3D Art / Animation
Programs: Blender, After Effects, Clip Studio Paint, Maya, Adobe Animate, Photoshop
Skills: Character Animation, Background Design, Asset Creation, Motion Graphics
2014
All the way back in 2014, when I was 12 years old spending my time browsing Youtube on my living room PC I found these mesmerizing videos of jenga block tower simulations. After stealing my impressionable mind’s attention for hours a day I discovered that the program used to make them was available to me. Downloading the program I awaited finally getting my cut of this mesmerizing cake. I expected a perfect software to create as it was said back then “epic” (and debatedly now) jenga tower sims. When the file finally downloaded and was installed the anticipation couldn’t have been greater. Then, a shock… This isn’t a jenga tower simulator… what is this? What are all these buttons? The name of the program I had just installed was Blender and little did I know this would be the start of my Blender journey.
2019
By this point I was a bit proficient with my 3D skills. Or so I thought. The thing about being a high-school junior in 2019 with five years of experience in 3D software is that there aren’t many people like yourself. However, with this I didn’t feel isolated or lonely. Instead, this manifested in a bubbling ego of myself in an artistic light. When I heard of a 3D-Animation category in Future Business Leaders of America my mind lit up. In the face of others who had less experience than me, I scoffed internally with the sight of each of their amateur projects. At the state level I won first place. Then I went national. I was incredibly confident. This was a moment to show how much my own skillset trumped everybody else by a landslide… I lost. I was shattered. In my shocked state, I watched those who had advanced presentations only to be insulted. People were crying from nervousness in their presentations. People who didn’t even know the basics of good topology. They had beaten me? In my depression my mind began to change slowly. I began to not think too much of myself anymore and to see the value in everyone. I went home and went to work… College was coming and not only that, but the rest of my life as well.
2024
Five years later, I’ve now graduated college with a Bachelors in Animation. My 3D / Animation skills are as sharp as ever yet now I know the road of artistic knowledge in front of me is endless, yet as long as I make it. I work day in day out to try and improve my skills and get as far on this road as possible. I’ve developed 3D skills in retopology, asset creation, background design, animation and much more. I have experience in Blender, Maya, Unreal Engine and Unity to name a few. I’ve worked on two animated short films. With that I’ve had a fair share of artistic regrets as well as triumphs. Serving as director on both of them I’ve learned copious amounts on the subject of trusting group members, communication and how to value the input of others. Every day I excitedly await what new experiences this artistic path / career will bring me.