When did you figure out what you really wanted to be in life? Did your dreams change over the years? Often our dreams are traded for the tangible, the practical, even the unforeseeable. In the days of instant gratification, dreams are a luxury people can't afford to follow. Passions are forsaken for security. Impossible odds weed us out to the roads travel laden. A death, a new life, an addiction. A dream is not a rare thing, but a protected dream that stands the test of time is quite the collectible.
At age five I knew my dream. Most boys that age wanted to be firemen or policemen. I decided I wanted to make video games. The hardest part of parenting for my dad revolved around getting me away from the TV, and getting the controller out of my hands. I told my parents what I planned to do when I grew up, and they did what any good mentor would do--they infantilized me. "Of course you will be. You can be whatever you want when you grow up". They never believed for an instant that I would see my five year old resolution to its end. And they were almost right.
When I graduated high school everything ramped up. The stakes were higher, as after four years of labor we were all born into the big machine. The competition was real, and only those with a little postpartum aggression would survive. Questions that had waited silently on the sidelines were now vivid, and the only things worth talking about. In the whirlwind query that followed I slipped away from my dream. Real world practicalities slammed down on me, and the riptide was so disorienting that I didn't even realize I had a dream in the first place. I took a scholarship to become a computer and electrical engineer. It was a full ride, with a work-study setup with Bellsouth. It was free. It was safe. It was practical. It was wrong.
A childhood friend took me back to my roots. Over the years, my dream became his dream as well. Justin Woodard loved computer graphics as much as I did, and when I failed to act on my passions, his success in following them jarred me back on the straight and narrow. After he announced his intentions to attend the Art Institute of Atlanta for computer animation, I realized that I had betrayed a very important part of my existence. I had sold out so quickly, that I now realize that I hadn't even weighed my options for pursuing my life long endeavors. He gave me the push I needed. I dropped out of college that semester to reevaluate what was important to me. It wasn't an easy decision, nor was it well received by my family. It cut me off from my father's good graces. I had to prove myself alone, but since I was following my passion, everything came naturally.
I was the star student of Virginia College in Birmingham. It was typical of today's trade school's, but I was learning exactly what I loved. I stayed at the school 40 plus hours, Monday through Thursday, and I was having the time of my life. Unfortunately, the path to success is not a straightforward one. Two years into the program, the computer animation degree (a new one at the college) dissolved. I had half of a bachelor's degree, and needed to act fast if I wanted to get the rest. Fortunately, my dad witnessed my growth as I proved myself in my endeavors at VC. When things ended there, he helped me move to another avenue of higher learning.
Full Sail University strives to build a name for itself as the "Harvard of Media Arts Colleges", and I believe it will succeed. I chose to continue my education in Orlando, Florida at this school for the simple reason that it hosted a four year degree that you complete on an accelerated course of 21 months. I was ready to build things for the real world. I didn't want to see another project graded and forgotten. It was time for my work to hit the masses. What they didn't mention was that the 21 months would be some of the hardest I would ever encounter. In four days I spent over 80 hours on campus working on my finals. Labs were scheduled at one and five in the morning. Classes lasted a month, and you had the weekend to get ready for the next set. There were times that I hated it. There were times that I loved it. At the end, I was just happy to leave it. The ends to my dreams justified the arduous journey to reach them. I'm glad that I went to Full Sail, and nothing can take away what I earned there.
Now that college is over, I'm ready to take the next steps in following my dream. I'm eager to achieve my goals, and I find they are changing, evolving and growing on a daily basis. I'm glad you have chosen to join me as I follow them to completion, and would like to thank you for reading about my journey to date. If you want to see the fruits of my college labors, check out my portfolio site as well as my flickr account.
My Portfolio Site (Check out the art section)
My flickr Account
At age five I knew my dream. Most boys that age wanted to be firemen or policemen. I decided I wanted to make video games. The hardest part of parenting for my dad revolved around getting me away from the TV, and getting the controller out of my hands. I told my parents what I planned to do when I grew up, and they did what any good mentor would do--they infantilized me. "Of course you will be. You can be whatever you want when you grow up". They never believed for an instant that I would see my five year old resolution to its end. And they were almost right.
When I graduated high school everything ramped up. The stakes were higher, as after four years of labor we were all born into the big machine. The competition was real, and only those with a little postpartum aggression would survive. Questions that had waited silently on the sidelines were now vivid, and the only things worth talking about. In the whirlwind query that followed I slipped away from my dream. Real world practicalities slammed down on me, and the riptide was so disorienting that I didn't even realize I had a dream in the first place. I took a scholarship to become a computer and electrical engineer. It was a full ride, with a work-study setup with Bellsouth. It was free. It was safe. It was practical. It was wrong.
A childhood friend took me back to my roots. Over the years, my dream became his dream as well. Justin Woodard loved computer graphics as much as I did, and when I failed to act on my passions, his success in following them jarred me back on the straight and narrow. After he announced his intentions to attend the Art Institute of Atlanta for computer animation, I realized that I had betrayed a very important part of my existence. I had sold out so quickly, that I now realize that I hadn't even weighed my options for pursuing my life long endeavors. He gave me the push I needed. I dropped out of college that semester to reevaluate what was important to me. It wasn't an easy decision, nor was it well received by my family. It cut me off from my father's good graces. I had to prove myself alone, but since I was following my passion, everything came naturally.
I was the star student of Virginia College in Birmingham. It was typical of today's trade school's, but I was learning exactly what I loved. I stayed at the school 40 plus hours, Monday through Thursday, and I was having the time of my life. Unfortunately, the path to success is not a straightforward one. Two years into the program, the computer animation degree (a new one at the college) dissolved. I had half of a bachelor's degree, and needed to act fast if I wanted to get the rest. Fortunately, my dad witnessed my growth as I proved myself in my endeavors at VC. When things ended there, he helped me move to another avenue of higher learning.
Full Sail University strives to build a name for itself as the "Harvard of Media Arts Colleges", and I believe it will succeed. I chose to continue my education in Orlando, Florida at this school for the simple reason that it hosted a four year degree that you complete on an accelerated course of 21 months. I was ready to build things for the real world. I didn't want to see another project graded and forgotten. It was time for my work to hit the masses. What they didn't mention was that the 21 months would be some of the hardest I would ever encounter. In four days I spent over 80 hours on campus working on my finals. Labs were scheduled at one and five in the morning. Classes lasted a month, and you had the weekend to get ready for the next set. There were times that I hated it. There were times that I loved it. At the end, I was just happy to leave it. The ends to my dreams justified the arduous journey to reach them. I'm glad that I went to Full Sail, and nothing can take away what I earned there.
Now that college is over, I'm ready to take the next steps in following my dream. I'm eager to achieve my goals, and I find they are changing, evolving and growing on a daily basis. I'm glad you have chosen to join me as I follow them to completion, and would like to thank you for reading about my journey to date. If you want to see the fruits of my college labors, check out my portfolio site as well as my flickr account.
My Portfolio Site (Check out the art section)
My flickr Account
