The pandemic, man oh man, the pandemic. it is has been a struggle, but there's always a silver lining in life. During the first months of the Covid-19 outbreak I was suffering with a relapse in an eating disorder I am overcoming. But the time with my family, and time away from the stress of work (as the film/tv industry had shut down) I was able to heal and work on my relationship with food. Another great outcome is that during the pandemic is that I wasn't considering going back to school so soon, but with the extra free time I decided to apply and got into Columbia University, which has an acceptance rate of 5%! I know that in the grand scheme of things these may seem inconsequential, but both have vastly improved my daily life. I have new opportunities in more than one way.

New York City, home of: business, art, Instagram backgrounds, and the struggling college student. When I got the chance to apply to Columbia University- I did. I was already two years out of school, working a dead-end job in the middle of a pandemic, I mean, a girl can dream. I wasn't expecting anything, not even hoping for anything, but I was accepted. I decided to go for it, a chance at a future I didn't think was possible for myself, and honestly, still might not be. I am looking down the barrel of $40,000 plus of private student loans for one year of education, and that's truly terrifying. I deferred a year to save, and scraped together four years of saving just to move. Unfortunately I am in a situation where I am doing this without family financial support (although they are very proud of me) but I am still considered dependent on the FAFSA and only qualify for a meager amount of help. As a returning student, I am also ruled out of a number of scholarships. I know I am meant to create, and I understand that the reality of the art world is a difficult one. Important work is not always funded, and return on investment is not promised. But art is arguably the closest thing to a recreation of the human spirit. It connects us to past generations, gives meaning to our lives, and outlives us into the future. the act of creating in-and-of-itself is meaningful: to create is often just as crucial as the product. My art is in film and writing, and I made the decision to return to school because I had been working in the industry and saw that without a degree my future was severely limited. The film world is one that has been propped up as a trade industry- one you can work your way up from the bottom, but I find that is not true for a majority of writing rooms or director's chairs. I hope to tell stories that are close to my heart, particularly of home, of Appalachia: a place often overlooked and underprivileged. But truly film is a world of collaboration, and I am so excited to tell meaningful stories of all peoples and places, and I can think of no better town to meet like-minded artists than in New York City. I've come to find that living in the city can be very hard. Especially when I'm from a rural town in East Tennessee. To survive here I have entirely cut out mental health care, and am down to two meals a day. It is ugly and embarrassing but I have to hope that it will all be worth it. I'm grateful, incredibly grateful, for all the support I have received about my decision to attend Columbia, but the cost of a degree is almost insurmountable, but I don't want the money to keep me from achieving what I know I'm meant to do.

There's only one project that I'll carry with me forever. Included are pictures of an acquaintance of mine, Keiton. They're not the best photos, a little blurry, a little unsure, and they certainly showcase my amateur, 16-year-old photography skills. But to me, they're precious. A couple years after these were taken Keiton was diagnosed with terminal cancer, and a couple of years after that he passed away. I've struggled a lot with becoming an artist. Would I benefit anyone as an artist? I tried to make writing, photography, and film, past-times, enjoy them as my hobbies. But I wasn't satisfied. To the point I was sick, allowing mental illness to wreck havoc on my spirit and my body. I stopped making anything for awhile. I finally relented, deciding double associate degrees, one in an art and one general, at a community college could suit me. I started healing, returning to the art I loved. In March 2020, I received a message from Keiton. He let me know how much he enjoyed seeing me post photography projects, we chatted for awhile, and he let me know he didn't have long. One of his last messages to me was "it makes me so happy to see creative people prosper." Two months later he was gone. That same summer I was accepted into Columbia University. I almost turned it down- but when I thought of Keiton, I couldn't. The thought that something I make could comfort anyone, even little bit is what drove me to accept. It's what drives me now as a creator. I don't think Keiton knew how much he could mean to me, but if he hadn't reached out I would never have known that I what I do has an impact. I carry him with me, always.

