Brian is an accomplished animator, two-time Telly award-winner and Grammy-nominee, a published animation author and teacher, and a visual artist (group exhibitions at Exit Art, MoMA PS1 and Nexus Contemporary Art Center, GA; art work in the collection of MoMA’s PAD/D Archive and C.W. Post L.I.U., Art Therapy Collection). He has presented internationally and nationally, including the plenary speech at the American Art Therapy Association (AATA) conference in 2009. Brian was the inaugural chair of AATA’s Technology Committee.

After getting his BFA in Painting, Brian Austin spent two decades animating, co-creating (and trying to sell) an original cartoon series, building furniture, skateboarding, playing Capoeira Angola, and of course, painting. Brian returned to the School of Visual Arts for his Masters in Art Therapy. The idea for TAP came to life during his thesis work with adolescents in foster care. More accurately, it was the youth coming to life in the room while making their first animation that lit Brian’s fire.

Brian has always liked Krazy Kat. He loves the drawing style and the character Ignatz who likes to throw bricks. Plus it's a love story!

Hi, my name is Chloe Schaeffer! I recently graduated with my Masters in Creative Arts Therapy and Creativity Development at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, NY in the Spring of 2024. During my time as an undergraduate at Penn State University I received my BFA focusing on sculpture and psychology. I am excited to be working with The Animation Project again! I was an intern at TAP during 2022 and 2023 and loved being a part of TAP’s mission. The authenticity of the staff, participants, and stories allow the experience to feel like everyone is coming together as a community and building creativity, exploring innovation, and existing in a space where their voices are heard. I am thrilled to be welcomed back into the space as a creative arts therapist! Alongside of TAP, I also work at Mount Sinai Kravis Children’s Hospital as a creative arts therapist, focusing on children and families affected by cancer and blood diseases. I am also a virtual therapist for Charlie Health, whose mission is to connect the world with life-saving mental health treatment. A fun fact about me is that I was a cheerleader for the Nittany Lions during my time at Penn State!

My favorite superhero is SuperWoman. The reasoning behind this stems from my mom! My mother is one of the strongest, most resilient people I know. I would always admire my mother growing up and my family would call her SuperWoman!

Danielle Newmark, MA, LCAT-P, is a professional actor and Drama Therapist. What drew Danielle to a creative, therapeutic environment has been her work with incarcerated individuals. From her actor training, to collaborating in therapeutic theatre, she continued to find that creative expression correlated with a healthy body-mind. Danielle loves how drama therapy explores the roles we play in life and the stories we tell ourselves (including the roles others ask us to play in life, and the stories others tell us about ourselves). She hopes for her spaces to feel collaborative, connective, and safe-enough to sit in discomfort, explore, and create. Danielle first became affiliated with TAP when she spent the summer of 2022 interning for their Summer Program, co-facilitating workshops about career readiness. She felt moved by the brilliance and talent of the TAP participants. Two years later Danielle has officially joined the team and is honored to continue learning and growing alongside its staff and participants. When Danielle isn’t at a TAP related activity, you can find her singing old show tunes loudly in her apartment.

Danielle's idea of superhero roles are: "the one who cares," "the one who sees others the way they want to be seen," and "the disrupter."

Hi, my name is Kelly! I studied 2D Animation and I am now bringing the magic to TAP as an Art Therapy Intern. My favorite shows are Avatar: The Last Airbender, Hunter x Hunter and Arcane. I also love the movies Howl's Moving Castle and Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron. Storytelling is an amazing way to share stories, whether it's close to your heart or your wildest imagination. Animation is a way to combine both stories and visuals that is so powerful, and I believe everyone can share their stories.

If I was a superhero, I would want the ability to teleport! I would also love to create portals so others can travel with me.

Kora Gozdziak is an enthusiastic animator and artist with a passion for connecting with others through storytelling, and a strong belief in the power of creative outlets to foster growth, hope, and change. He brings his experience with animation and various crafty art forms to the team, hoping to expand participants' knowledge of not only the technical elements of animation and story, but also broadening their understanding of themselves as artmaking individuals and what that can look like. The work that TAP does to connect with those young people who may be lacking support for their development in whatever aspirations they have, artistic or otherwise, speaks to his enthusiasm for mutual aid and community building.

His favorite (non-traditional) superhero is Nancy Thompson, the final girl of a Nightmare on Elm Street. The defiant and creative attitude Nancy takes in the face of a bizarre danger, as well as her care for her friends and other survivors, is inspiring.

Natasha Amendolara, MA, LCAT, RDT, has over a decade of experience working as a creative arts therapist in educational, clinical and social services settings. She also holds a certification in Contemplative Psychotherapy and values the use of meditation and mindfulness as powerful therapeutic tools. Over the course of her career, Natasha has worked with children and adolescents, families in crisis, adults living with acute mental health issues and substance-dependent individuals. In her role as Associate Executive Director, she is constantly inspired by TAP’s young creatives and incredibly passionate team. In her free time, Natasha gains inspiration from travel, live theater and spending whatever time she can being immersed in nature.

Natasha’s favorite superhero is Buffy the Vampire Slayer (the movie version, of course). Buffy takes on her hero fate with a fierce determination and inner strength that enables her to withstand any challenge. Her empathy, strong moral compass and endless well of witty one-liners have always been an inspiration.

