When I was a kid, I honestly took my education for granted. While I had a good start, around as early as 3rd grade I began slacking off on all of my school work. Reading is boring, so why don't I draw doodles instead? Writing essays was so boring, why don't I make the most epic story an 8-year-old can possibly make? My motivation continued to deteriorate when I entered middle school. By the time I entered 7th grade, it felt like all of my classmates somehow had everything planned out in their lives. Everyone else was participating in extracurricular activities that would help them out in the future, and everyone else somehow turned in their assignments and got good grades to boot. Meanwhile, it just felt like I was getting more stupid as the years went on. Life continued to be a failed assignment, after a failed assignment, after a failed assignment. Many of my teachers would try their hardest to get me to improve myself, usually to no avail. Oftentimes they had to resort to calling my parents on many occasions that I wasn't even making the attempt to do any assignments in work. My parents were never happy for thinking I had already quit on them at age 14. They thought I was just being lazy. They were half-right. I had put my all into math, science, and history, and despite how much I tried, I would always receive middling grades. If I couldn't do an assignment right when I put in my all, then why should I continue to put in the effort if I wasn't good at anything? What was even the point of continuing to go to school? Heck, some of the most successful people in the world were either dropouts or failed high school! If Bill Gates could make it big, why couldn't I? My Grandma and Grandpa were people who had regrets about not pursuing an education, and they especially got on me for not even trying, especially when none of their children took the opportunity to pursue school, nor has anyone else in my entire family. They always saw talent in me, specifically my creative side. Drawing and creative writing had always been my escapism, and that aspect was well known to my entire family, and most of my classes. I would get praise for my art, yet I was never really proud of my work. Everyone always joked about how I would work in the cartoon industry with how much cartooning I would do. Which tracked with how many animated shows I grew up watching as a child as opposed to doing homework. I eventually realized that, even if there have been many successful people who were school dropouts, they still had to work hard to get where they are now. There have been many others who have wanted to make it big in life but never were given the chance. So when I entered high school, I knew there needed to be a change. I began honing in and practicing my drawing and writing abilities. My grades in general managed to improve as well. When sophomore year rolled around, my confidence was boosted, my thoughts were more clear, and I had finally figured out what I wanted to do: create and develop the best animated series I could make to hopefully inspire others. Years go by, I work at several jobs to get the necessary money needed for college. I studied hard for the ACT, got a decent grade out of it, and applied to Drury University, specifically to major in both animation and writing. And after putting my all into my application, I was accepted. It was a weird transition, every adult would always go on about how certain things "wouldn't fly" in college, yet it would often be more lax than middle school. Currently, I am in my junior year, and everything is still going strong! I currently have a 3.7 GPA and have gotten A's and B's in all of my classes. I was then invited to join Sigma Tau Delta due to my performance in class, and I have helped plan out a banned books reading event, both making the poster and recording an advertisement on our school's radio station, KDRU. I have made both animated short films and short stories that I have been proud of, particularly how much I have pushed myself to make the best possible work I could possibly make. It's weird to think about how much has changed since Middle School. I'm about to make a name for myself in my family for being the first one to ever graduate college. It's also surreal to think how I used to get in trouble for drawing instead of doing work, and now my work is pretty much nothing but drawing! I am so happy that I made the choice I did, I'm happy to have direction, and getting this scholarship would greatly help me continue to pay for school, as simple as that sounds. Paying for school has been difficult, any and all of the help I can get will always be appreciated.

