This unit was focused on discovering and describing our personal identity. We explored creating Mandalas, wrote a personal essay, and explored tools to express ourselves in After Effects. I learned a lot about myself when I was prompted to describe “essence objects”, or objects that represents my core character traits or values. Writing the personal essay required me to reflect on my life and fit my life story into a narrative, which helped me gain clarity on who I am and where I am going.

Core Values: Video

Mandalas

Digital: Colored and Black & White

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Artist Statement: B&W Mandala

Title: Anika

Originally, I had a plan to create an entirely different mandala, but I scrapped it since it didn’t look as planned. I decided to make a piece dedicated to my girlfriend, Anika. There are important dates, nicknames, and hearts glittered throughout the mandala. This was my first time making art in Adobe Illustrator and I feel like I learned the basics. I was surprised to find out that I preferred to use my mouse more often than the tablet. I’m glad that I could make a switch halfway through this project and still finish with a good product.

Artist Statement: Colored Mandala

Title: Sporgle Borgle

You may notice that this mandala is smaller than the others. Although it could be seen as lacking, I believe it to be succinct. The piece includes everything that I wanted it to, and it was a fun break to explore whatever my mind imagined. I’m glad that I explored different stroke widths and color gradients to create a piece that isn’t what I would typically make. I’m glad how the colors and shapes seem to complement each other to create a cohesive design that feels both natural and surprising. While small, “Sporgle Borgle’’ is a fun and quirky piece that I am proud of.

Engraved Mandala (B&W Version)

Artist Statement: Engraved Mandala

Title: Ms. Flower

I am very happy to see my mandala in person. I went through many changes with my mandala and finally landed on a good final version. I have learned a lot during this unit and hope to create more projects like this in the future!

Mandala Reveal Video

Personal Essay

In English, we wrote a personal essay for college applications but also to help narrate our life story or emphasize characteristics of ourselves. This project forced me to narrate my life and made judgements about what I should include and consequently, craft “my story”.

<- Personal Essay PDF

Motion Graphics

In Digital Media, we learned various motion graphics techniques in After Effects. I think it’s super cool to know how to do these “basic” but useful techniques!

After Effects behind the scenes of Engraved Mandala video

Film Class

I’ve always loved making videos, but as a first year senior I have lots of catching up to do. I grew up making Minecraft videos on Youtube and making skits for home videos with my dad and brother, now I get to explore my video creating passion with the Film elective.

Personal Video Essay

We were assigned a Personal Video Essay of sorts at the same time as our Personal essay in English. I decided to use the same narrative structure as my essay. Using just myself, my camera, and a tripod, I converted it to a 2 minute video.

Green Screen Example

We were assigned an activity to learn how to “green screen” in Premiere Pro. We filmed in the Freestyle studio and used the green wall inside. Here’s me standing at a bus stop.

Thank you for looking through my work done in the Reflections unit.