Video games are more than a means of entertainment. They can make a person feel any number of emotions or feelings, largely because of the art and animation of the characters and settings. The way a character looks, moves, and interacts with its surroundings is a large part of the game. Make sure the settings match the story or feeling the developers want the player to feel. I look at games not only for gameplay but also animation because the animation is what brings the characters to life and lets players feel immersed. Animation is not just a tool it is the story. A line under the eye or between the eyebrows can show a completely different emotion than the one before. It has been done in countless video games and it's one of the things that makes it feel like you are there with the characters, experiencing what they are. A shift in posture doesn’t need to be obvious for it to make a difference. A slight change in the animation can give a player insight into the characters and make the game more than just a mindless pastime but an enjoyable personal journey. The way the setting, characters, and props are animated and styled can completely change the tone and vibe of the game. The dark, cold, realistic animation from The Quarry gives a scary or uneasy feeling that goes along with the thriller gameplay. As opposed to the bright, colorful, and stylized animation of animal crossing, with its simplistic and cozy gameplay. One can make the player feel they are somewhere they aren’t supposed to be, that something is going on, and may even feel cold like the characters may feel. When the other can make them feel like they're just a little guy living on an island, completing tasks for the little animal villagers, and feeling warm inside while they talk to their favorite villagers. Both games have their success, but the animation helps give the feeling the players need to feel to understand the tone of the game. The way a character is designed can tell you so much. Are they wearing a parka somewhere warm and sunny? Do they have specific cultural clothing in a noncultural setting? Do they have suspicious accessories that seem to become the focus at what appear to be random times? Little things about a character’s appearance can dictate whether they belong in the setting or not. If a character looks out of place you’ll question if something is wrong with the story. But it will also give you insight into their life and backstory. A big, buff man with multiple scars would most likely have a dangerous job fighting or catching dangerous creatures but a short woman with a baby bottle in her belt is probably a mother or someone who feeds baby animals. The design of a character alone can give so much information that many people will miss or just ignore, thinking it's unimportant accessories or just to make the character cool. When you look big picture, without animation or art most games would be boring. Animation is one of the biggest storytelling devices games have. The movement of characters, grass shifting in the breeze, and the cut scenes with tense plot points where characters are yelling or fighting, are all brought to life from hours are drawing and sketching. Animation makes gameplay better and unforgettable. The animation of a video game is what draws me in and keeps me. A game could have much better play but if the animation is bad I won't play it.

I have loved art since I first learned how to draw a bad anime girl from a new friend in fourth grade. I have loved authoring stories and creating characters since I, willingly, spent recess inside with my sixth-grade English teacher, writing away at a short story for an assignment. My love for creating was a large part of my middle school life and is now a large part of my high school and personal life. I have always made characters with different backstories and complex thinking and reasoning. I use my art and writing to express the diverse ways emotions are expressed, several types of families or friends, different dynamics, and disabilities. I often learn from my friends and then research different things to add more diversity and representation. I have worked to include as many people as possible in my stories and will continue working. I have taken art class after art class, trying to learn as much as I could. I have bought tutorial books and watched hundreds of art YouTubers’ tutorials. I have spent hours drawing and sketching away. Art is something I take seriously. I made up my mind years ago that art would be how I made money in the future and now the future is here. I am doing anatomy studies, style studies, animal studies, and more. I am dedicating sketchbooks to comic and animation series. I am full of ideas most days. My free time and dreams are filled with ideas, plots, personalities, designs, and so much more I do not know if I would ever be able to put it all into words. I know that if allowed to have the finances to upgrade my supplies and seek further education in the animation and writing industries, It could make my dreams and stories come true so much quicker than I could on my own. I could use the education for more things than advancing my skills; I could use the opportunity to network, collaborate, adventure away from my normal, and gain insight into parts of life that are hard or near impossible to truly understand by research alone. I have been supported by those around me for most of my life. I want to support and inspire other young creators. I want to be the catalyst for other artists and writers to start. With the ability to get new supplies and further my education I can have the time and resources to become greater than I am and make others better themselves.