Despite the many adults in my life who had scolded me that I was "wasting my time" by playing video games, I can't think of a medium that has positively influenced me the most. As a child, I never really valued art much. I remember that any teacher I had would always make a big deal about literature and specific art pieces, and I would always be bored to tears! So of course instead of deciding to pay attention and potentially find new interests, I would instead sneak my Nintendo DS to class and play either Mario Kart DS or Super Mario 64 DS and would almost always get caught and have it confiscated. I would always get the same conversation each time at the end of the day: "You're not going to get anywhere by wasting your time with this garbage! The only thing these games will do is turn your brain into mush!" As a kid, I was always led to believe that video games were nothing but a complete waste of time and would only be detrimental to one's health. Despite what I was led to believe, I know for sure that one of the mediums that would inspire me the most is video games. As I briefly went over before, I'm a wee bit of a Mario fan. The first actual non-bargain bin Plug N Play video game I ever played was Super Mario 64 DS, which was absolutely mind-blowing for a 6-year-old. Despite being incredibly terrible at the game, I think it was the first piece of media I experienced that actively pushed me to think outside of the box, and I quickly just became attached to all of the characters and the world of the franchise. As the years went on, and as I was introduced to the Internet, I would increasingly get curious about games all over, I was one of those nerds who researched all other video game mascot franchises like Sonic, Mega Man, and Pacman (despite growing up nowhere near when those franchises were introduced), and through all of this, I would meet some great people online who shared all the same interests I had. As mildly cringy as it is looking back, I really loved discussing Mario lore and fan theories with folks online and seeing all sorts of fan art and other creations. It was around this time that these "mindless sources of garbage" actually brought a massive amount of discussion and unity across communities online. Even then, there was still a lot more to gaming than I would have imagined. As I grew up, I began appreciating the art side of video games. A game like Cuphead still blows my mind, the fact that they were able to create the hundreds of thousands of drawings for that game is insane. In addition to experiencing games that also try to push their narratives. I appreciate games like Insomniac's Spider-Man series and the Uncharted series for their impressive cinematography, character acting, and writing. I also really started to begin appreciating the Mario RPG series (Mario & Luigi and Paper Mario) for further adding depth to the Mario world. All of these games would help inspire me to find passion in storytelling and pursue the arts. If it wasn't for the countless times I played games on my DS instead of doing a bunch of boring ol' math problems, I likely wouldn't have the intense passion to craft impactful media of my own. Thank you, Mario.

There may be points where I feel down, sometimes I feel embarrassed about my animation skills, questioning if I'm good enough to continue pursuing, if I'm wasting everyone's time and money. Whenever I have these negative thoughts, I always tune into my favorite animated material. I look back through hundreds of years of animation and how everything has evolved. From the switch from cel animation to digital ink and paint, and how computer animation has developed, all of those improvements made in the industry due to time, and even trial and error, have always kept me going. I always knew I had a creative mind in elementary school. I often made comic books and small flip books for my friends and classmates whenever we had free time. There was one medium that has always attracted my attention, however, and it's a medium that unfortunately gets undermined a lot. That is animation, whether it be both animated movies and animated television. Animation has done a lot for entertainment, and it has been a major influence not only on my career path but has also shaped me as a person. I sometimes believe I was born in the perfect period. I have access to a lot of classics that would impact the medium while still standing as a good piece of media on its own, alongside a lot of boundary-pushing material alongside indie animation. Not only there is a lot of animation that I can appreciate, but now with the help of internet access, I can have an easier time both researching the history of animation and learning not to make the same mistakes other creative minds have had in the past. What has personally impacted me to pursue animation as a career would have to be how I was touched by a lot of the stories that were told that used animation to their advantage. The people behind all of my favorite productions managed to invest me into these imaginative worlds, and as I grew older, I would gain even more appreciation for animation. And thus, after being inspired by a lot of my favorite movies and cartoons, I realized that I wanted to take a risk and get a career in the animation industry. I know a lot goes into animation, and how draining it can be for most. For some reason, I find comfort in compositing and drawing dynamic shots. And whenever I'm at a low point, I remember the reason I'm pursuing animation: I want to give inspire other creatives with my work the same way I got inspired by others, as well as hopefully produce multiple high-quality projects in the far future.

I want to direct a passion project. Collaborating with my team, bouncing ideas together, and making the best piece of entertainment we could possibly make.

The best back-to-school tip I could possibly give out? As cliche as it sounds, you really have to get out of your personal bubble and make as many new friends as possible. The one thing I regret in my senior year of high school was not expressing myself as much as I could've, and one thing I believe this generation should work towards more is to be open about your passions and interests. Don't be afraid, everyone is also in your shoes, and show the school your greatness! - Gabriel Lara Social Handle: king_gabe_200422

Ever since I was younger, my Filipino mother has always wished to see more Filipino creatives in media, as a way to show that anyone with a creative mind can make something special. And that saying was one of the things that helped me find out what I wanted to pursue, that being: Animation. Animated Television was always something I was interested in when I was younger, being able to express myself to millions of people and provide joy to others by showing off my creative skills. But after growing up, I kept thinking about what my mother told me... how many Filipino animators get to truly express themselves with their original work? Throughout researching and studying animation, I have learned that most cartoons that are created in the U.S. are often outsourced to eastern animation studios, with the most prominent animation studios being from Korea, Japan, and the Philippines. I have always been very interested in this, a lot of the cartoons that I and my generation grew up with were outsourced to these studios, and I'm sure not that many people know about this. In essence, we are part of the reason the cartoons you grew up with exist. I respect these animation studios for working their hardest, potentially going overtime each week to animate media for us to enjoy. It was at this point is where I wanted to make something special that anyone could enjoy. I want to produce my own animated series in the future, and I'm currently enrolled at Drury University with a Degree in Animation and a Minor in Writing. I'm excited to bring awareness to my community by putting my all into my work and helping others with their passion projects. I also want to spread awareness to the animation companies that help produce the shows that are created in the U.S. along with the hard-working Filipinos that made their way to work for the likes of Disney and Pixar. I want this scholarship to help me show others that anyone can express themselves, no matter their ethnicity.

