Sylvia Stewart

May 16, 2025 There are artists people listen to and love. And then there are artists who become a lifeline. For me, that lifeline came in the form of Mazzy Star, or more precisely, in the dreamlike voice of Hope Sandoval. I was 16 years old when I first listened to Mazzy Star. A junior in high school, drifting through one of the hardest years of my life. I had just gone through a messy breakup, the kind that feels earth-shattering when you’re at that age.

I wasn’t expecting a primetime drama to reflect my anxiety, but then I suddenly began seeing myself in character Randall Pearson. He is a successful husband, father and councilman. However, in a pivotal episode of the show “This Is Us”, Randall spirals into a huge panic attack in the setting of a hospital waiting room. There was no dramatic music, no over-the-top camera angles, just the raw, suffocating truth of anxiety.

City College Alumna Jenny Keet has blended her passion for surfing, filmmaking, and community into a career that bridges both the ocean and the screen. As CEO of Surf Happens Surf School, executive director of the Surf Happens Foundations, and producer behind Jenny and David Films, Keet’s journey began on California’s Central Coast and found momentum when she attended City College in 2008.