Billie Eilish is among the most inspirational musicians for creative careers and hobbies. Her songs can create images in the mind of scenes, characters' backstories or designs, and emotions. I have been a fan of her music since I first got my phone. I listened to her music and felt inspired, seeing scenes and ideas for villains. The first song I ever listened to by Billie Eilish was her “You Should See Me in a Crown” official video. At the time parts of the video scared me because of the spider motifs and, what I would call, slight body horror. I listened and watched the official video when I was younger, possibly the same year it was released. I saw images of abandoned towns and cities with a character walking through the streets, talking to a companion about what it would be like if they were the rulers. It may seem cliche but “Ocean Eyes” helped me make some of my first original characters. I liked the idea of characters falling in love with someone's blue eyes, not the person but their eyes. I made characters with pretty, ocean eyes living their best life, and another character is captivated by their eyes. They carefully try to get closer to Ocean Eyes, wanting those eyes to be in their life. The love is one-sided and Ocean Eyes is oblivious. Being told I have “the prettiest blue eyes” growing up made me feel like I could be Ocean Eyes. I felt seen for what felt to be the first time in my life. I had stopped listening to Billie’s new songs for a little while, sticking with the older song that I found to be comforting when I accidentally came across “The 30th". I was doing dishes and couldn’t skip to one of my comfort Billie songs. I listened to the song thinking I would tune it out until it was done but I found myself pausing the dishes and truly listening to the words. I stopped dishes early and sat down and listened to the song on repeat, letting the lyrics and words sink in, looking for hidden meanings or not-so-hidden meanings. “The 30th" is a song that makes my soul hurt sometimes. Listening to it reminds me of times when I was unsure if my friends would be alive the next day. Some of the lyrics remind me of when people in my life were struggling and sent me unsettling messages. Or when my best friend was hospitalized for a medical issue, and she told me she was scared that she could have died. I was so scared that I could barely sleep until she called me to say she was fine and going home. I have been inspired by Billie Eilish since I was twelve to thirteen years old, and I am still inspired by her music to this day like many others. Her music has helped me make backgrounds, and characters, and understand emotions that I don’t know how to process.

Introduction: Only having one parent in your life makes things unnecessarily difficult, especially when the parent you live with never graduated high school. The influence of the parent affects how someone feels about themselves and others. I want to make sure I am better than those who were around me growing up, rise above the hardships around me. I want to get further than my parents did, and I want to volunteer more than I was able to when I was growing up. First point: I have both of my parents but live with my dad full time. I rarely see my mom and my parents aren’t married. My parents are considered single parents. My dad has always been a big part of my life. His opinions weigh heavily on me and cause me to second guess my decisions. He didn’t finish high school, so I want to get further than he did. He fought and worked and is living out his dreams and I want to do the same. Having one constant influence and then a rare one makes decisions difficult for me. My mom wanted As on every assignment from me, while my dad wanted me to pass and be happy. My mom wants me to go to college immediately out of high school, my dad doesn’t want me to leave home yet. I want to pursue higher education and learn as much as possible about my different interests, but I don’t want to let down my dad. I feel like I must balance and keep both happy, but I don’t know how to when they want different things from me. I live in one house but still feel the influence of the other. Second point: I wasn’t able to volunteer much before high school. JROTC and some high school clubs are what allow me to have the volunteering experience I have now. I want to volunteer for pounds, shelters, homeless shelters, and more but we can’t fit it into the schedule or expenses. So, I plan to do what I can when I’m an adult. When I can drive and work. I want to become financially independent and stable so I can give back in one of the biggest ways, in my opinion. Adoption. I want to foster and adopt teens and young adults. Statistics show they are less likely to be adopted, causing many to have a bad start when they age out or try to go to college, and I want to change that. I want to give them a better start to a bigger story. Help them through high school and college. I will still volunteer for organizations and such, but I will teach the kids I adopt how to do the same. I will teach them the best I can to be better citizens of the community. Conclusion: A parent’s opinions and thoughts impact their child more than they may see. Doing extracurriculars and volunteer work is hard when you have one parent consistently in your life because scheduling and money may prevent you from making the events. There ar many ways to give back to the community by volunteering, making blankets or packed food for the homeless, adopting or fostering, and more. It is important that we do what we can to be better citizens but to also create better citizens that will give back to their community as well.

