Spencer Nilsen is the new president/creative director for Expression College for Digital Arts, an accredited college that prepares students for careers in entertainment production and technology. Nilsen has been part of the Expression family since the school was founded in 1999 and has more than 30 years of experience in the fields of music, games, film, television and education.
Nilsen will implement and execute a roadmap for strategic growth and a detailed creative education vision. He will work with the senior management staff to maintain objectives in the areas of campus expansion, marketing, curricula design, innovative development and delivery of courses, industry partnerships and student satisfaction.
"Spencer is an exceptional leader, and we are excited to have such a strong president to lead Expression toward a new level of creative impact," said Eckart Wintzen, chairman of the board of directors for Expression College. "I'm proud of what we have accomplished in the last seven years and I'm tremendously optimistic about what Expression will accomplish in the future under Spencers leadership."
Nilsen held several director-level positions at Expression, including program director of Common Core and course director of Media Sound and Visual, one of the first classes every student takes where they learn to script, produce, shoot and edit a short digital film.
Early in his career, Nilsen did a stint in the concert industry, working with his mentor, famed artist manager/promoter Bill Silva, on productions with bands, including Aerosmith, The Clash, The Who, Tom Petty, The Police and U2. He formed a production company, AdVenture Communications, with world-renowned lighting director and cinematographer, Bill Holshevnikoff. At AdVenture, Nilsen helped produce, direct and score dozens of television shows, commercials and music videos. In 1989, he was signed by American Gramaphone Records, where he released his critically-acclaimed album, ARCHITECTS OF CHANGE.
In 1992, Nilsen joined videogame giant, SEGA, where he headed the music department and composed the soundtracks to such hits as SONIC THE HEDGEHOG CD, BATMAN RETURNS, ECCO THE DOLPHIN, SPIDER-MAN and many others. Besides scoring hundreds of games, commercials, television shows and films, Nilsen has also produced and engineered album projects for other artists.
Im still very much a student of life, and every creative project teaches me something important about being an artist and a human being, said Nilsen. In January 2006, he won a silver medal at the Park City Film Music Festival for his original score to the independent feature film, NO RETURN, written and directed by award-winning filmmaker Tom Sylla, who happens to be among the teaching staff at Expression.
Founded in 1999, Expression (www.expression.edu) is a unique training ground for animators, visual effects artists, recording engineers, producers and designers. Emeryville, California-based Expression teaches and grants Bachelor degrees in three programs: sound arts; digital visual media (including animation, 3D modeling and visual effects); and digital graphic design. Utilizing the concept of Total Immersion as its teaching philosophy, students live and learn in the digital arts and new media culture for approximately 2.5 years. Every five weeks a new class starts, and each class is limited to a small number of students to insure the best professional training and hands-on learning. The student to computer ratio is one to one.
Expressions close ties to top industry professionals provide students with real-world client projects, mentorship and internship opportunities and a top-rated career development track that has resulted in an exceptionally high placement rate for graduates, and other art and high technology centers around the world. Expression College is accredited by the Accrediting Commission for Career Schools and Colleges of Technology, (ACCSCT).
