Beware of any information regarding graduate school funding right now. Being in the midst of all this, a lot is changing on both national and state funding sources around the country therefore throwing everything off. This is especially true in California.
For example, a huge portion of the funding offered to graduate students was in the form of subsidized loans, but this year those are not available anymore due to changes in financial aid on the federal level. Even places that offer assistantships or stipends often have limits on how many hours you can work in a quarter/semester (25% seems normal from what I've found) and outside gigs are incredibly useful to live comfortably. If you pick a location with a health entertainment sector you may have more options for jobs while in school.
I can only for sure speak for UCI, but funding is very good here. I will be graduating in June and am on track to graduate debt free. It is not hard to do if you keep up on your finances and take gigs throughout the year, which we are encouraged to do. First year you pay nothing (even for out of state students) and then you pay under $300 a quarter (3x a year) for fees.