In this episode of Scene Shift: The Podcast, New York based set designer Afsoon Pajoufar reflects on working across the US and Europe, comparing cultural approaches to risk, resources, and sustainability in theatre making. The conversation moves through what it means to be brave and bold as a designer, standing behind strong conceptual choices, embracing limitation, and allowing emotion to leave a visible trace in the work. Afsoon also speaks candidly about material responsibility, reuse, and whether theatre is “dying” or could simply shift into new, more intentional forms of making.

Music by Claire McKeown "Sarabande in D minor" https://open.spotify.com/track/33X6NXAFqKXffxbdxCJ80A?si=2163333f328d4722 More info about Scene Shift https://www.scene-shift.com/ Like, subscribe, and join our newsletter for our latest episodes and news!

In this episode, Scene Shift's set designers Maureen Weiss and Sibyl Wickersheimer learn so much from lighting designer Pablo Santiago. He explains the process of lighting design in theater, his career path from film, and the art of collaboration with other designers and directors. They discuss the importance of embracing imperfections and the role of lighting in storytelling, drawing insights from experiences with renowned directors like David Lynch and José Luis Valenzuela. The conversation dips into the creative process, the balance between the technical and artist expression, and the aspirations for making impactful moments in theatre. Music by Claire McKeown "Sarabande in D minor" https://open.spotify.com/track/33X6NXAFqKXffxbdxCJ80A?si=2163333f328d4722 More info about Scene Shift https://www.scene-shift.com/ Like, subscribe, and join our newsletter for our latest episodes and news!

In this episode of Scene Shift: The Podcast, hosts Sibyl Wickersheimer and Maureen Weiss reconnect with their former student-turned-colleague Shing Yin Khor, an installation artist, cartoonist, game designer, and puppeteer exploring Mythic Americana, collaborative storytelling, and new human rituals. What began over twenty years ago in the Cal State Long Beach scene shop has evolved into a friendship built on shared curiosity, respect for craft, and a refusal to follow prescribed norms. Khor reflects on the journey from set design to creating immersive installations, graphic novels, and independent games, and how puppetry became a liberating practice for exploring gender, embodiment, and control. The conversation moves fluidly between the tactile and the philosophical: cordless drills and band saws, the joy of making, and a rejection of digital detachment captured in Khor’s memorable line, “Computers do not make me happy.” Together, they unpack how physical labor connects to moral intention, how commercial art differs from independent work, and how creative collaboration can serve as quiet resistance to capitalism’s demand for productivity. The trio also begins to explore the concept of moral ambition: what it means for artists to pursue work that not only tells stories but reshapes culture with integrity, care, and purpose, a topic inspired by Rutger Bregman.

In this episode of Scene Shift: The Podcast, hosts Sibyl Wickersheimer and Maureen Weiss reconnect with their former student-turned-colleague Shing Yin Khor, an installation artist, cartoonist, game designer, and puppeteer exploring Mythic Americana, collaborative storytelling, and new human rituals. What began over twenty years ago in the Cal State Long Beach scene shop has evolved into a friendship built on shared curiosity, respect for craft, and a refusal to follow prescribed norms. Khor reflects on the journey from set design to creating immersive installations, graphic novels, and independent games, and how puppetry became a liberating practice for exploring gender, embodiment, and control. The conversation moves fluidly between the tactile and the philosophical: cordless drills and band saws, the joy of making, and a rejection of digital detachment captured in Khor’s memorable line, “Computers do not make me happy.” Together, they unpack how physical labor connects to moral intention, how commercial art differs from independent work, and how creative collaboration can serve as quiet resistance to capitalism’s demand for productivity. The trio also begins to explore the concept of moral ambition: what it means for artists to pursue work that not only tells stories but reshapes culture with integrity, care, and purpose, a topic inspired by Rutger Bregman.