Craig Abaya

Craig Abaya is an artist from San Francisco, California. He is a musician, songwriter, producer, filmmaker, photographer, and web designer. He served as director of San Francisco State University's Extended Learning Multimedia Studies and Music/Recording Industry programs, as well as running the school's Digital Video Intensive. He has won ten Billboard songwriting awards.

Abaya is a native of San Francisco's Bernal Heights neighborhood. He became involved with music during childhood, taking up the piano at age six, the drums at age eleven, and the guitar at age twelve. He became involved in film and photography at the age of nine.

At seventeen, Abaya enrolled at San Francisco State University. Initially a psychology major, he ultimately proposed a special major in multimedia, combining studies in film, video, computers and electronics.

Abaya earned his first teaching experience at SFSU's Graduate Film school while he was still an undergraduate, but eventually took a full-time position teaching in Silicon Valley. Eventually, he moved to SFSU College of Extended Learning where he directed the Multimedia Studies Program, Music/Recording Industry Program, Digital Video Intensive, and Web Design Intensive.

Abaya started making films at age 9, starting with The Battle of McLaren Park, in which he spliced a scene of Clint Eastwood as a bomber pilot from 1950s sci-fi film, Tarantula and earning his first television screen credit from films he shot age 12.

In 2002, Apple Computer approached Abaya with an opportunity to make a feature film with his student crew. With a team of students and sponsors, he directed "Bruce Hornsby Live at Villa Montalvo" for DIRECTV.

In 2003, Abaya served as concert shoot director for the feature, Joan Armatrading, All the Way from America.

In 2006, Abaya became the producer/director of the Stern Grove Festival web series of videos including live performances, artist talks, and interviews.

In 2008, after having served as their live concert photographer for many years, Abaya became the resident filmmaker and concert photographer at the Bridge School. The school, which is for children with severe speech and physical impairments, was founded by Neil Young and Pegi Young.

In 2016, Abaya served as director of photography, first assistant director, editor, and music composer for the Lou Barbarelli neo-noir film, Ambush.

Craig Abaya

During his teens, Abaya formed his first professional band, the grunge/metal trio "Apparition." After disbanding "Apparition," Abaya acquired his own recording equipment and founded the 4-piece group "The Basics" and later, "Abaya," in an attempt to merge his divergent musical endeavors.

In 2009, Abaya released his first solo album, The Fine Art of Politics. Abaya also directed and edited his first music video of the song "Silly Sentimental Fool" for release in 2010.

In 2014, he composed and played guitars and bass on the DJ Qbert album "Extraterrestria." In 2016 Craig began work on his 2nd solo album along with a duet album with JoAnne Lorenzana.

Abaya is a Grammy voting member of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, a member of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers as well as the Producers Guild of America.