Mental health and representation are some of the most important things in this day and age. Preserving one’s mental health will maintain their health in general. A degree is not needed to give someone good emotional and mental support for those around them. I help the people around me currently by being the therapist friend and I can continue to do so with my career by spreading daily positivity. I am one of the first people my friends go to when they need to talk or ask for advice. I am also that person for many JROTC cadets. I am blunt but kind when I tell someone they are in the wrong or something happening to them is, on the rare occasion, their fault alone or in general. People appreciate my honest thoughts and the insight I have on relationships, school, laws, and more. I know little bits of nearly everything so I can provide the best support I can. If I don’t know something I will tell them so and then research so I may still provide them and others with the advice or knowledge they need to make decisions. I plan to continue to do this as I go to college and then in my future careers. While I do not plan to major in counseling, psychology, sociology, or other such degrees I do plan to bring daily joy and positivity through my art. I try to make my stories and characters as inclusive and representative of other cultures, religions, races, sexes, etc. I want as many people as possible to feel seen and represented in my art and writing, whether it is by the previously stated ways or family or friend dynamics. I do my best to include as accurate information as possible on experiences I have and have not had. I’m emotional support for my friends by being the one who listens and researches to give as useful information as possible and I plan to be emotional and mental support for others by including as many different experiences as I feel comfortable with. It is so important to protect your mental health, and I want to be one of the creators people look forward to getting a notification about an update on a comic or animation.

My parents are not married, divorced, nor separated, but we do not live with each other. When I tell people I am going to visit my mom over extended breaks I often get the questions, "Oh, your parents are divorced?" or "Your parents are separated?", I have to explain no, my parents are not divorced, and they have never been married to each other. It makes me feel outcasted sometimes. Many times, when I explain our family dynamic and situation, I get a weird look and the conversation ends. I have to miss out on activities or trips to see Mom, Dad has to deal with the pressures of a teenage daughter trying to figure things out, and Mom misses some of the most important times of my life. My parents are not together but they are not separated. I have chosen to miss club trips, sleepovers, volunteer projects, and more so I could see Mom. Since she's on call over the weekend for her job she may have to pack up and drive back to her house away from us. Often the weekend is the first time in a week, sometimes month, I have seen Mom. It does not only affect me, but it also affects Dad. The pressure of having to raise a teenage daughter is a lot for Dad. I try to make it easier on him, but some things cannot be made easier. I do not often get the ability to tell Mom girl drama or anxieties about feminine topics, so I go to Dad. He tries to help but he does not know everything about stuff. Dad hears rants about problems in my friend group or how period pains are so unfair because I am having miniature contractions and am not happy about it. I have told Dad about so many things that should be told to a mom, but I do not have the luxury very often. Many days Mom works late and goes straight to bed because she lives in a house alone with no one to talk to. When she comes home, I do not know what to talk to her about because the fears, concerns, and gossip or drama have already been given to Dad and now, I do not remember all of them. I have to push important things off and wait till the weekend because it requires Mom's help, or I wanted to include her in my decisions. My own mom had to miss my first prom. She came to help with makeup and take me to get ready but had to leave after taking some photos and never saw me do the grand walk. She is taking time off months in advance for the chance to be there for my senior prom. This is a dynamic I do not think is represented enough, if at all. My family is not broken or falling apart. We are perfectly together in a way that works for our situation. More people need to know, family dynamics like mine do not mean a family is broken or do not love each other. It means they are working harder to be there for big events, for birthdays and holidays, and for small calls about a breakup. I want to show people the truth about how my family works together despite being apart most of the week through my art and writing so at least one more person may know we do still love each other, or they are not the only one with a physically separated family but together in spirit and love.