Antonio Ayala

From making budget proposals to the Mayor of San Francisco at sixteen years old, to starting his Video Production Company at twenty-one, Antonio is one passionate young producer. Antonio is a Northern California Emmy Award Winning Producer for his Spanish Video Content with The San Francisco Giants Baseball Organization, targeting the Hispanic/Latinx Community. Through his production company, Vanishing Pictures, Antonio produces online video content, commercials and now independent features.  

What drew you to the MA Arts Politics program?

A natural born activist, Antonio had an interest in politics at a very young age. After years of interning in local San Francisco politics, Antonio craved a creative outlet of some kind until he fell in love with video production in high Sschool. After becoming a producer of online content, he grew a desire to have more intentionality and intellectual rigor behind the work he'd produced. The Arts Politics program was a perfect fit that married his passion for politics & activism with his love for video & film.  

How do you describe or identify your practice/ work?

I'm a producer of video, film & television. From short documentaries to full length narrative features, all of my work goes beyond mere entertainment with some kind of underlining social, political, or cultural message embedded within the story.

How did your experience in the program shape your work?

The Arts Politics program helped me become a better artist by not only giving me the knowledge that any great producer should have about the production process; but more importantly, helping me discover the important themes and values that lie at the heart of all of the stories that I create today.

What are some of the challenges and/or rewards of this program?

This program will challenge you in ways that you've never experienced in traditional educational institutions before. The greatest reward I found was the diversity of Tisch classes. The program does a great job of laying the foundation of art & activism through core classes while leaving enough room for you to shape your own individual experience by choosing electives from across Tisch School of the Arts. The individual attention that each member of the faculty gives to the cohort is also a unique part of this program.

What are you doing now?

Producing my first independent feature film in Oakland, CA: Sonny Boy (2020).