Sometimes there are points in life where you don't know who to talk to, you are just going through something harsh and you just need some comfort. Despite being "Just an animal", I will always remember the happy memories I used to have with my pitbull, Shania. Despite her breed being labeled as "One of the most aggressive and dangerous dog breeds", Shania was one of the sweetest dogs you could ever meet. It felt like she impacted me by making me more outgoing and willing to talk to others more often. Unfortunately, Shania passed right before my freshmen year of High School. Despite being gone now, I will never forget how she impacted me and helped me through my own struggles.

Sometimes you want to get something to snack on, but the harsh reality in the consumer world is that the food that usually tastes good is unfortunately really unhealthy for your body. Admittedly, it didn't take me until just last year to fully realize that I should really be taking care of my body more often instead of usually just only eating the worst possible things for me. So I started to look into more healthy options as well as start a diet so that I can not only feel more healthy but also reduce the chances of going through the harsh consequences of unhealthy eating habits as a late teen. Thankfully, I now realize the benefits of eating more healthily, the reason I enjoy superfoods specifically is due to how they benefit both my body and my taste buds. I want to know that I can still benefit myself while still eating some tasty stuff! One superfood I really love to snack on is some lightly salted almonds, I don't necessarily have this in my diet specifically, but I do know that these are very safe to include as occasional snacks. Almonds are among the most healthy nuts for you due to their proteins and healthy fats. When it comes to a superfood that is usually in my diet, one of my favorites has to be kidney beans. I just find kidney beans to be tastier than your standard beans, plus they go really great with chili. But the reason I like kidney beans the most is the fact that I can still enjoy them on their own. I eat these around twice a month, sometimes in some chili. Kidney beans are beneficial due to their amount of fibers and proteins, and I personally find it best to eat kidney beans around lunchtime so I can feel like a king later in the day. One last major superfood to mention is that I actually switched from white bread to whole grain bread. It admittedly took a while to get used to after eating white bread for so long, but after hearing about how much more healthy whole grain bread is for you as well as the benefits for the long run, I just had to at least give it a try, and I think it's for the best, as it could reduce heart disease as well as giving you more B vitamins and fiber. I typically use whole grain bread for sandwiches, as well as occasionally try some oatmeal with whole grains for breakfast. I realize how important it is to keep my body healthy, and with the help of superfoods like almonds, kidney beans, and whole grains, I know I can still enjoy eating my favorite foods without feeling guilty about my health since I know the benefits these food items have on me. Superfoods have really brought a positive impact on my life, and I couldn't be happier with the results!

If you were to ever tell me in 8th grade that I was ever going to be passionate about writing, you would have gotten shunned. For the majority of my time in middle school, I lacked focus and was constantly lost. A lot of people already planned what careers they wanted to take years before I did, which made me grow fear that I was gonna go nowhere in my life if I can't find a career path to be passionate about. Instead of thinking about what I should pursue in... I kicked back and watched TV instead because when you're in 8th grade, you tend to be lazy and don't often make the best decisions for your future... But then it clicked to me. As a mindless 13-year-old, I was always clicked with television, specifically cartoons, it was around this time that I stopped and thought to myself "Why do I like most of the shows that I watch?". The reason I like all of these shows is how everything is written. I then did bits of research on how a lot of shows are produced and looked into the extensive resumes of all of my favorite writers for animated television. I realized down this time that I would love to make my own animated series one day, but to truly make a show that's memorable to the public conscious, you need some high-quality writing to boot! So over the course of the remainder of Middle School and the first half of High School, I did even more and more research about animated television and how they're written. I even practiced writing on my own time, which soon developed my own writing style, and finally, after all of these years of being afraid I don't have a path to pursue in, I was finally confident in myself that I wanted to write for animation! As of now, I personally can't get enough of writing, I often send some spec scripts to my friends in my spare time to strengthen my writing abilities and get feedback to improve my storytelling. Practice for my writing also includes schoolwork, In my Leadership class at my High School (Parkview), I wrote advice pieces to a Middle School (Jarret) on how to prepare themselves for High School, each piece of advice had its own humorous twist as well as a message on how to 'survive' High School. Admittedly, there are times when I doubt my own personal abilities, but I always remember that there's still a lot of time ahead of me, and my skills can only improve going forward! My passion for writing has definitely improved my life, whenever I feel down in life, I can always make a little script to brighten up my mood. I plan to major in Animation at Drury University, and I couldn't be any more excited about the path I'm going to take. I still have a long road ahead of me, but my passion for writing will never leave me. I hope to be a part of many high-quality animated shows in the future, and to make everyone that's rooting for me proud!