Why do I want to pursue higher education? I have already gone without it, and understand what the benefits a space to learn and further yourself. I graduated with two associate degrees with the help of a state grant program but the financial burden of school forced me to enter the workforce. For a long time I tried to ignore my passions; I thought they could suffice as a hobby. That I could work a retail job and be happy. That I could take pictures on vacations or indulge in some arthouse films every now and again, but I found that my mental health suffered greatly when I didn't pursue what I was meant to do. I spiraled into a dark place that not only affected my mind but my body as well. My recovery started when I allowed myself to chose what I loved as a career. I work in film because that's what I love. Film, photography, writing, anything that has to do with storytelling. That's what I'm passionate about- and that's what's gotten me the last two years of being out of school without a bachelor's degree. It's hard work, I know. I can't even tell you how many sets I have stayed late on, or worked on for free, because the joy of creating is so thrilling. But I'm stunted. I hear, particularly in my career field that you do not have to have a degree, but I've found that to be incredible exaggerated. I get passed over all the time because of not having a listed four-year degree. I truly value what it means to have a higher education. I want to write, I want to direct, these are the things I already enjoy to explore in my free time, but I have to prove to professionals that I am qualified to do them. The best place to do that is college. I will be returning to school to (finally!!) to finish a Bachelor's at Columbia University. College is all about collaboration, and so is film. I will get to meet artists of all types, that will influence my work, that will lead me to change and stretch as a creator, and for that I am so excited. But, even though I've worked and saved and lived very cost-consciously I'm yet again facing a very high monetary cost. I know that i'm not the typical recipient for a scholarship like this, but I hope that my passion, and love for my craft outweighs that. I would love to send work samples if that would help in any way. Thank you so much for your time and consideration.

I have submitted a video, but I'd like to say how important filmmaking, photography, and writing are to me. I went to community college on a grant program and received two associate degrees, one in Mass Communications and one in Video Production, before the financial burden of college led me to enter the workforce. I have spent my time out of college working and interning in television production. That is, until I applied to Columbia University on a wish and a prayer, and got in! Now I am working on finishing my film degree. I have the chance to live my dreams, but the monetary cost is very high. I'm not afraid of work, nor am I afraid that my passion is misplaced. I was created to create. I hope that you consider me for your fellowship scholarship, and if not I hope that the video and photos left some imprint on you. Thank you for your time.

Being an artist is really just storytelling, and to be a storyteller you have to be a listener first. Art is about empathy- understanding yourself, and understanding others, and channeling that into a medium. My chosen media are: film, photography, and writing. It becomes a way of seeing the world, every day can be a montage set to an orchestra, every second a frame, beautiful enough to be a portrait hung on a wall. I know how important media is in our lives, not only as Americans, but as humans. We subsist on stories, they are a cultural universal. We simply don’t exist without them. And truly how many lives has a film saved? How many revolutions has a well-written word caused? I have been shaped, in part, by the media that I love, I am informed by films, newly birthed by poems, and confronted daily by headlines. But we are seemingly an audience watching ourselves and seeing nothing. I want to help make films that wake people, write things that have weight, take pictures that become seared into the collective conscious of this generation. While my plans for the future are not definite- I'm not sure what my career will look like- I know my dream is to take part in the telling of stories. I see the historical and cultural relevance of storytelling being lost in a wave of apathy and the mindless consumption of heartless media in the inundated world of film, writing, and photography. It's a product now- everything selling you to the next sequel, the next article, the next scroll. I want to be a voice, or with my privilege facilitate the voices of others in honest and impactful storytelling. I want the chance to learn new techniques, new platforms to share experiences and spread empathy and humanity. I see that through this scholarship I would be able to meet other story-tellers and collaborate, and together create meaningful work at the school of my dreams: Columbia University in New York City, where I am set to attend this fall. What I really want to do is amplify voices around me. Hear good stories, and help them be told. I think collaboration is one of the backbone of the art world- Warhol and Basquiat, Coppola and DeNiro, Lady Gaga and Beyoncé. Genius is born out of love- a love for creation and humanity, even the parts of ourselves we don't want to see. And collaboration is often a mirror, a way to find one's strengths and weaknesses. The things that I want to pursue, collaboration is essential: no photos without a subject, no movie without lights, no writing without editing. And I hope with this monetary assistance, I can help support the dreams of others as well.

To grow is to be uncomfortable sometimes, to recognize things in yourself that you ignored before. For me, it was that I extended grace and love to those around me, but not to myself. I had always hated my body, even though it carried me from place to place, even though it let me feel the world around me, I despised it. Like a pearl, I ruminated on that, grew it to be a fact- I was ugly- my body was ugly. And at 17, I began a crash diet. This quickly spun out of control- to the point I would go to bed praying to wake up, and not die in my sleep- to the point I had bed-sores from sit-ups, and heart-palpations daily. During this time I couldn't think of other people except to think of what they must think of me. I was horribly self-conscious and truthfully, absorbed by my revulsion. My love for my friends and family at this time was mostly desperation- that if I loved them well enough and hard enough I would be worthy of love myself. But that is not how it works- mental health is not quid-pro-quo. What comes first is not love, but neutrality, and that takes a lot of work. Therapy, medication, and dedication even while knowing that relapses are inevitable. It is worth the work. It's worth the work to enjoy life. I've learned a lot during this journey of continued healing. I learned that I must create- to make art is what I was born to do, and that takes on many forms. At this point in my life- it is visual storytelling, which is why I am going back to school. I am in a place where I can finally truly learn and love what it is that I'm doing which is why I'm so excited to attend Columbia University's film program where I can grow these skills. This dark time in my life also taught me that you can love and support someone but their mental health is ultimately their responsibility. I know that seems blunt, but there were years where I would have refused help- and it all would have fallen on deaf ears. I now see that the goal is to lead by example to show that working on yourself leads to a much more fulfilling life. I went to therapy after my close friend did, an now one of our friends after me. We can walk with each other into better lives, but we can not walk for each other. I believe now I have a much more objective view of not only myself, but of life, and I'm sure that this journey of understanding my inner-workings will endure the rest of my days. I am ready now, and it has become much easier to take steps into the future.

