Behind the Scenes with Austin Gao

In the fall of 1998, a baby with too big of a head was born! (or at least that’s what his mother proclaimed was what had happened) His mother named him Austin, after a popular street in town conveniently named Austin Street, located in Forest Hills, Queens, NY. Austin Street is a wonderful place full of restaurants, shopping, and most of all, contains one of the best bakeries in all of Queens: Martha’s Country Bakery. Fun Fact: A familiar scene in Spiderman 2  was filmed right on Austin Street, where Spiderman swung right across the neighborhood’s Dunkin Donuts. Although it’s changed a lot since then, the street still has a similar charm when walking down it. 

Although Austin’s origins may have begun in Queens, he quickly transitioned to a young teenager, growing up in a small town on Long Island called Cutchogue (KUTCH-og), with a total population of 2,699 inhabitants and about 100 students in his class! Throughout high school, there was a singular course that interested him most: Digital Production. It was there that Austin learned all about digital arts such as graphic design, video editing, and photography. Instantly, he fell in love and knew he wanted to create and tell stories through this new and upcoming medium. 

Pursuing this new passion as well as his primary love for basketball led Austin to the University of Connecticut, where he studied and earned a Bachelor of Arts in Communications and Psychology. During his time at Storrs, he worked several different positions to grasp as much experience as possible. Austin worked in roles such as Production Assistant for Digital Art Video, Livestream Producer at UC Student Television, and Multimedia Intern in the University Communications Department. It was also at UConn where he began to explore his familial roots more. Specifically his Asian-American identity which was something that had initially been ignored for the most part during high school due to the result of trying to fit in with everyone else. Luckily, the Asian/Asian American Cultural Center (AsACC) provided a safe hub where he felt recognized and could discuss his cultural nuances with others who related to his experiences as well. 

Since graduating from UConn, Austin has had the opportunity to work with several nonprofit organizations such as the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, CT Small Business Development Center, and currently with Community Mental Health Affiliates. In his free time, Austin volunteers at a start-up organization called SPARC (Supporting Pan-Asian Resources Together Collective), which supports small Asian-owned businesses through a digital directory and visual storytelling. Although his passion for digital media is strong, Austin has also developed a few more interests such as listening to audiobooks, running, and basketball. Some of his latest achievements include recently finishing his first half-marathon race in just under 2 hrs and creating his first DIY Halloween costume (a Smiski).