Biola’s western campus has some of the newest buildings, the latest of which is the Lim Center. The long-awaited launch of the Snyder School of Cinema & Media Arts (CMA) studio facility marks the beginning of the next addition. The construction site, however, takes up significant space, closing down and surrounding offices, parking lots and sidewalks with fences. 

The official start of this construction process kicked off with the CMA Building Groundbreaking Ceremony on Sept. 6, bringing hundreds of students, faculty, alumni and special guests — including Lynsi Snyder-Ellingson, owner and president of In-N-Out Burger.

ABOUT THE BUILDING

Tom Halleen, founding dean of the Snyder School of Cinema and Media Arts, stated that the plan for the new building started nearly 10 years ago. Various challenges — such as COVID and economic issues — delayed their timeline, fundraising and construction until now.

“Designing it began in 2015, so by the time I joined in mid-2020, much of the original design for the building was complete. Fundraising was underway, as were the headwinds — COVID, supply chain, recessionary and inflationary issues — all outside our control,” said Halleen. “We adapted the design in 2023 to contemporize the facility and to increase its functionality for students. This refreshed design is what you see today.”

The new studio building will expand on the current CMA ones to accommodate the rapidly growing number of CMA students. 

“While the footprint remains the same, the original classic Hollywood Art Deco design was replaced with a more modern reflection of current Hollywood studios,” said Halleen. “This significant refresh was in answer to our goal to ensure this facility is the best it can be for students, the best fit on campus and the best to prepare them for their careers. Additionally, we wanted it to be more flexible, adaptable and multimodal; to feel like a media center, not a classroom building; and to provide more open collaborative spaces for students.”

The new building aims to prepare CMA students for their lives after graduation by including extra features, housing all aspects of the production process, from generating ideas to the final presentation.

“It provides additional classrooms and conference rooms, color grading suites, private editing suites, a game design lab, audio mixing suites, a scoring and Foley recording stage, movie prop and memorabilia displays, additional computer labs, scenic storage, costume and make-up rooms, a new soundstage, green room and so much more,” Halleen said.

Halleen added that the best feature of the new building is the students who will be working, studying and creating projects in it.

“The heart of any university is its faculty and staff and their commitment to preparing the hearts and voices of students to go out into the world as ambassadors for Christ, wherever their calling may lead,” said Halleen. “Our new studio center will be a profound and powerful manifestation of this as it demonstrates Biola’s commitment to media education. In addition, it will be a visual statement of commitment and credibility to the industry itself.”

The building is projected to be completed in the middle of 2026. 

Halleen stated that once the construction is finished, alumni are also welcome to use the new building alongside current students.

“We invited our alumni to the groundbreaking and will invite them to our ribbon cutting as well,” Halleen said. “Once you’re a part of what we call the ‘CMA Family,’ you’re always a part of it.” 

CONSTRUCTION UPDATE 

With the construction site, nearby walkways and parking lots fenced off, students and faculty are curious about the progress of the building a month after the groundbreaking ceremony. 

Currently, the sidewalks between the Crowell School of Business and the Lim Center, as well as the sidewalks connecting the Lim Center to Rood Hall and Dorothy English Hall, are inaccessible. The parking lot outside of the business building is also surrounded by fences. 

To get from the sidewalk along University Drive to Rood Hall and Dorothy English Hall, students must take the stairs down beside the Lim Center and up again, or walk down University Drive and up the street between the Lim Center and the South Field. This makes it more difficult for students to find their way to classes, especially for students using wheelchairs.

Brian Philips, associate vice president of facility and auxiliary operations, explained why the construction site has such a large footprint. 

“The new building will have a basement level, which requires a much larger area during excavation,” said Philips. “We will also be improving the hardscape, landscape and parking areas around the building. We understand this has created some challenges for pedestrian routes and parking. We’ll continue to monitor the situation and make improvements if possible.”

Philips stated that demolition on the job site has begun. Grading, or the process of leveling and shaping the ground to the building’s specific design requirements, began on Sept. 26. He added that construction is on schedule and the university is working to help students during that time to maintain the normalcy of campus life.

“We will certainly do our best to minimize the impacts caused by construction,” said Philips. “For example, we are installing sound-insulating blankets in key areas of the job site to minimize noise to sensitive spaces such as classrooms.”

GROUNDBREAKING CEREMONY DETAILS

The Snyder School of Cinema & Media Arts Groundbreaking ceremony happened on Sept. 6 in the newly revamped Ethel Lee Auditorium. The location was moved from the construction site to the auditorium due to excessive heat warnings. Calvary Chapel became an overflow space because of the large turnout for the free-to-attend event. Sign-ups for the In-N-Out meals offered afterward filled up quickly. 

THE CEREMONY

Provost and senior vice president Matthew Hall opened the ceremony with a welcome and prayer, thanking God. 

Next, Halleen talked about what it meant to have media courses at a Christian university like Biola. 

“How can we provide hope into the most powerful form of communication on the planet if we are not within it?” Halleen asked. “This is our calling to prepare the voices of students to show the world what faith really looks like and faith, as we know, is strength. It is not weakness.”

Lindsey Harper, a junior in writing for film and television, spoke next about her journey to Biola and her story as a CMA student. She reminded her fellow students to glorify God in everything.

Biola’s president, Barry Corey, introduced the honored guest speaker, Lynsi Snyder-Ellingson. 

“We would not be here were it not for the generous support of Lynsi and her husband Sean. Their major gift to the studio facility project last year gave us the momentum that will culminate today in shovels in the ground, followed by Monday, when tractors and workers come, followed by 20 months from now, when we dedicate to the glory of God this beautiful new state of the art, donor-funded 74.5 million dollar and 45,463 square foot building,” said Corey. 

Snyder-Ellingson’s history with Biola started with her grandmother Esther Snyder, co-founder of In-N-Out and a woman invested in the university. 

Snyder-Ellingson expressed her longtime appreciation and interest in media and how it impacted her faith and led her to make the gift toward the new building. 

“I was raised a Christian, but I fell away for a time, and when the movie, ‘The Passion of the Christ’ came out, I saw that and that movie rocked me to my core, and I could not continue living in sin, and that movie snapped me back on the path,” said Snyder-Ellingson. “So I’m so thankful for the people that have the gift to create these moving videos and things that people can watch and have their lives completely changed, because one person’s life changed means other people’s lives change when you walk with Jesus.”

She commended Biola for its work and mission as a Christ-centered university standing by its values. She hoped that everything in the new CMA building would honor God.

Corey then acknowledged the city officials and those involved in the construction of the new building.

David Vazquez, vice president of university advancement, spoke about the history of groundbreaking ceremonies being a reminder of what is to come. He noted that every person was gathered in anticipation of God’s work.

Vazquez revealed that Biola had raised $55.9 million for the construction of the building. 

Several notable people came to the construction site, including:

• Student Government Association (SGA) President, Jacqueline McCauslin
• Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees, Brad Cole
• Director of Construction Services, Curtis Baker
• Associate Vice President of Facility and Auxiliary Operations, Brian Phillips
• Provost and Senior Vice President, Matthew Hall
• Founding Dean of the Snyder School of Cinema & Media Arts, Tom Halleen
• President, Barry H. Corey
• President and Owner of In-N-Out Burger, Lynsi Snyder-Ellingson
• Husband of Lynsi, Sean Ellingson
• Chair of the Board of Trustees, Mike Maples
• Vice President of Advancement, David Vazquez
• Interim Vice President of University Operations, Susan Ishii

After praying over the site, they dug their shovels into the ground. Some CMA students were invited to do the same because they are the reason the building is being constructed.