My role model chose me. My boss, Asya, the props and wardrobe master of a production company, hired me two years ago for an internship in community college. I knew I needed the job, but I didn't now how much I needed her guidance and support in my life. Asya and I are very different, she leans goth and is a practicing witch, while I am... not. But she's taught me how to face the daily adversity against woman in the film industry with grace and decorum. And how to write a stellar email. Together we run an entire department where we facilitate the propping of many true-crime recreation T.V. shows. It can be a frustrating and physically challenging job, but still she shows up early everyday ready to lead our little troop of two. Her example has taught me so much about how to be a better leader and person, and most importantly how to stand up for myself. She gave me the self-confidence I needed to go back to school for writing and directing. With her recommendation I got into Columbia University. I hope to make her proud in New York City and exemplify all of the qualities I see in her.

As a woman in the film and TV industry, adversity is an everyday reality. Last year, soon after my 21st birthday, a director, ten-plus years my senior, pursued me romantically. I worked regularly on his show and he had no idea how much bearing he had my career- he could blacklist me if he wanted to. I would likely be fired and no longer be able to work in my chosen career field. This severely damaged my mental health, and although terrified, I turned him down and outlined for him how inappropriate his advances were. He responded gracefully but it made me doubt all my progress in my workplace. Was I undeserving? Just a pet-project of his? It took a lot of time for me to realize that my career is a reflection of my own merit. This situation was most definitely a factor in me deciding to try to go back to school. I got in Columbia University's Film and Writing program where I plan to become a writer and director. This has also made me listen more closely to those around me, especially women and people of color, whose voices are often ignored in the film and tv world. I want to become a facilitator for the voices that haven't been able to speak up. To use the inherent power of a director as a way to create real and practical change. The shift in culture is slow, and I have heard much worse stories from women around me. Unfortunately, I don't expect this to be the last time that something like this happens. For all accounts, this was a mild case of #metoo, but now I know my own strength. I love telling stories and I want to make film a place where everyone can share their's. I understand the battle of gender in-equality in the industry but I am ready and willing to help make it better.

I want to create a mirror. Not in the obvious sense, but I want to make films that people can see themselves in. I want people to see Emily Peterson movies, and come out with that feeling deep in their chest that they're not alone in this world, to make something that comforts, that people turn to time and time again. I want to write people's favorite films, and like any writer, I want my characters to soak beneath the skin of the viewer and stay with them. For the past six years, my childhood best friend and I have been writing a memoir of sorts, about our hometown, and although I am moving to New York City and attending Columbia University, it is home that I live in creatively. I want to be a voice for rural Appalachia, a place that is often underrepresented and misunderstood. Every creation is a question- I see this in myself, I see this in humanity, do you see it too? I think it is vital for me to ask, as a person who was found deep purpose in storytelling, regardless of the answer. And I can only hope that the answer is a resounding yes, yes, yes. That for all my writing and creating that I have been listening better.

I want my name, Emily Peterson, to be synonymous with 'storyteller.' When people think of me I want it to be of a style that evokes the comfort of childhood, and the ache of growing up, particularly in the project I'm working on right now. A script- written with my childhood best friend, about growing up in rural Appalachia, an often dismissed and misunderstood part of the states. Although I've never made a movie myself, I work in the film industry now and my dreams are growing so big I decided to move to New York City and attend the Columbia University film program, and hopefully I'll make some friends that also want to create. I have so many ambitions for the future its hard to say in words, so instead I'll give you the snapshots I imagine: writing scripts tucked away somewhere in Europe, finding a burgeoning actor and giving them their dream role, moving to L.A. then back to New York, wrap parties in rented out museums, interviews, writing, filming, writing, filming. That's the truest dream I have, that I can see creations come to life, mine or others. For all my lofty imaginations, I also want to be a very grounded and trusted person that can facilitate the voices of others. Especially for those like me, who thought that they would never get the chance to be heard. As a woman in the T.V./Film industry I am very aware of how it feels to be silenced, and ignored, and because of this I am working diligently to be attentive to the voices of those with less privilege. In conclusion, I hope I can be a creator that exemplifies the qualities of a KUURO scholarship winner.

