Board Member
Since last February, I have grown acquainted with ASIFA-East and its tight-knit, inclusive community of artists. As a recent member of the chapter’s board, my responsibilities include (but are not limited to) developing a special interactive project currently in the works, sharing exclusive event coverage on social media, initiating an open dialogue between ASIFA and its closely affiliated institutions, and occasionally proofreading the odd aNYmator issue.
I am fortunate to have been appointed a Board Member during my ongoing transition from undergrad to life beyond the educational ecosystem. In a post-pandemic climate, I strive to broaden my social horizons by seizing as many networking opportunities as possible. This past fall’s edition of the Ottawa International Animation Festival, my first trip outside of the United States in five years, was an example of that goal. In addition to being a volunteer around the festival’s office and merchandising shop, I struck up brief conversations with several representatives of Canada’s most prominent independent animation studios, namely Floating Island Entertainment CEO Michael Hirsh.
Visual mediums like animation and film provide alternative modes of communication and self-expression, thus bridging a gap between me and my social milieu. Were it not for early exposure to the meticulously crafted world of stop-motion puppetry (i.e. Wallace & Gromit, The Nightmare Before Christmas [1993], Chicken Run [2000], and the ilk) subsequent collaborative efforts with children who were roughly around my age or a bit older, or even the figure drawing portraits I create nowadays, I wouldn’t be the creatively open-minded individual I am today.