Sahara Sheikh is a 2D Animator with a BFA in Animation from Pratt Institute. Her love of Animation stems from the endless possibilities that produce a freeing environment for self-discovery. She is passionate about storytelling and its ability to give people power and ownership of their narrative. She believes sharing stories told by underrepresented individuals can lead to a change in the world of the storyteller and the audience. Ever since July 2024, Sahara has been assisting in sharing young artists' stories and hopes to continue to make Animation more accessible and enjoyable with the young talented Artists at TAP.

Saharas’s favorite superhero is Jem from Jem and the Holograms! She may not be your textbook superhero, but her ability to make dazzling holograms, perform amazing songs, and wear outrageous outfits made Sahara feel seen in Animation.

Stef Syfert, MPS, ATR-BC, LCAT, believes that creative expression and storytelling is the gateway to growth, healing, self-love, and community building. Stef first connected with TAP in 2008 when Brian Austin guest lectured one of her graduate courses at SVA and spoke about the power of tech-based art making with adolescents. 10 years later, Stef joined the TAP team and has loved connecting with, supporting, and learning from the talented young people of the TAP collective ever since. Their stories hold unique power and meaning.

Stef's favorite superhero is Leeloo from The Fifth Element because she is a wonderful blend of vulnerability and strength, innocence and badassery, and at her core, she just wants to love and be loved.

As a Commercial Relationship / Lending Manager II at TD Bank, Jose is responsible for managing account portfolios consisting of deposits, loans, fees and expenses for Small Business and Commercial Clients. He is a Money Out Champion for Downtown Manhattan, focusing on mentoring his employees and colleagues on how to provide lending needs for the customers that they service. Aside from his expertise in lending, he is a part of Manhattan's BNI, chapter 52, in which he consistently networks with individuals in various professions and provides solutions for any and all banking needs.

José holds a B.S. in Business and Administration from New York Saint Joseph’s College.

Before joining the TD bank team, Jose held the position of Branch Manager, VP for Citibank.

José is inspired by his favorite superhero, Iron Man, and his perseverance, ability to overcome adversity and his willingness to put those who he loves and believes in above all else. Despite the world's havoc, Mr. Tony Stark has stood true to his beliefs even when the world didn’t comprehend his vision for the world.

Frank is President and CEO of TradeMas Inc.

In addition to being the Founder and Executive Director of The Animation Project, Brian is an accomplished animator, two-time Telly award-winner and Grammy-nominee, a published animation author and teacher, and a visual artist (group exhibitions at Exit Art, MoMA PS1 and Nexus Contemporary Art Center, GA; art work in the collection of MoMA’s PAD/D Archive and C.W. Post L.I.U., Art Therapy Collection). He has presented internationally and nationally, including the plenary speech at the American Art Therapy Association (AATA) conference in 2009. Brian was the inaugural chair of AATA’s Technology Committee.

After getting his BFA in Painting, Brian Austin spent two decades animating, co-creating (and trying to sell) an original cartoon series, building furniture, skateboarding, playing Capoeira Angola, and of course, painting. Brian returned to the School of Visual Arts for his Masters in Art Therapy. The idea for TAP came to life during his thesis work with adolescents in foster care. More accurately, it was the youth coming to life in the room while making their first animation that lit Brian’s fire.

Brian has always liked Krazy Kat. He loves the drawing style and the character Ignatz who likes to throw bricks. Plus it's a love story!

Larry is Endeavour Capital Advisors Co-Founder, Chairman & Portfolio Manager. He co-founded Endeavour Capital Advisors Inc. in 1994. From 1987 to 1993, Larry was a senior institutional research salesman at Adams, Cohen Securities Inc., a boutique investment banking firm focused on the U.S. banking and thrift industries. Prior to Adams Cohen, Larry was at Merrill, Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith, Inc. from 1981 to 1986. He received a BA from the State University of New York at Albany. Larry is a founding board member of The Animation Project and a member of The Economic Club of New York.

Lauren is an attorney at Dentons US LLP and is a member of the firm’s Restructuring, Insolvency and Bankruptcy practice group. She represents clients in and out of court in stressed, distressed, workout, insolvency and bankruptcy situations. Lauren has experience representing debtors, creditors, creditors' committees and other parties in interest in chapter 11 reorganizations and chapter 7 liquidations.

Lauren served as a law clerk to the Honorable Novalyn L. Winfield, United States Bankruptcy Judge for the District of New Jersey. She is a graduate of Rutgers School of Law and Boston University.

Lauren loves Shrek - She loves how it flips the traditional Disney love story on its head. A good reminder that we shouldn’t be too quick to judge people simply by what we see. 

Matt has worked as an animator in the feature film industry for over 17 years. After studying Computer Animation at Savannah College of Art and Design, he went on to work for a number of studios including Sony Pictures Imageworks, Dreamworks, and Blue Sky Studios. Some of the films on which he's animated include Open Season, Surf's Up, Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, I Am Legend, Puss In Boots, Ice Age 4 and 5, Rio 2, Peanuts, Ferdinand, and Spies in Disguise. In addition to his animation work, Matt has served as a voice actor on Open Season 3 and Spies in Disguise. Most recently, Matt has directed a short film with Blue Sky Studios set to be released on Disney+ early 2022.

Matt's all time favorite animated character is Shere Khan from the Jungle Book. In his opinion, no villain in animation history is as intimidating and charming. Not to mention, the animation is master level.