CSU MAX at CSUN is a curated, full-day creative experience inspired by Adobe MAX and designed for the entire California State University community.
This flagship event brings together creative leaders, educators, and emerging talent for a day focused on real-world design and production workflows — including design, graphics, editing, motion, sound, collaborative pipelines, and the latest AI-assisted tools reshaping content creation.
While hosted at CSUN, all CSU campuses are welcome and encouraged to attend.
What You’ll Experience
The day kicks off with:
- Workflow demonstrations in Premiere Pro, After Effects, Lightroom, and beyond
- Panels and demonstrations on Turning Design into Motion, Ethical Generative AI in Content Production, and more
- Free Adobe testing toward professional certifications
- Direct engagement with Adobe leaders and product experts
- Connect with faculty and students from leading design and film programs
Afternoon Creative Park
The day continues outdoors with:
- Student work exhibits
- A mini creative job fair
- Résumé and portfolio reviews
- Industry-forward conversations, activations, and hands on engagement
Free food.
Swag giveaways.
Creative community energy.
Additional details, including confirmed speakers and venue information, will be shared with confirmed attendees in the coming weeks.
We look forward to welcoming you to CSU MAX at CSUN.
Bookmark the CSU MAX Event Page: Click Here
Trying to marry his passion for cars and cameras, AJ began shooting automotive videos with his high school friends. His work caught the attention of local car dealerships, and at age 22 he left his job at Apple to pursue filmmaking full-time. He founded Advent Films, and quickly became a trusted shooter for many of the world’s most prestigious brands including Ferrari, McLaren F1, Aston Martin, Red Bull, Riot Games, Amazon, and more.
Despite rejection from every film school he applied to, AJ was accepted into the DGA as one of the Guild’s youngest directors at age 27. Known for dynamic angles and an unforgiving attention to detail, AJ specializes in action-packed commercials featuring vehicle stunts, pyrotechnics, skydiving, and low-flying helicopters. Pretty much anything that freaks his parents out.
When he’s not working on movies or driving cars, AJ has also established himself as a veteran industry keynote speaker at TEDx, NAB, and AdobeMAX.
Dacia Sáenz is a multidisciplinary creative and storyteller whose career began in Austin, TX, where she worked in film and television with CNBC, PBS, and the Sundance Foundation. A skilled writer as well as a producer, she was published (under a pen name) in The Kicked Out Anthology, named one of the top books of 2011 by the LGBTQ Roundtable of the American Library Association.
In Seattle, she earned a Master’s in Digital Media from the University of Washington, premiered two short films at the Seattle International Film Festival (2012 & 2013), and won the Audience Choice Award at the Next Fifty Film Festival. Her storytelling practice expanded globally through multimedia projects in Thailand and El Salvador with the Seattle Globalist and the UW Center for Human Rights.
Now based in Texas, Dacia continues to create work rooted in community. She recently directed and edited an award-winning short documentary on the Uvalde Love Project, a NEA-supported initiative using art therapy and murals to catalyze healing after tragedy.
Dacia currently works at Adobe, where she brings her passion for user experience, motion design, and creative video tools into product development. Outside of work, she explores experimental animation and synthesizers with playful obsession.
Kelsey Slay is a multi-passionate designer, illustrator, and content creator based in Tennessee. From glittery cat collages to bold Halloween inspired illustrations, Kelsey’s work lives at the intersection of spooky and sweet, DIY arts and crafts nostalgia, and internet humor. Her creative journey took an unexpected turn when Adobe discovered her on TikTok and invited her to join the team as a Design Evangelist.
Now, Kelsey shares her love for design both online and on stage with a goal to empower the next generation of creatives with tutorials, storytelling, and an open-door approach to creative community. When she’s not designing, you can usually find her collecting new hobbies, traveling, or posting about her cats.
Karl Soulé works for Adobe in Los Angeles, focused on Film and Television workflows, and has supported editorial teams on films and television shows since moving to LA in 2016. As an Adobe employee for over 20 years, Karl has presented and evangelized for the video and audio tools worldwide. Karl is a co-author of the Adobe Best Practices for Long Form and Episodic.
Magdiel Lopez is an Art Director and digital artist originally from Havana, Cuba, now living in the United States. He specializes in helping clients create compelling visual identities and striking images for campaigns in the fields of technology, fashion, and entertainment. Magdiel’s “A Poster A Day” project earned global recognition, leading to collaborations with renowned brands like Apple, Nike, and Warner Brothers. In addition to his client work, he is a design mentor with Adobe, sharing his expertise and passion for innovative design.
Paul Trani is Principal Director Evangelist at Adobe, where he is committed to empowering designers to expand creative boundaries and embrace emerging technologies. With more than 30 years of experience as an award-winning visual designer, instructor, and public speaker, Paul has established a global reputation for inspiring and educating creative communities. Beyond his professional endeavors, he is an avid enthusiast of racquet sports—including, of course, pickleball.
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