What My Work Means To Me
I am inspired by the power film has to unite and educate the viewers, I do not take that responsibility for granted. As someone who is of mixed culture, with friends and family of various racial backgrounds and sexual orientations, I have seen firsthand the detrimental effects that result from not only improper representation, but also the lack of accurate representation. Experiencing family members finally seeing their racial background portrayed accurately has also motivated me to widen the current racial representation in film. Seeing my mother overjoyed with tears as she witnesses a strong female lead or my grandparents crying, as they see a middle eastern character portrayed as the hero rather than the heavily used terrorist stereotype boosts my determination to provide further accuracy in future film representation.
Myself as an Artist
Throughout my life film has always intrigued me. The power film has to unite as well as educate others has always captivated and inspired me. From the young age of five I was enamored with the storytelling aspect of film, and the way films were executed. At this young age I would watch behind the scenes as well as bonus features repeatedly. Directors would discuss and show how film sets were created as well as how they captured unique scenes with camera manipulation. I was obsessed with film and wanted to continue to learn the filmmaking process because I knew this was something I wanted to do in my adult life. I started pursuing my passion for film by taking photography courses in both middle school and high school. I wanted to start with a similar art that would help me gain confidence in my ability to capture scenes that were aesthetically pleasing to the viewer. After learning about the camera and all its features as well as how to manipulate it with its proper placement, I gained the confidence to enroll in film courses. Continuing to pursue my goal of becoming a director of film I decided to enroll in the Digital Filmmaking course at the UCLA Film and Television Summer Institute Program. After applying and being accepted into the summer course I felt a profound sense of confidence as I took my first major steps into film education. This course taught me so much from the basics of film to the art of script writing, storyboards, as well as intricacies lighting and sound. This opportunity allowed me to discuss my ideas with professors, graduate students, and other professionals in the film industry as well as with film adoring peers, was deeply motivating and reassuring that this was indeed my dream.