Designing a Better Future One Character at a Time
Creative Art Works Offers Two Workforce Development Programs that Encourage NYC High School Students to Envision Better Futures for The World and Themselves
"The New King" by Rafiu Moynul. This character uses his magical talking sword to defend the rainforest from all who would try to destroy it.
“Transcend is a venture firm that supports creators like yourselves to help bring their ideas to life and to make gamers around the world happy and delighted with the games that we produce. That means we’re looking for people that have a passion to bring something to life, and the commitment, the work ethic, and the drive to do it.”
“Casper” by Ayana Badeeva. Stranded in a magical forest, Casper must help the local villagers defeat an evil dragon, and decipher a cryptic secret code delivered by a mysterious raven.
"Bally" By Nathaniel Yohanes. When Bally notices that car wheels are made of triangles, causing constant accidents, he invents the circular wheel, saves the roads, and finally wins the world’s praise.
The video game industry is a serious business. With estimated earnings of between $180 and $200 billion annually, video game production is nearly four times more profitable than the film and music industries combined. Just like any highly competitive field, video game companies require teams of passionate, creative, talented, and dedicated individuals.
At Creative Art Works, we are invested in developing young people to meet the challenges of the modern workforce, whether they ultimately choose to pursue a creative career or not. Our Character Design and Advanced Illustration & Worldbuilding Programs are paid internships offered at four NYC Career and Technical Education (CTE) High Schools. We treat our interns as if they are in a real-world job, and we expect them to treat the position seriously as well.
CAW Teaching Artists provided four hours per week of in-person instruction over the course of fourteen weeks. In addition, industry professionals critiqued youth work and provided creative and career advice. The program nurtured skills that are transferable to any job, such as collaboration, meeting deadlines, active listening and persuasive speaking, and presenting ideas in a professional manner.
Expression Sheet for “Jake” by Darwin Rondon. Jake defends his community from the ravages of war.
Working alone or in groups, interns are challenged to create their own fully-realized characters with backstories, personality traits, and strengths and weaknesses. Teaching Artists encourage interns to add further depth and complexity to their characters and their worlds as the program goes on. Achieving this goal is part art and part organization.
CAW Intern Darwin Rondon said, “We basically had to come out of our comfort zones. We had to manage our time, and not overwork ourselves, and make plans to meet our deadlines, so we could put everything into our character designs and not end up with one big mess that no one wants to see.”
To help connect creativity with real-world issues, this year’s curriculum suggested three themes, derived from the Games for Change design competition, to help interns shape their creative vision: Own the Road, All in for Nature: Reefs & Rainforests, and Outgrow Hunger.
"Vespera" by Leona Quiah. Once the guardian of a hidden volcanic kingdom, Vespera struggles to control her explosive anger. Cold but protective, she fights for redemption, terrified of becoming the monster she once tried to destroy.
“The Games for Change theme that we chose was “All in for Nature.” We took the four elements – fire, water, air, and earth – and made a superhero and a villain for each. They fight each other to bring the earth back to a healthy balance. We wanted our project to show the audience if we make changes, and if we fight, we could save the planet and prevent climate change.”
Interns may take either one or both of the programs. In Character Design, the goal is to create analog characters and their stories; whereas in Advanced Illustration & World Building, not only are interns encouraged to dig deeper into narrative building and storytelling, they also take their analog drawings into the digital realm, using Adobe Suite and other open-source software to bring their characters to life in a fully realized fashion.
Interns were also tasked with honing their public speaking skills by presenting their work at a grand culminating event and award ceremony on Thursday, May 28, 2026. CAW Teaching Artists awarded superlatives to interns that ranged from “most growth achieved” to “most likely to become a character designer.”
A panel of guest judges from the fields of character design, animation, illustration, or video game design chose a winner and runner up for best character design at each school. Judges based their decision on four criteria: originality, visual design, character development, and presentation.
Finally, guest judge Andrew Sheppard, Managing Director of Transcend, sponsor of CAW’s 2026 Character Design and Advanced Illustration & World Building programs, was handed the difficult task of choosing an overall winner and runner up from the finalists from all four schools. Andrew said the task was both daunting and exciting.
Andrew said, “What I thought was really great about the work of the finalists was that I could see many elements of what Transcend looks for in great creators. It was so, so hard to reach a final decision – when I looked at my scorecard, it was really close.”
GRAND PRIZE RUNNER-UP
“Luna” by Emma Rivera
“This one was my closest emotional contender. The story made the rainforest theme feel personal through home, loss, and courage. I thought it was really powerful and well done.”
– Andrew Sheppard
GRAND PRIZE WINNER
“The New King” by Rafiu Moynul
“Rafiu's stood out because there is already a whole universe starting to form around the character: the rainforest guardian, the magical talking sword, the shifting mask expressions, and the idea of six weapons choosing six wielders. It felt original, readable, and expandable into a game, animation, or comic.”
– Andrew Sheppard
To see all the characters and read more about each design, check out the 2026 Transcend Character Design and Advanced Illustration & Worldbuilding web page.
Our 2026 Character Design programs are sponsored by:
Support for our Creative Workforce Development programs is provided by:
Milton & Sally Avery
Arts Foundation
Creative Art Works' programs are made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature. Creative Art Works' creative workforce development programs receive support from the Leroy Neiman and Janet Byrne Neiman Foundation, the Lily Auchincloss Foundation, the Milton & Sally Avery Arts Foundation, the Pinkerton Foundation, and the William Talbott Hillman Foundation. This program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.
Our People
Teaching Artists
Syr-Ivan Bennett, CAW Teaching Artist
Dani Coca, CAW Teaching Artist
Joey Jiménez, CAW Teaching Artist
Paul Varano, CAW Teaching Artist
Madeline De León, Program Coordinator & Substitute Teaching Artist
Kevin Claiborne, Program Manager
Work-Based Learning Coordinators
Carol Sun, Work-Based Learning Coordinator and CTE Leader
Manhattan Early College Academy for Marketing and Media Arts (MECA)
Francesca Moore & Danielle Palumbo
Urban Assembly Gateway School for Technology
Joyce Soberal Lopez, Work-Based Learning Director / School Counselor
Information Technology High School:
Thomas Poon, Work-Based Learning Coordinator
Chelsea CTE
Visiting Professionals
Marcy Pritchard
Vice President of Production New York, Titmouse
Marcy Pritchard is an esteemed children’s entertainment executive and production management veteran with over 25 years of experience in the animation industry. She currently serves as the Vice President of Production for the New York studio of Titmouse, the award-winning independent animation studio behind hits like Big Mouth, The Legend of Vox Machina, and Star Trek: Lower Decks. In this role, Marcy oversees day-to-day production operations, manages client relationships for New York-based projects, and leads the strategic growth, training, and expansion of the local production teams.
Hyesu Lee
Illustrator & Educator
Hyesu Lee is a dynamic New York-based illustrator and muralist celebrated for her warm, playful, and community-driven visual storytelling. Her distinct style focuses on capturing the joy of everyday life and fostering connections through public art. In addition to collaborating with a diverse range of international commercial clients and publications, Hyesu is a dedicated educator. She frequently shares her expertise as a guest speaker and mentor for youth art initiatives, including Creative Art Works' Character Design internship program. She operates her independent practice out of Brooklyn, New York.