Wild Scholarship

Is it stereotypical for me to love art as much as Baltimore loves crabs? I'm a born and raised Baltimorean. Baltimore already has several stereotypes - and no, I do not like crabs. But, the most humorless belief is the amount of violence depicted in media like The Wire. But I've never watched it. I was watching the fish in the Natural Aquarium at the Harbor - drawing them in my sketchbook and always showing them to my teachers who said I need to keep drawing things. I was watching the trees in my bike rides around the friendly suburbs - where in the summer are strikingly vibrant palettes of Emerald and Shamrock, then beautiful shades of Scarlet and Tuscany in the fall. I was admiring the street art that you can find on almost every building, all telling a story or expressing a belief. How is a place so bursting with charm, color, and creativity seen as violent? I see a city of passion. The same passion inside anyone who puts their mind to it. I want to bring that same creativity and energy to the table of animation. Animation is already bursting with new ideas every day. Growing up surrounded by art, I've grown accustomed to being more attracted to fields with outlets to express myself. Much like the street art, I see every day, or the trees when they blossom in the spring. Who wouldn't want to embrace that chaotic beauty? While I've already taken several classes in character animation and screenwriting, I still want more. Animation and Digital Art are such diverse fields, which many paths to choose from. I'll need to know what those paths are, and when can swap from one to another. I want to learn everything I can and be as diverse in my options as possible. There will always be an obstacle - but there will always be a way to cross it. I need those options to find ways around challenges as I contribute to the artworks I dream of. I don't plan on working alone. Working in a team combines not only my few hundred ideas but the thousands of others a team has combined. To create movies for the next generation of children to enjoy. To cover topics that are underappreciated, and underrepresented. Challenges that have yet to be taught to the younger generations. Movies are a medium for both creativity and education to paint harmonically. Showing children how to react in stressful situations, how to treat strangers and family, and how their not alone in their experiences. I want to put out into the digital world animated films. Films that evoke validation to the deserving demographics and topics. The art of film and animation can and will spark the child within everyone, like the one inside me. The one who strives in a city that is filled with life and love. Sparked by the artists and teachers surrounding her, encouraging her to move forward with her dreams. No matter what obstacles or stereotypes I face, I still love my hometown. Baltimore raised me into who I am today - an artist, through and through. Films and Animation are my passion, my outlet for creativity - my own Baltimore. And while I create what I love to create, I'll have the time to order some crabs...because I love crabs.