My definition of confidence is having the ability to know that you are going to totally ace what you are about to do. You just have a really strong gut feeling that you're at least gonna gain the respect of others for at least trying your absolute hardest with that feeling that you're gonna get what you want in the end. Admittedly, I wasn't the most confident person back then... and honestly, that part still remains in me today. I would constantly worry about what others would think of me if I attempted to do something I was interested in, as well as afraid of doing assignments like presentations due to not wanting to be judged by how I presented to my peers. Whenever there was a big presentation, I was always afraid of messing up in front of the classroom, I never thought I had the ability to be good at public speaking. But practice always makes perfect... or at least not as horrible! During the last few years of school, my teachers and peers have told me that despite what I've thought, I did excellent presentations, and I should never look down on my work, which is something I took to heart to this day. Whenever I'm at my low points, I tell myself that I have what it takes to do this, and over time, I have that feeling in me that tells me "This is nothing, I got this!" I'm still not completely confident in all of my abilities, but I definitely have a while to go as I still mature, but as of now, I'm currently confident with who I am, and what I've done.

One of the talents that I am personally proud of, is the ability to do public speeches and presentations in front of crowds. It may not sound like a lot, but believe me when I say that a lot of people are really anxious and nervous whenever they are about to go up in front of the class or even the entire school to give the speech that you worked so hard on. You have the fear that you will accidentally fumble or make a mistake that will make yourself look like a clown in front of your peers. I used to be the same way before High School. Constantly fumbling, adding in forced jokes, awkward movements, etc. But after getting motivation from one of my Leadership teachers, as well as feedback and advice, it eventually made me feel a lot better about doing presentations. How do I do my talent? I just concentrate on the main point, list all of the important parts, and go in-depth, but don't make it drag out, make it as short and sweet as possible while not ignoring the main point of said presentation! Before a presentation, I always take notecards and list major points, sometimes even do practice presentations to my peers, before finally showcasing the final presentation or speech to everyone. However, it doesn't mean I still don't occasionally get nervous before a presentation, I'm still human after all, I just remember to keep calm and collected, and tell myself that I'll ace it! I just did my final major speech in my Leadership 401 Graduation at Parkview High, where I got praise from my classmates, family, and staff. Giving out professional speeches/presentations is my talent.

If you've ever had to get weekly allergy shots for almost 6 years with a required 30-minute wait... you'd grow a bit of patience over the years. The simple reason why being patient is important is that time is about to fly before you know it. Admittedly, I'm honestly still that patient of a person---really, but that doesn't mean I won't be willing to wait for something if it benefits me in the long run. There's also the case of something bad happening to a loved one, depending on who they are, it can take a really long while for them to recover from whatever they just experienced. As long as you stay patient with them and help them cool down. This is why patience is pretty important to me, I understand that people recover from different speeds, and rushing to try my hardest to make them recover is likely not gonna do either of us well. In conclusion: While I may not exactly be the most patient person, I do think being patient is important since everyone is going to need it at some point in their lives.

Everybody wants to make an impact on the world, whether good or bad. The impact some people wish to bring into the world can be big, for others, it's just minor things they can bring to the table that still improves upon the world. Admittedly, the impact I want to bring onto the world is either big or small depending on your point of view. I want to inspire other people who are passionate about animation and help them pursue their careers. I want to make high-quality animated television, which would hopefully leave a good impact, no matter how small the impact my show makes. Whether it will be an inspiration for anyone out there who watches it or to possibly help kickstart someone's career by being a part of my show. The thought of either of those happening makes me feel joy. I plan to work with a lot of people and a good company to bring my work to life, I would love to see people who previously helped to bring my show to the world eventually create their original creations, which just so happens to also innovate other people, thus continuing the cycle. As well as my show growing a fanbase, which would inspire more people to create their own original media. My dream may not be too "life-changing" or "revolutionary", but it will leave an impact on animation in the future, even if it's just a minor impact on the industry.

