UCF CREATE: Innovation in Motion

Summer Animation Intensives

CREATE conducts four Pre-College Summer Animation Intensives, each spanning two weeks. High school students from across the country participate in daily instruction led by UCF faculty specializing in 2D and 3D animation. Students are placed into production cohorts where they collaboratively create short, animated films using industryleading animation software.

Virtual Reality & Immersive Experiences

Immerse, Rehearse, and Perform (VR Experience): We were honored to receive a 2025–2026 Pabst Steinmetz Foundation Arts & Wellness Innovation Award for our VR public speaking project, designed to help individuals build confidence by practicing presentations in simulated environments. In alignment with UCF’s current and future initiatives, this work continues to explore new ways to integrate creative practice with emerging technologies, expanding the potential of immersive media in education, training, and personal development.

Starbursts (VR Experience): Dr. Stella Sung’s composition Starbursts was commissioned by the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra in 2023. Animator Genesis Laboy has created an accompanying VR experience that uses imagery from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope and the James Webb Space Telescope, guiding viewers on an immersive journey through the cosmos.

Stella Sung is director of the Center for Research and Education in Arts, Technology, and Entertainment (CREATE) at the University of Central Florida, College of Arts and Humanities. She is a Pegasus Professor and Endowed Trustees Chair Professor and is an award-winning composer and faculty in the UCF School of Visual Arts and Design.

Stella Sung is director of the Center for Research and Education in Arts, Technology, and Entertainment (CREATE) at the University of Central Florida, College of Arts and Humanities. She is a Pegasus Professor and Endowed Trustees Chair Professor and is an award-winning composer and faculty in the UCF School of Visual Arts and Design.

Ron Hargrove is an Orlando-based digital storyteller and animator. He’s currently a CREATE Research Animation Instructor at the University of Central Florida where he teaches 2-D and 3-D animation. His personal works are inspired by his four children and the valuable lessons they can find therein. With his current work focusing on narrated rhyme working in concert with the expressive animated characters, Ron is driven by an unwavering dedication to communicate with children through message, movement and melody as he strives to produce the highest quality of visual story.

Tiffany Marin, MFA (University of Central Florida), is a Program Coordinator and an animation instructor for UCF CREATE. She has previously taught 2D animation to undergraduate students in the School of Visual Arts & Design’s BFA Emerging Media: Animation and Visualization track.