary doctorate recipient, Ann Philbin, who recently retired as the director of the Hammer Museum at UCLA in late 2024 and is currently a board member of the Foundation for Arts Initiatives (FfAI) and The Helen Frankenthaler Foundation. Philbin was the director of the Hammer from 1999 to 2025.

Future Storyboard Artist

The Valedictory Award is bestowed annually on the senior class member who represents the pinnacle of academic excellence at the College. Lauren was chosen for her stellar academic performance throughout her Otis College career and the exceptional quality of her work. Born and raised in Los Angeles, her path to Otis College was sparked by a visit to National Portfolio Day, which was hosted on campus—a moment that offered not only a tangible connection to the College but also to the city she calls home. 

“I was very lucky to have grown up around art and to have parents who were so supportive of my interest in the arts,” Lauren says. “They would take my brother and me to museums all the time growing up, and even when we go places now, they’re always down to go visit an art museum with me. My parents, for as long as I can remember, have been very passionate about learning and exchanging ideas.”  

Lauren’s parents also exposed her to a variety of film and television, including DVDs that often had extras and behind-the-scenes clips. “It was actually the DVD extras of Disney’s Princess and the Frog that introduced me to storyboarding and preproduction,” she says. “I’ve been interested in the behind the scenes of animation since I was a kid, but my portfolio coming into Otis was very illustration-oriented. I still had this drive for storytelling that I wanted to expand on. When I came to Otis I was stuck between Illustration and Animation, but after talking to upper classmates, I felt that Animation was where my passion for storytelling could shine most, especially when paired with a minor in Creative Writing.”

Drawn by proximity to family and the promise of independence, Lauren found the structure and philosophy of Otis’ Foundation year to be a perfect match, especially while navigating her early interests in both illustration and storyboarding. “My favorite projects have been ones I could overlap between classes. I appreciated the opportunities I got to expand the worlds that I created,” she says. “In one class, I would write a script, in the other, I would make storyboards for it, and in another, I would animate one of the characters from that same world. StarMart, one of my senior projects, originated as my Creative Writing Capstone. Later, I used those same characters to write a script for an elective class, and again for an animation project. This project as a whole definitely helped me better understand my creative process and gave me an idea of how I should start personal projects moving forward.”

Lauren credits her instructors at Otis with helping her hone her skills and goals for life after Otis, which includes working on an animated series as a storyboard artist and seeing her name in the credits of an animation production. “Chris Roberston, Ursula Burton, Ida Lasic, Miguel Reyes, Chan Koak, Rachel Roske, Jay Bhaumik, Badly Licked Bear, and so many others have been stand-outs in my education,” she says. “They’ve all helped me fine-tune my skills and address places for improvement in my work that I wouldn’t have otherwise seen, and helped me understand what to expect in the months and years following graduation.”

As a storyboard artist, Lauren has honed her gesture work and cinematic instincts through rigorous life drawing, pushing the limits of movement and camera to bring scenes to life. Her work is deeply influenced by everyday encounters—from working retail to studying among peers—infused with the desire to make stories feel real, relatable, and resonant.

In the words of Animation Chair Ron Bernard, “Lauren is a remarkable student and interdisciplinary storyteller whose creative voice is matched by her technical fluency and deep sense of purpose. StarMart transforms her Creative Writing Capstone into a vivid narrative experience, demonstrating a rare ability to synthesize writing and visual storytelling into emotionally resonant work. Whether assisting in complex courses like Advanced Animation and Gesture Drawing, or leading within organizations like Women in Animation and the Storyboard Club, Lauren exemplifies the generosity, rigor, and curiosity we value most. Her contributions, including her role in the Barbie Charity Zine supporting the Astraea Lesbian Foundation for Justice, reflect a balanced and powerful practice—one rooted in artistry, advocacy, and collaborative spirit.”

Lauren says finding out she was named valedictorian was surreal. “I was stuck between ‘Oh wow! I’m the valedictorian!’ and ‘Oh no, I have to make sure I write a good speech’…,” she says. As for some advice she’d like to bestow on the Class of 2025? “Take a step back and take a breather. It’s definitely easy to get discouraged by the state of the world and, for my classmates, the animation industry right now. I encourage everyone to keep doing their best and to keep doing what they love because you never know when something will come your way.” 

After her four years at Otis, Lauren also has a lot of advice for the students coming up in the ranks at the College. “There’s so much I want to say!,” she exclaims. “Try new things! There are so many labs at Otis that are waiting to be taken advantage of. Talk to your counselor, talk to your classmates, and talk to your professors! Make sure you’re taking the classes that will best support your goals. Make friends outside of your major and discipline and make friends outside of Otis. It’s easy to get stuck in this rigorous creative mindset when everyone around you is also stuck there, so having people on the outside is a great way to ground yourself. Whatever you want to specialize in, study it as much as you can. And for my fellow animation students, watch animated and live-action films. Seeing what work is successful or unsuccessful from your field helps you develop an understanding of it and trains your eye to see what works or doesn’t work in your own projects.” 

Academic Excellence Awards

In addition to the valedictory award, Otis College also recently announced the 2025 Academic Excellence Award recipients, who will be recognized during the commencement ceremony and will wear a special purple cord with their graduation robes. This award is the highest honor given to graduating students in a major by program leaders and faculty. Criteria include a cumulative GPA of 3.5 or higher (for undergraduates), quality of work, personal character, and contributions to Otis College and the larger community.

The 2025 Academic Excellence Award recipients are:

• Eulmin Park, Graphic Design
• Ashley Trail, Illustration
• Lauren Cuenca, Digital Media with an emphasis in Animation
• Leon Figueiredo, Digital Media with an emphasis in Game and Entertainment Design 
• Minsuk Kang, Digital Media with an emphasis in Motion Design
• Agustin Ramirez, Environmental Design
• Erin Bond, Fashion Design
• Cassidy Everage, Fine Arts with an emphasis in Painting
• Jacob Barri, Fine Arts with an emphasis in Photography
• Santoni Kina, Fine Arts with an emphasis in Sculpture/New Genres
• Bona Nguyen, Product Design 
• Kayla Krawiec, Toy Design
• Jessica Wilcox, MFA Fine Arts
• Darah Haimovitz, MFA Graphic Design

To see more work by Lauren, the Academic Achievement Award recipients, and graduating students across Otis College’s BFA and MFA programs, visit the Virtual Annual Exhibition website.

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