There's a lot of simple things in life that could make anyone happy. Some of mine? Okay, I'm gonna try my ABSOLUTE HARDEST not to sound like an absolute cornball, but one of those simple pleasures of mine is to bring a smile on anyone's face, whether it's just checking up on someone, helping them retrieve something they lost, or even trying to cheer them up when they're feeling down. I guess knowing I can make people smile just makes me happy! And then there are the simple pleasures in life that completely rots my brain! I just love watching stupid videos in my spare time, it just completely relaxes me if I ever had a stressful day. Drawing can be counted too, sometimes you got too much in your mind and you gotta express yourself somehow, even if you aren't exactly an expert drawer like mwah. That's about all of the simple pleasures I know that makes me happy. Now, I could also go on about how family and friendship also are debatably simple things that make me happy, but I got a certain corniness threshold that I probably went over, so I'll leave it like that! So... Is it weird that writing this essay low-key made me a bit happy?

My dream life... can be simply said. I dream about being a detective, a marketer, an animator... always feeling accomplished with what I'm doing. Of course, good dreams eventually come to an end, and those dreams fade away from our memories when time progresses, and when we mature as human beings. People who take their dreams seriously have been mocked by their peers, often being seen as childish or too optimistic for their own good, and that they'll never get a chance to do what they love. But what's wrong with having passion and determination to have a set goal on achieving your dreams? My dream life is simply to produce as much high-quality animated television shows that I can without feeling drained out or going through burn-out. Producing animated television has always been my biggest dream, not only getting a solid income but expressing myself to the world with my creations would just be a dream come true... and it's the dream I'm going to pursue. People have told me my dream is unrealistic, they don't seem to take animated television seriously despite having limitless opportunities... similar to dreams. I haven't given up on wanting to do what I want to do for a living, and nothing will stop my dream from coming true.

Despite all of the flaws that I often tell myself, every bad thing I experience, every time I blame myself for doing something wrong... I get back on my feet and try again. I have often doubted all of my abilities as a person, trying my hardest to improve my image, I want to be there for all of my friends and family---whenever I fail, I would constantly ask myself "Why are there people out there who love me?" I have constantly put effort into giving my friends the best possible experience with me. I have made people and even made people disappointed... but whenever I do a bad job at something... I try my absolute hardest to get back onto my feet and improve upon my mistakes. Yes, my flaws are glaring, but one thing that I will always love about myself is how I'll never give up on something, and whenever I "fail" at doing something, I cut to the chase and attempt to learn from my mistake(s). I'm not someone who easily gives up on something, I'm someone who will come up with the best possible outcome that I can think of for everyone. And whenever I'm feeling down for any reason, I'll always remind myself that I never give up, no matter the cause and that I love that aspect of me, and that is something that I will always love about me, and nothing will ever stop me from loving my determination.

Sometimes whenever you're feeling awful about everything, you know there's someone in your life that will always put a smile back on your face and bounce you back. True friendship is something that can never be replaced and brings out the best aspects of every person, unfortunately not everyone has been able to experience the spectacular feeling of knowing that multiple people in your life will always have your back, which is very unfortunate. If I ever had to tell someone who never experienced true friends what friendship meant to me, I would respond with: "Friendship is something you have to experience for yourself, what friendship means to me is people that you can have a great laugh with no matter what the conversation, topic, or just to engage with basically anything, or to have the ability to make each other feel better whenever someone is down. Unfortunately, a lot of my old friends now have moved on, whether it was having to move somewhere else, or ultimately go down a dark path for themselves, but I have since gained even more friends and experienced new adventures and great times with them! And nothing will stop me from trying my hardest to keep on making more and more good friends with people, because friendship means so much to me.

I know this art piece may not be seen as something as unique as an original creation, but I'm honestly surprised with how my art piece has turned out as someone who only just recently began doing artwork, and I can only see myself improving in the future! This is a drawing on one of Spider-Man's memorable foes--- The Sandman! I drew this while trying to find my own style, to hopefully give the character some justice, as not only the villain, but the Spider-Man property as a whole. The franchise overall really shaped who I am today, and is one of the biggest inspirations to me to pursue as an artist/animation producer. My dream is to one day hopefully make my own animated franchise to show my true abilities as a animator, producer, and a writer. I would love to also collaborate with others to make something that stands out, and I wish to improve upon my artwork skills in general to make pieces of artwork that I will always feel spectacular about. I can feel great things coming up in my future. Much Love- Gabriel Lara