About US | Edgeworks

Together we are Edgeworks

OUR VISION: To co-design and co-create a more equitable, interconnected, and sustainable future through interdisciplinary collaborations.

OUR MISSION: To harness the collective talent, knowledge, and resources of the University of Nebraska and the Johnny Carson Center for Emerging Media Arts in order to advance research, collaboration, and experiential learning through a culture of interdisciplinary practice, play, and experimentation.

Megan Elliott

Founding Director of the Johnny Carson Center for Emerging Media Arts

Megan Elliott is the founding director of the Johnny Carson Center for Emerging Media Arts and is the Johnny Carson Endowed Director in Emerging Media Arts. She was previously the manager of leadership and community connections at the University of Technology Sydney in Australia and former director and CEO of digital media think-tank X Media Lab.

Elliott has deep ties to emerging media industries across Asia, Europe and the world. She served as cofounder and director of China Creative Industries Exchange in Beijing and Shanghai, China, from 20072015. Originally from Australia, Elliott received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Canberra in Bruce, Australia. She began her career in theatre with the Splinters Theatre of Spectacle and has also served as a performer/artist in residence/assistant project manager for The Performance Space, Australia’s leading performance space and gallery for the research and development of interdisciplinary arts.

Core Team

Ryan Schmaltz

Productization Advisor
Lindsey Clausen

Project Manager
Ash Eliza Smith

Associate Professor and Edgeworks NRI Grant Co-Principal Investigator
Jesse Fleming

Associate Professor and Edgeworks NRI Grant Co-Principal Investigator
Dan Novy

Assistant Professor
Shane Bolan

Senior Technical Lead
Samantha Bendix

Creative Technologist
Reid Brockmeier

Creative Technologist