There’s nothing like a live performance or presentation.

With the easing of pandemic-related mandates, this year’s Artist of the Year contenders regained the opportunity to show off their creativity in front of a panel of judges rather than by virtual evaluation, as in the past two years.

And what a welcome experience it was for the young artists — 105 semifinalists drawn from high schools around Orange County — and for the seasoned artists critiquing them. Judges were drawn from the ranks of local professional artists and instructors who specialize in the seven Artist of the Year creative disciplines.

Meet the 2022 Artists of the Year

Dance: Danielle Silver
Film/animation: Youning Jiang
Instrumental music: Aaron Kim
Vocal music: Landon Wouters
Theater: Lauren Mai
Computer-assisted visual arts: Meena Senapathi
Handcrafted visual arts: Joyce Yuruo Hong

When one of the dancers asked the judges if she should cut her original choreography at the 1-minute mark, leaving 25 more seconds to go, they answered as if Nike whispered in their ears: “Just do it.”

Boy, did she, dancing her way to Artist of the Year.

But the final selections came after much discussion following all the presentations. In more than one instance, the judges wished they could pick more than on Artist of the Year.

“It’s so inspiring to see the next generation and how they’re looking at their art,” said Boroka Nagy, artistic director of Re:borN Dance Interactive, a contemporary dance company and artist collective in Santa Ana.

This is the ninth year for the Orange County Register’s salute to youthful creativity in the areas of dance, film/animation, theater, instrumental music, vocal music, computer-assisted visual arts and handcrafted visual arts.

The seven Artists of the Year were selected from 22 specialties. The judges also named finalists in each specialty.

It’s been a months-long process that involved hundreds of nominations by high school arts teachers, private instructors, and representatives of organizations and programs that train aspiring artists.

The initial pool of talent, 646 juniors and seniors, was announced back in March. The finalists attend 15 different public or private schools in Orange County.

Each nominee was asked to write and talk about what they think it means to be an “artist” and their own journeys in becoming artists. They spoke of their work, the turning points in their development, and their goals for the future.

When it came down to choosing the Artists of the Year, the judges looked beyond the level of an individual’s technical skill, the depth of their talent, or their ability to execute a classroom assignment.

They also considered potential and impact.

The judges wanted to see how the students are using the training they’ve gotten in their chosen discipline, however long they’ve been getting training – for some that’s from early childhood, for others, only since the start of high school. What are they doing outside of school, the studio or the practice room?

An Artist of the Year is someone who can demonstrate how their art is reaching out to and involving the community around them. And not just for how that looks on a college application. In an age of online “influencers,” how are they influencing the public in real life?

Some students have formed nonprofit organizations or foundations to expand opportunities and exposure to the arts to those who are less privileged. They’ve volunteered to perform at nursing homes, hospitals and assisted living centers. They serve as tutors and instructors to young children.

A few are already earning some money by putting their talent to work.

This program is in the third year of a sponsorship from the Chapman University College of Performing Arts. Chapman has committed $25,000 a year for general operating expenses.

In addition, the Laguna College of Art and Design provides $250 to each of the top seven students and also will offer a $2,500 scholarship to any finalist in the visual arts or animation specialties who plans to attend LCAD.

“I feel really excited for these kids,” said Victor Payan, founder and director of Media Arts Santa Ana, or MASA, and co-founder of the multicultural film festival OC Film Fiesta.

“This is not the world we were walking into 30 years ago.”

Payan may have been talking about the world of film and animation, but his words echoed similar sentiments from judges in other disciplines.

All the Artists of the Year appear poised to make their mark.

Artists of the Year 2022

Dance: Danielle Silver, Orange County School of the Arts
Film/animation: Youning Jiang, Orange School of the Arts
Instrumental music: Aaron Kim, Valencia High School
Vocal music: Landon Wouters, private instruction
Theater: Lauren Mei, Orange County School of the Arts
Computer-assisted visual arts: Meena Senapathi, Arnold O. Beckman High School
Handcrafted visual arts: Joyce Yuruo Hong, Orange County School of the Arts