Nothing Gold Can Stay
But We Should Cherish It Nonetheless
Well, here we are folks.
We've come so far and now I feel as if I stand on the pinnacle, the edge of a very high cliff
A cliff I will soon leap from, but to go forward we must not forget to look back
When I joined e-Communication, it was a leap of faith. Faith in the hope of learning and developing, of meeting people with whom I could share what I love, of finally finding what it was that I was wanting to find for so long: a purpose. Perhaps it sounds cheesy, phrased like that, but it's true. Most of these hopes have accumulated in this final year.
Being here has shown me the true meaning of dedication, the truth behind persistence. Animation as an art form is rarely seen as a hobbyists' fare for it so dramatically absorbs the time and focus of the animator. So many people look at an animated movie, show, or even a short animated GIF and think 'that's not so great, even I could do that!' but they do not understand. Even now I may not understand what it is that I know, and find myself thinking that things will be 'easy' or 'simple' when neither is close to the truth. Discovering what goes into those animations: the hours, the heart, the thought, forces you to appreciate the art at a deeper level than before. You can see under the face value of a feature animated film and have a sense of the scale of what was needed to make it, and no longer wonder why end credits roll for so very long.
When I began here I was quite naive and was one of those who thought it would be simple as it looks, and was hit with a well-deserved reality pie-to-the-face. But rather than, like some, find it disgraceful and painful to face and turn my back on the art and think I'm above it, I take that pie and find it to be so unusually delicious.
So...
What did I learn?
E-communication taught me...
...Technologically, how to use industry-standard software to help take my ideas, from a small yellow bird to an alien robot, and weave into them the illusion of life.
...How to be a leader. I was made to learn, by having to perform, certain leadership methods and challenges. Last year, for example, I helped lead a group to create our stop-motion short: A Beary Bad Day. Not only was it hard to get everyone on the same page, but I found that, to be a leader, one must sacrifice parts of their own desires to keep the group placated.
...How to collaborate with others. In the same project mentioned earlier, I found in some situations, the skills that make a good leader and an effective collaborator are not all that different form each other.
...Communication skills. As in the name of the program itself, e-Communication provides significant experience in communicating with not only your peers, but with mentors and sometimes, even yourself!
...How to manage projects, and by extension, how to manage myself. Many times I have set up a goal for myself had had to leave out parts of projects to compensate for time or ability. With my animation Case File: Luke, I had to remove some of the animation that would have shown his personality for the sake of time. These time management skills will aid me in managing the rest of my life as well.
I will be the one who takes the lessons learned, lessons of time, of talent, of planning and of effort and will utilize them no matter what changes may arise in my vision for the future.
All in all, I think the past four years have been nothing short of wonderful in this program, and I hope to one day come back and visit, to encourage aspiring artists like myself to never give up.
...Technologically, how to use industry-standard software to help take my ideas, from a small yellow bird to an alien robot, and weave into them the illusion of life.
...How to be a leader. I was made to learn, by having to perform, certain leadership methods and challenges. Last year, for example, I helped lead a group to create our stop-motion short: A Beary Bad Day. Not only was it hard to get everyone on the same page, but I found that, to be a leader, one must sacrifice parts of their own desires to keep the group placated.
...Communication skills. As in the name of the program itself, e-Communication provides significant experience in communicating with not only your peers, but with mentors and sometimes, even yourself!
...How to manage projects, and by extension, how to manage myself. Many times I have set up a goal for myself had had to leave out parts of projects to compensate for time or ability. With my animation Case File: Luke, I had to remove some of the animation that would have shown his personality for the sake of time. These time management skills will aid me in managing the rest of my life as well.
So,
Who am I now? Because of this experience?
I am Greta. The student who loves to animate. The student who is trying to learn an art more difficult that ever thought.
I am the student who excels at concept. The student that finds meaning in creating what before didn't exist and giving things live, movement, background, form. The student who prides themselves so much on this that too much time is spent thinking and not enough on making.
The student who finds fault in her ability to plan, organize, and set goals within reason. The student who needs to reconcile her hopes with her need to practice and her dreams.
What have I become? I have gone from the girl who worked little but still made the grade to the girl who works hard on her craft with no concern for her grade. I have taken my self-doubt and my fears of insufficiency and meta-morphed them into a butterfly of determination and drive.
I will be the one who takes the lessons learned, lessons of time, of talent, of planning and of effort and will utilize them no matter what changes may arise in my vision for the future.
All in all, I think the past four years have been nothing short of wonderful in this program, and I hope to one day come back and visit, to encourage aspiring artists like myself to never give up.