Who doesn't love the gory glory of cowboys going out in an epic shoot out? Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, has it all: best friends, robbery, shoot-em-ups, cliff-jumping, horses, and not to mention THE Paul Newman. That's why it's my favorite movie. What really makes this movie great is that it was William Goldman's first screenplay. As an inspiring screen-writer it just proves that a good story will prevail, no matter the experience. Goldman's writing and George Roy Hill's directing really cements the characters as believable, lovable, miscreants. Goldman also managed to write a female character with more grace and nuance than a lot of other golden era films. Etta Place's character has ambition and a need for agency in her own life, which true of women in the 1800's,1969, and today. I find this movie fascinating. I like that it's really about the passage of time, of how change is inevitable, and whether to dig your heels in or say goodbye. All in all, it's just a fun ride, and I think Butch summed up what this movie is best when he said: "... Boy, I got vision, while the rest of the world wears bifocals."

My name is Emily Peterson and although I have had to deal with my own personal mental illness battles, my older brother's journey through debilitating OCD is what has opened my eyes to the strength that it takes to manage mental illness. When I was 10, my brother was 13, and simply the coolest person alive to me. When he began to display signs of severe OCD I didn't understand it. I didn't understand the tears, or the terror, the psych wards, or why this was all happening. It was scary, to both of us, I think, the doctors, the medications, but he was determined. I understand now, that he was looking for rest, relief, for some sort of break from the constant intrusive thoughts and compulsions. I remember waiting for him in the psychiatrists office, and waiting for him at the counselor's office, and I that is where I formed some of my core beliefs, nothing was truly wrong with my brother, he just needs a little help right now. And that is often where I find myself reflecting on my own mental health, repeating that mantra, at the therapists, at bedtime when I take my medication for depression and anxiety, nothing is wrong with me, I just need a little help right now. My brother's battle taught me how to empathize with others a lot earlier than I would have, and later reminds me to treat myself with kindness. It also helped me de-stigmatize receiving care when I really needed it too. I want to be that for other people now, the sister in the waiting room, the person right outside the door, cheering them on, grateful that they are getting help.

Here's DB (DustBunny) Cooper seeing snow for the fist time and hanging upside down on our Christmas tree. He brings such joy to the little moments in life! And like his name-sake he has stolen something! My heart!

My name is Emily Peterson and I am currently working towards going back to school for film and writing, but there is a particular skill that I like to learn regardless of if I do it in the classroom or not and that's to learn how to operate and edit with 360 degree cameras. I believe the gap between video game design and movie creation is rapidly closing, and soon movies will become a more interactive experience. I think 360 degree cameras will be a big part of that, as they will make it so that the viewer can interact within the world of the creation by dragging their mouse, or looking around on a VR set. As a woman, I find it difficult to make space for myself to be heard in such a male-driven field, particularly in the technical side of film, but I believe that acquiring this new skill will give me confidence to stand before my peers with knowledge and insight into the next wave of film.

I believe that art is a reflection of yourself, your inner most thoughts and feelings, and how you process the world around you. To grow as an artist my own world must be expanded, beyond the horizons of social media photography or writing about my hometown. Nothing has changed my art, or even my understanding of art like travel. Film is my poison of choice, and after traveling I find that I better connect to the voice of the filmmakers, see what they saw, hear what they hear, and even understand why they shown what they've shown and what they decided to obscure. I was so proud that South Korean filmmaker Bong Joon Ho won the 2019 Oscar for best picture for Parasite, especially after having traveled to Seoul and experiencing that particular culture in 2017. And nothing has ever felt like seeing La La Land (2016) on my first trip to LA. I believe that not only does traveling teach one about themselves but always informs them of their craft. While traveling I always find myself inscribing my trip into a montage or keeping a video diary. That in turn, urges me to create more, and explore more. The biggest most influential part of exploring though, is the stories of the people you meet. To me, as a future filmmaker it is incredibly important that I am amplifying the voices of peoples whose stories need to be told. Traveling is learning to empathize with those around you, learning from them, how to eat their dishes, and speak respectfully, and fully engage with the world around you. The closest thing in the world to traveling is watching a film, and if I want to send people to other worlds, into countless different lives, then I need to be informed myself.