Finding the right town for a college student. (Irvine, Orange: apartment, credit)

[Feels]

Hey guys, I moved out to Orange County last August with some family members to experience some new places and to go to school. I'm currently attending Irvine Valley College, and living in Irvine. However, the feel of Irvine is much too sterile for my taste, and a couple friends and I decided we want to move out to share an apartment. We are all 19-20. I'm not entirely familiar with the reputations and quirks of the towns in Orange County, so I'm having trouble even beginning to look for an apartment. I've put together a list of ideal conditions that my friends and I would like:

-Must be within commuting distance of Irvine Valley College, or possibly Orange Coast College as I believe my IGETC credit would transfer there. I would say 30 mins is definitely the max, but the shorter the better. We would absolutely prefer not to take the 405, but will if necessary.
-Price ranges of about 0 to 1500 for two bedrooms, 0 to 1000 for a one bedroom/studio. Don't really care if it's a dinky shack, after all, we're in college.
-Safe neighborhoods. Obviously this clashes with our price range, but it needs to be in a reasonable setting. It doesn't need to be Irvine safe, however.
-Lastly, yet oh so importantly, we really like strong cultural scenes. Music and art is a big factor for us. We would prefer to live in a younger area, as we don't intend on living with the oldies.

Now clearly, the price range and area limitation make this very challenging, but that's exactly why I turned to this forum. We're willing to make sacrifices, as these are only the ideal conditions, not necessities.

Thank you guys a ton.