Alumni

Since graduating from George Mason University, alum Alex Plank, BA Film and Video Studies ’10, has worked professionally on films and television series as an associate producer and actor. Plank is also an autism activist who works toward more authentic neurodiverse representation in media.

Carlehr Swanson (Bachelor of Music, 2019) was crowned Miss Virginia 2024 on June 29, 2024, just months after performing a preview concert or her upcoming EP on George Mason's Fairfax Campus.

Despite pursuing different degrees within the College of Visual and Performing Arts, each of these alumni found transformative connections during their Mason experience, impacting their outlook on the world as well as their creative futures.

Mason alum Jada Salter has created a feature-length documentary about her grandfather, award-winning composer and songwriter William (Bill) Salter. The film is called "Just the Two of Us" after his Grammy Award-winning hit song.

Two-time Mason alum Jamie VanValkenburg directed the Oakton High School Marching Band to victory in the inaugural Metallica marching band competition “For Whom the Band Tolls!”

Icons of Fashion is a  209 foot long, 7 foot tall mural at Tysons Corner Center.

George Mason University’s College of Visual and Performing Arts (CVPA) is pleased to announce the recipients of the fifth round of its Young Alumni Commissioning Project Awards. Two alumni were chosen based on the artistic excellence, career impact, and feasibility of their proposals and will receive financial, marketing, and production support to have their projects presented at a Mason Arts venue during the 2024–2025 season.

Andrew Opitz first came to George Mason University as a freshman over a decade ago. After taking a hiatus from school, he graduated from the Film and Video Studies (FAVS) Program in May 2023. Opitz’s film, Jazz, which he directed for his senior capstone, was a semi-finalist in the Student Academy Awards Alternative/Experimental category.

“The Road to the End,” a play written and performed by the School of Theater's alumni and students, won Best Drama in an audience vote at the recent Capital Fringe festival.

Kyle Finnegan’s short documentary film “MSG: Mysterious Savory Grains” was partially funded by Mason’s Young Alumni Commissioning Project (YACP) and was recently screened at the Johnson Center Cinema.